The Messenger of Arndt’s Church - December, 2016

Arndt's Lutheran Church1851 Arndt Road, Easton, PA 18040

610-253-3732Email: arndts.lutheranchurch@rcn.com

Website: www.arndtslutheran.org

Regular Worship Services (9/11/16 thru 5/28/17): Saturday, 6:00 p.m. - Sunday, 8:15 a.m. and 10:30 a.m.

Saturday, December 3, 2016 Holy Communion Service 6:00 p.m.

Sunday, December 4, 2016 Second Sunday in Advent/Holy Communion 8:15 a.m. and 10:30 a.m.Congregational Meeting following Service

Wednesday, December 7, 2016 Midweek Advent Supper at Good Shepherd 6:00 p.m.Midweek Advent Worship at Good Shepherd 7:00 p.m.

Saturday, December 10, 2016 "Christmas Mini-VBS" for children/families 3:00 p.m. - 5:00 p.m. Live Nativity and Luminaria 5:30 p.m. - 7:30 p.m.Holy Communion Service 6:00 p.m.

Sunday, December 11, 2016 Third Sunday in Advent/Holy Communion 8:15 a.m. and 10:30 a.m.

Wednesday, December 14, 2016 Midweek Advent Supper at Arndt's 6:00 p.m.Midweek Advent Worship at Arndt's 7:00 p.m.

Saturday, December 17, 2016 Holy Communion Service 6:00 p.m.

Sunday, December 18, 2016 Fourth Sunday in Advent/Holy Communion 8:15 a.m. and 10:30 a.m.Sunday School Program 10:30 a.m.

Saturday, December 24, 2016 Christmas Eve Services Nativity of Our Lord

5:30 pm – Family Service with Holy Communion

7:30 pm – Candlelight Service with Holy Communion and Choir

9:30 pm – Candlelight Service with Holy Communion and Special Music

Sunday, December 25, 2016 Christmas Day Service with Holy Communion 9:00 a.m. Special Time

Sunday, January 1, 2017 New Year's Day Service with Holy Communion 9:00 a.m. Special Time

No 8:15 a.m. service or Sunday School on Sunday, December 25, 2016.No 6:00 p.m. worship service on Saturday, December 31, 2016.

No 8:15 a.m. service or Sunday School on Sunday, January 1, 2017.

Regular services and programs will resume the weekend of January 7/8, 2017.

Wishing you a Blessed Christmas and a Healthy, Happy New Year!

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The Pastor's Page

Dear Brothers and Sisters in Christ, Advent is a beautifully rich season. It is a time of waiting to celebrate the birth of Jesusand to prepare for his coming again. The question is this: how do we wait? During theseason of Advent we are called to be vigilant, to pay attention to the signs of the times.dvent is a penitential season when we acknowledge the sinfulness of our lives and seekthe mercy of God. We are “advent people” waiting for the Lord to come in glory on the last day. Butagain…how do we wait? These four weeks of Advent remind us not only of themarvelous story of Jesus’ birth, but also of the reality of his coming again in glory. Weare given these weeks of Advent at the beginning of the liturgical year as a time todevelop spiritual habits of vigilance. You see, we not only wait for the coming of theLord on the last day, but also for an awareness of his presence in our lives today. If wedon’t see him now; if we take his presence for granted in this moment, how will werecognize him on the last day? My prayer for all of us is that this Advent season will be a time of patience, preparationand watchfulness. Help us to be ready for whatever you would have us do. Keep us safeas we wait in joyful hope for the coming of our Savior, Jesus Christ.” In joyful hope, Pastor Jean

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Arndt's Administrative Items

Interesting Items from November Council Meeting

Council approved plans for an Eagle Scout project.

Property Committee cleaned the gutters and railings and installed a closer on the door downstairs in the basement.

Property Committee will install a new tile floor in the upstairs men's bathroom.

Nominating Committee presented a name for a prospective council member to be voted on at the annual meeting.

The council holiday party will be on December 9th at the home of Carol Ann and Lou Coxe.

***************************************************************************************October, 2016

Total Operating Income $10,395.94Total Operating Expenses $12,720.71 $ (2,324.77)

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Second Sunday, Second Offering

The next Second Sunday, Second Offering collection will be received on Sunday, December 11, 2016, andwill benefit the Forks Township Community Fire Department.

