SERVICES OF

HOLY WORSHIP

December 25, 2016

11:00 am

An Informal Service of

Carols and Readings

Sermon:

“Extract of Eternal”

Rev. Gary Dalton

Scripture:

Matthew 1:18-25

Deacons: *Jack Averill, Donna

Marshall, Rachel Miller, Ray Gaines

Nursery Workers: Judy Gough

Ushers for December: Ian Pallini, Ed

Barker, Melvin & Mildred Spicer, Ron

Tweel

Greeters: Martha Wood, Scott Morris

Medical On-call: Sally Chewning

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January 1, 2017

11:00 am

Sermon:

“The Wisdom of Finnegan”

Rev. Will Brown

Scripture:

Matthew 2:13-23

Deacons: *Donna Marshall, Anne Keith,

Alan Hendricks, Carolyn Lowry, Joe Zhu,

John Buchanan, Johnny Ellen, Martha

Ballenger, Shirley Clark

Ushers for January: Cindy Bryant, Shelley

Miller, Lily Pallini, Ronda Wiley, Joe Zhu

Nursery Workers: Aimee Marshall

Medical On-call: Laurie Pallini

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January 8, 2017

11:00 am

Sermon:

“Good Group-Think”

Rev. Gary Dalton

Scripture:

Isaiah 42:1-9

Deacons: *Erin Brown, Debra Bryant, David

Wagoner, Jack Averill, Nelda Vaughan,

Wayne Ferguson

Children’s Church: Scott & Audrey Miller

Ushers for January: Cindy Bryant, Shelley

Miller, Lily Pallini, Ronda Wiley, Joe Zhu

Nursery Workers: Aimee Marshall, Jen

Bates, Jennifer & Will Wagoner

Medical On-call: Clara Belle Wheeler

Wishing you the gifts of Joy, Love, Hope, and Peace

this Christmas and throughout the year.

Christmas Greetings from the Church Staff,

Gary, Alba, Will, Sarah, Barbara, Sue, Stephanie, Thomas, Lynn

“Of all the arts, singing is the most com-panionable.” Krista Tippet began a recent broadcast of her weekly radio interview series, “On Being,” with this quote from choral composer and arrang-er, Alice Parks. Mrs. Parks was Tip-pet’s delightful interviewee on Sunday morning, December 11, and I encourage you to listen to their conversation.1

Song and faith are inseparable in our worship experience, especially in Advent season. On Sunday our Sanctuary Choir sang beautifully of our companionship in God’s love through the gift of Jesus. How can faith keep to the prosaic when these glorious songs are at hand among us? The hymn, “My Life Flows On In Endless Song,” expresses this sentiment through its better known refrain, “How can I keep from singing?” 2

Faith and art, to my way of thinking, emanate from the same region of the human psyche that most purely reflects the Creator. God intends that we be as human prisms, refracting into visible forms the abundant spiritual energy that constantly passes through us, an energy going too much unseen, unheard, and unfelt save by way of artists.

Media of art are like the assorted color frequencies which make up white light, with each artist manifesting her or his own slice of the Divine spectrum. Artists work out their perceptions of God’s creative presence through venues of the five senses so we patrons may glimpse something of what they’ve seen.

In Alice Park’s experience and under-standing, we all share at least a founda-

tional gift of artistry through singing. Mrs. Parks asserts that song is inherent in our infancy long before we learn to artic-ulate our inborn music. This realization struck home with her as a new mother, “…watching those tiny babies develop, it just gave me this absolute conviction that babies — that’s the language of babies. That’s what they’re born knowing. From their first utterance, it’s all singing.”

From their first breaths, infants’ vocali-zations are unformed singing, and it takes a long time to learn the language, learn the words, and how to communi-cate from their brain.”

Faith is also a foundational gift of artistry for all. Faith is both a method and a medium for recognizing God. Faith is a gift to express the unseen Life that enables all life. Faith is our art by which we express God through the same five senses upon which every artist relies.

Whether we realize faith as a child, or we reach full adulthood before faith takes its first breath in us, we, like spiritual in-fants, sing a new song in unformed tone and inarticulate sound, discovering and learning as we grow to articulate our faith’s experience of the Divine. Faith, like singing, is a most companionable art.

