DECEMBER 2017

VOLUME 6 ISSUE 12

SUNDAY SERMONS

December 3rd “The Potter and the Clay” Psalm 80:1-7 Isaiah 64:1-9 December 10th “Choices” Children’s Christmas Program & Confirmation December 17th “Who Are You?” Isaiah 64:1-4 John 1:19-28 December 24th Christmas Eve 9:15am“My Soul Magnifies the Lord” Luke 1:26-38 Luke 1:46-55 7:00pm “There Was No Room for Them? Isaiah 9:2-7 Luke 2:1-20 December 31st “Where is the Child” Psalm 148:1-6 Matthew 2:1-12

INSIDE THIS ISSUE:

WORSHIP ASSISTANTS,

PRAYERS, CELEBRATE 2

COUNCIL SUMMARY &

STEWARDSHIP REPORT 3

CHILDREN’S PAGE 4

PASTOR’S PAGE 5

NEWS & EVENTS 6

CALENDAR 7

Geneseo Voice

Wishing you a

very Merry

Christmas

and a blessed

Happy New Year!

From your Geneseo UMC Staff,

Pastor Harry,

Ashley, & Sheila

GENESEO VOICE PAGE 2

DECEMBER WORSHIP ASSISTANTS

December Altar Flowers - Poinsettias Coffee Servers (December 10th): Jacque Moffitt (chair), Donna Lindeman , & LuAnne Pritchard Communion Assistants (December 3rd): OPEN Ushers: (whole month) Duane & Dixie Christian Greeters: (whole month) Duane & Dixie Christian

Acolytes: 3 - 10 - 17 - Sean Mitchell 24 am - 24 pm - Belle & Caleb Olson 31 - Sean Mitchell Instrumental Leaders: 3 - Anne Cook 10 - Anne Cook 17 - Anne Cook 24 am - 24 pm - 31 - Anne Cook

Song Leaders: 3 - 10 - Children’s Christmas Program 17 - 24 am - 24 pm - 31 - Tech Desk: 3 - 10 - 17 - 24 am - 24 pm - 31 -

* * Be on the lookout for the new 2018 Worship Assistant Sign-Up Sheets! * * * New, in 2018, we will be combining the Usher & Greeter duties!

Sign-Up Sheets for 2018 are available in Fellowship Hall. If you can help out for a week or more, or if you would like to sign up for an empty slot, please contact the church office, 319-478-8788. If you would like to learn how to do any of the worship assistant positions, feel free to contact Pastor Harry or Ashley.

DECEMBER CELEBRATIONS

BIRTHDAYS 1 - Amy Mitchell 3 - Caleb Olson 5 - Diane Mitchell

9 - Patricia Peckham 14 - Patrick Messmore 25 - Herald Mitchell 26 - Page Messmore

ANNIVERSARIES 30 - Robert & LuAnne Pritchard

PRAYER REQUESTS

Continued Prayer Support

Sandy Boomer, living in Sunrise Assisted Living

Herald & Elsie Mitchell, for good health and good rest

Prayer Map Area

Loved Ones Lost

Family & Friends of Norma Owens, who passed away 10/23/17

Living With Cancer

Joe Brandt’s sister-in-law Chris (wife of Ray)

Betty Murphy, friend of Diana Sash

Big Thanks to Jana Ryan for designing and assembling Geneseo UMC’s Christmas Cards

this year!

A Big Thank You to those who helped decorate God’s House at

Geneseo for Christmas on November 26th, during The Hanging of the

Greens!

GENESEO VOICE PAGE 3

CHURCH COUNCIL SUMMARY & STEWARDSHIP REPORT

Church Council Summary – November 14, 2017

Pastor Harry and seven members attended.

Pastor opened the meeting with prayer.

Business Meeting: Jamie Cook presided.

The minutes of the October 18 and Charge Conference, October 29 were approved.

The Trustees have elected to utilize Spahn and Rose of Jesup, Iowa for completing the hail damage in spring of 2018.

Raven has accepted the internship offered by the Staff Parish Relations committee. The internship will continue through May, 2018 when Raven graduates from UNI. The SPRC would entertain a Summer Internship for Raven, then seek another intern in September, 2018.

A positive problem that is occurring recently is that there are not enough Upper Room devotional books on hand for parishioners. The order will be increased to accommodate the need.

Guy Mitchell volunteered to offer a training class for tech positions and learning Media Shout. The class would be open to interested church members and key staff who will need to know how to update the website.

The 2018 Budget was reviewed and approved.

The Council approved combining the responsibilities of usher and greeter beginning January 1, 2018.

October 2017 Stewardship Report

$ 44,481 General Fund Balance—10/1/17

+728 Special giving receipts

+6,539 Operating revenue/offerings

-2,181 Special giving disbursements

-9,037 Operating expenses

$ 40,530 General Fund Balance 10/31/17

GENESEO UMC SUNDAY SCHOOL 2017-2018

Sunday School will not meet in December, we will resume again in January!

January’s Sunday School Schedule:

January 14th, 21st, 28th

CONTINUE TO SUPPORT THE MISSION OF GENESEO UMC

The United Methodist Church, in partnership with some of the largest online retailers – including Amazon, Barnes & Noble, Expedia, Staples and more - has built a shopping tool that provides a cash benefit for Geneseo UMC when you purchase through the UMCmarket! The retailer does not mark up the price of any items purchased through UMCmarket, so you still pay what you’d pay as you did before.

Create an account at UMCmarket.org and designate

Geneseo UMC as your organization (we are listed as Geneseo Buckingham, IA.) Then when you're ready to buy, just log into your UMCmarket account, shop at

any of the partner retailers and a percentage of the sale is given to Geneseo UMC. If you shop online anyway, especially for holiday gifts, this is a wonderful opportunity for your purchases to assist the mission and ministry of our church! Go to UMCmarket.org to learn more and sign up!