Altar Flowers/Altar Food Box/Worship Bulletins Sponsorships

You may sponsor our weekly, traditional altar flower vases or an altar food box for $35. You may purchaseyour own $35 worth of food for the food box and bring it in to place on the altar or you may write a check to thechurch and our volunteers will purchase the food for you. Worship bulletins may be sponsored for $15. Allsponsorships include your personal dedication message. Place completed forms in the offering plate or mail them to the church office--forms are on the bulletin board in the coatroom area.

Gift Card Program from Great Lake Scrips

Remember to check out Arndt's gift card program for your holiday shopping. We have a great selection of gift cards available and can order the cards that you want to purchase. This is an easy way to do your holidayshopping and at the same time, earn money for Arndt's. Plan ahead for your shopping needs and order gift cardsto make those purchases. You may purchase shopping cards, dining cards and gas cards to name a few from ourScrip Gift Card Program. Carole Brown places gift card orders on the 1st and 3rd Mondays of each month. If you would like to order cards, please call her at 484-505-0647 so she may include your purchases in the order.

Looking Ahead . . .

Lutheran churches of the Easton cluster will join together beginning in January to study Luther's SmallCatechism. Our first meeting will be on January 17th at St. Andrew's for an overview of the Small Catechism.Watch for more information in the January newsletter.

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December Prayer Calendar

You are asked to pray for the member listed on each day of the month. All of the members of our church familywill be lifted in prayer many times throughout the year. Members are listed alphabetically. If someone is missed,please contact the secretary in the church office.

Dec. 01 - Janet and Don HerrDec. 02 - Geoff and Maureen HillaryDec. 03 - Michael HortonDec. 04 - Nick and Natasha HortonDec. 05 - Ralph and Joanne HortonDec. 06- Matthew, Rachel and Heidi HostermanDec. 07 - Jon, Tammy and Abigail HrichakDec. 08 - Pastor Jean and Doug HuberDec, 09 - Josh, Jacob and Landon HuberDec. 10 - Jim, Sally and Kyle HutnikDec. 11 - Debbie JacobyDec. 12 - Keith and Chris JohnsenDec. 13- Laurie and Rosanne Diaz-Kerr and ErnestDec. 14 - Gail and Liam KlecknerDec. 15 - Ed and Linda KleppingerDec. 16 - Donald and Donna Koch, Andrew and KaitlynDec. 17 - Joan and Kevin Kocher, Austin, Dalton and LoganDec. 18 - Stacy and Catherine Kocher, Charlene and KarlDec. 19 - Charles and Jane KohlerDec. 20 - Marla and Joe Kovacs, Zakary, Maci, Kylie and TylerDec. 21 - Jim, Maria and Brittney KromeDec. 22 - Robert and Vera KromeDec. 23 - Barbara KutzDec. 24 - John and Kirsten Kutza, AJ and JordanDec. 25 - Barbara Labar and BrandonDec. 26 - Scott, Robin and Zechariah LabarDec. 27 - Terry and Sharon LabarDec. 28 - Irma LaceyDec. 29- Greg and Sue LarosDec. 30- Emily and Paul LeBaron, Paul and ElizaDec. 31 - Alice Lefebvre

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Arndt's Church Activities

Children's Sunday SchoolThere are weekly Sunday School classes for all children ages 3 through sixth grade. The Sunday SchoolChristmas program will be held at the 10:30 a.m. service on Sunday, December 18th.

Adult Sunday SchoolAdult Sunday School will resume in mid-January from 9:00-10:15 a.m. Topics for January-March will be basedon the current year's lectionary. No prep-work necessary! Just come and join us as we read and discuss thescripture lessons of the day. A formal schedule of dates will be available in next month's newsletter.

Confirmation ClassThe confirmation class does not meet during the month of December.

Open Arms Senior ConnectionOpen Arms meets at the church on Tuesday and Thursday, 10:00 a.m. - 3:00 p.m. Pick up an Open Arms newsletter in the narthex or ask to be put on our newsletter mailing list and have one delivered to your home.