Your Senior Minister in the Interim, ~ Gary 1 http://www.onbeing.org/program/alice-parker-singing-is-the-most-companionable-of-arts/9080 2 here’s a traditional rendering of the hymn: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5uc1smOOs7A

Candlelight Service for the Entire Family

Saturday, December 24, 5:00 pm

A Br idge Across

We’ll take our time as we need and want, we’ll linger only to see what we can see, then we’ll move along to the other end of the Bridge, to meet whomever the next Senior Minister should be.

UNIVERSITY BAPTIST CHURCH CHARLOTTESVILLE, VA

The Word December 21, 2016 Vol. 68, No. 48

UNIVERSITY BAPTIST CHURCH

1223 West Main Street

Charlottesville, VA 22903

Phone (434) 293-5106

Fax (434) 979-6433

Prayer Line (434) 923-0120

Web Site www.universitybaptist.org

CHANGE SERVICE REQUESTED

FRIDAY, December 23

CHURCH OFFICE CLOSED

SATURDAY, December 24

5:00 Candlelight Service

SUNDAY, December 25

No Sunday Bible Study

11:00 Worship

No Real Life

MONDAY, December 26

CHURCH OFFICE CLOSED

WEDNESDAY, December 28

NO SUPPER OR ACTIVITIES

THURSDAY, December 29

9:30 Pre-K Play Group

FRIDAY, December 30

CHURCH OFFICE CLOSED

SUNDAY, January 1, 2017

No Sunday Bible Study

11:00 Worship

No Real Life

MONDAY, January 2

CHURCH OFFICE CLOSED

TUESDAY, January 3

7:00 Kittie Colvin Trail Circle

WEDNESDAY, January 4

NO SUPPER OR ACTIVITIES

THURSDAY, January 5

9:30 Pre-K Play Group

SUNDAY, January 8

8:30 Church Council Meeting

9:00 Seekers Class Breakfast

9:30 Joyful Servants Bible Study

Seekers Bible Study

9:45 Bible Study

11:00 Worship

12:30 Senior Minister Search Comm.

6:00 Real Life

MONDAY, January 9

10:30 Bible Study at Rosewood

TUESDAY, January 10

9:00 UBC Work Team

9:00 Painting Group

6:30 Prayer Shawl

Ministry Mtg.

Concerns

Bill Jesser — At Home Lucille Holliday — MJH Mary Ella McCauley — MJH

Sympathy

Christian sympathy is extended to Joe Marchi and his family at the death of his mother on December 16.

CBF Global Missions

During December we are collecting money for the CBF Global Missions Fund. Our goal is $3000. The Cooper-ative Baptist Fellowship supports more than 130 field personnel serving in re-mote villages and large cities around the world. They make a difference in the lives of the world’s most neglected people.

Stewardship Pledges for 2017

We invite you to prayerfully consider turning in a Pledge Card if you have not already done so. You can send your card to the church office, put it in the offering plate on Sunday, call Sue Walton at the office, or email office@universitybaptist.org.

End-of-Year Contributions

Contributions need to be postmarked by December 31 to be included in the 2016 contributions statements.

Christmas Dinner in a Bag

We collected 61 bags contain- ing food for Christmas dinners. They will be distributed by Love INC to needy families in our community.

Global Missions Post Office Reminder: Pick up any cards addressed

to you or your family. Please do not remove any cards but your own.

Do not place cards in the box after Saturday, December 24.

Check the UBC website for complete directions for using the Post Office, which is located in the First Floor Lobby.

All proceeds go to Global Missions.

Pray for those who have not

heard the Good News.

Church Cancellation Policy

In the event of bad winter weather, announcements of any cancellations or changes in worship or church activities will be made on our local TV stations; Radio AM WINA 1070, and ESPN 1450; and Radio FM WVTF 89.7, Z95.1; 3WV 97.5 and The Corner 106.1; on the home page of our web-site; and in our phone greeting mes-sage. We will make an announcement usually no later than 8 am Sunday or 1 pm for Wednesday evening activities.

Wish Helen Mackey a Happy Birthday on December 28.

She will be 101 years young!

Holiday Schedules

Church Office Closed Fri., Dec. 23 and Mon., Dec. 26 Fri., Dec. 30 and Mon., Jan. 2

No Wednesday Night Supper Programs, and Choirs Wed., Dec. 21 and 28 and Jan., 4

No Sunday Bible Study December 26 and January 2

No Real Life Sunday, Dec. 25 and Jan., 1

The Word will not be published the weeks of December 26 and Jan 2.

Monday Adult Bible Study will resume January 9

Wednesday Night Supper & Children’s Activities will resume January 11. You need to renew your “permanent list” reservations in January