CHILDREN’S PAGE

PAGE 4 VOLUME 6 ISSUE 12

PAGE 5 VOLUME 6 ISSUE 12

A NOTE FROM THE PASTOR’S DESK

Christmas Story (It’s All About You!)

In the Gospel of Luke Chapter 2 the story of Jesus’ birth begins, “In those days Caesar Augustus issued a decree that a census should be taken of the entire Roman world…” This very familiar Scripture is read and heard throughout the world during the Christmas Season.

It almost seems too familiar, this amazing story of love. We may not even ask ourselves the question, “why?” Why would God allow His Son to come into this world as a helpless child? Especially knowing it would lead to His humiliation, suffering and death on the cross. We might pass quickly over these facts to keep from being a ‘buzz kill’ on our Christmas celebrations. We may also move on to the fact that Jesus would rise again in triumph and return to Heaven.

However, the question still remains…”why?” The beginning of the answer is found in another familiar Scripture, John 3:16 “For God so loved the world that He gave His one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life.” But still…the depth of the question remains, “why?”

The answer wraps us like a warm blanket on a cold wintery night. It is a humbling realization that we are loved unconditionally by our Creator. Not because we have earned it, not because we deserve it, but rather because of who we are. We are each a child of God; created in God’s image to be eternal companions to God. God sees in us the delight of love, God laughs when we laugh, God loves the sound of our voice, and wants only the best for us.

The Christmas Story is the placing of a precious gift within our reach. It is depicted in the innocence and vulnerability of a child. Just like every gift of love that is given there are two choices for the person to whom the gift is given. They can either cherish it or ignore it.

Some have learned this the hard way on Christmases past. In selecting the perfect gift for our children, watching with anticipation as they frantically unwrapped them…then the crushing blow of seeing them underwhelmed by our gift, and politely stacking it neatly to the side…never to be touched again.

In a small way this illustration provides a glimpse of what God must feel, as the greatest gift ever given is placed within reach of each of us. We love the wrapping of the Christmas Season, the depiction of Baby Jesus, the story of Bethlehem, and the angels announcing the coming of Our Savior. However, what do we do with the gift when it is un-wrapped? Do we truly cherish it, or do we politely stack it neatly to the side never to be looked at again until next Christmas. In cherishing the gift, and drawing it close we begin to answer fully the question of why God would allow Jesus to come into this world and pay such a high price for our redemption.

We are truly loved beyond our understanding. We are lovingly and wonderfully made to live eternally as companions to the Most High God. The answer to “why” Jesus came, is “you”. Never forget who you are, and never forget who the gift of life is for…”you”! As humbling as that may be to accept…it is true.

Merry Christmas!

Pastor Harry

PAGE 6 VOLUME 6 ISSUE 12

GENESEO UMC—NEWS & EVENTS

The Outreach and Witness Committee is collecting

gently used winter coats for the Salvation Army from

NOW until the end of December.

Please drop off any and all of your donations in the marked basket “Salvation Army” located in south

Geneseo UMC’s Annual Christmas Dinner

Monday, December 4th, 2017 at 6:30pm

Everyone’s Invited—Family, Friends, Neighbors & More!

Plan to enjoy an evening of warm and delicious food, good conversation, and

musical entertainment.

Entertainment this year will be Suzi Celts from UNI.

Everyone’s invited to attend the Children’s Christmas Program

on Sunday, December 10th at 10:00am

(Please note the change in time for

worship on this Sunday!)

Human Relations Special Sunday Offering—January 14th

Humans Relations Day is 1 of the 6 church-wide Special Offering Sundays. Your gifts to Human Relations Day will provide

avenues to nurture and build positive mentor and at-risk-youth relationships, strengthening communities self-improvement efforts, and advocate for the oppressed. This is a time to think and support human relations, change lives, and change the world. Please consider giving, along with other United Methodists on January 14th.

Recycled Greeting Card Program for St. Jude’s Ranch for Children, Now through the end of January!

Drop card donations in the basket in fellowship hall! Cards can be any time of greeting cards, from holidays to birthdays, or sympathies.

Please NO Hallmark, Disney, or American Greeting Cards, St. Jude’s cannot accept them!

The Giver

Many Christian families struggle with what role — if any — Santa Claus should play in their Christmas celebrations. No matter what you decide, it’s fascinating to know the history of the real-life St. Nicholas.

Born about 270 A.D., Nicholas was a bishop in Myra, or modern-day Turkey. In the year 325, he was part of the Council of Nicaea, which produced the Nicene Creed.

Nicholas, known for his generosity, often gave away his money anonymously. According to tradition, he secretly provided dowries for the three daughters of a bankrupt merchant. Nicho-las threw two bags of gold through open windows and placed the third in a stocking hanging by the fireplace to dry. Thus began the Christmas tradition of placing gifts in stockings.

St. Nicholas is quoted as saying, “The giver of every good and perfect gift has called upon us to mimic God’s giving, by grace, through faith, and this is not of ourselves.”

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Geneseo United Methodist Church 3127 115th Street Buckingham, IA 50612 RETURN SERVICE REQUESTED

3127 115th Street

Buckingham, IA 50612

Phone: 319-478-8788

office@geneseoumc.org

www.geneseoumc.org

Pastor Harry’s Contact Information:

319-240-7023

hjwach@mchsi.com

Sunday Worship at 9:15am

Sunday School (all ages) at 10:30am

Making disciples of Jesus Christ for the transformation of the world.

SPECIAL MESSAGE: We’d like to update our communication efforts with you! If you no longer wish to receive this publication from us, OR if you wish to continue to receive this publication from us via e-mail, please contact the Geneseo UMC Church Office.