Arndt's Preschool - December NewsIn November our preschool collected two baskets full of nonperishable food for a needy family. Considering weonly have 16 total children in our school it was very impressive to see everyone donate that amount of food.We are looking forward to the coming month of December. A free vision test will be done in our school for allchildren who want to participate sponsored by Northampton County. The Easton Public Library will be visitingto read to our children. The children will be preparing for a Christmas Concert for their families. Pastor Jeanwill meet with our children and read to them a story pertaining to what the Advent season is all about. One ofthe songs we sing is We Wish You A Merry Christmas.

Arndt's Bible Study - December Bible Study will not meet during the month of December.

Winter Weather Cancellations and Postponements

In the event of bad weather, please tune in to WFMZ, Channel 69, or go to www.wfmz.com and click on the"StormCenter Update" box to view business, school and church closings and postponements. You may alsocheck out our website at www.arndtslutheran.org.

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Annual Congregational Meeting, Sunday, December 4, 2016, 11:30 a.m.The annual Congregational Meeting of Arndt's Lutheran Church will be held on Sunday, December 4th,following the 10:30 worship service. At this meeting we will elect new church council members and presentand vote on the budget for 2017. Please plan to attend this important meeting.

Advent and Christmas Activities2016 Bethlehem/Easton Mission District Christmas Ingathering

We continue to collect bottles of lotion (75 bottles) and women's personal hygiene supplies (75 packages) forthis year's Bethlehem/Easton Mission District Christmas Ingathering. You may bring donations to church andplace them in the box marked for the Ingathering. Our items will be delivered to New Jerusalem Lutheran Church in Hellertown on December 7th. Thank you for your support of this annual project.

Midweek Advent ServicesWe join with the congregations of Good Shepherd, St. Andrew's, St. Paul's, St. Paul's Third and St. John's forour Midweek Advent soup suppers and services in December. We hope you will join us as we gather together for a simple meal at 6:00 p.m. and for worship at 7:00 p.m. The mid-week Advent schedule is as follows:

Wednesday, November 30 at St. Paul's Southside

Wednesday, December 7 at Good Shepherd

Wednesday, December 14 at Arndt's

Offerings collected during this year's Midweek Advent services will be donated to YAGM--Young Adults inGlobal Mission. Every year the ELCA provides a number of young adults the opportunity to grow in their faithand work hand-in-hand with our global neighbors through our Young Adults in Global Mission (YAGM)program. Volunteers, who range in age from 21 to 29, take the plunge into a life-changing year-long journey incommunities around the world. As they share their gifts of service, they also receive the gifts of their hosts' hospitality, engaging in relationships of mutuality, interdependence, solidarity and trust.

Since its inception, the program has grown from just 10 volunteers serving in one country to more than 60serving in nine countries. Your gifts help us expand this program. No matter where or how they serve, everyone of our Young Adults in Global Mission needs your prayers, support and gifts to succeed in their work. Itcosts approximately $11,000 to provide one young adult missionary with training, airfare, a small livingallowance, health insurance and simple room and board for a year. That’s just $30 a day to invest in empowering young leaders through life-changing global service. Join us in God’s amazing work. Help raise upyoung leaders.

Live NativityThis year's Live Nativity is scheduled for Saturday, December 10th, from 5:30 p.m. to 7:30 p.m. For the secondyear in a row, the event will begin with a "bible-school-like" program starting at 3:00 in the afternoon forchildren of all ages prior to the Live Nativity. This free program will consist of stories, crafts, songs and refreshments.

The Live Nativity will start at 5:30 p.m (through 7:30 p.m.) and will feature live animals, children and adultsportraying the characters in the stable, the reading of the Christmas story and the singing of carols, all adornedby candlelight. Refreshments will be available and visitors may bring canned food donations for the local food bank. A sign-up sheet will be in the narthex if you would like to volunteer to help on this day.

Women's Christmas Covered Dish and Cookie ExchangeAll ladies of the church are invited to join us for a covered dish supper and Christmas party on Monday,December 5th, at 6:00 p.m., at the church. Please bring a favorite dish to share--watch for a sign-up sheet in thenarthex--and a $5 gift for a gift-exchange game. AND to participate in a Christmas Cookie Exchange, four (4)dozen cookies. Participation in the cookie exchange is optional. In order for each participant to go home withat least 3 cookies from each person, we are asking you to bring 4 dozen cookies (either home baked or storebought) for the exchange. Once again, if you choose not to do the cookie exchange, please still come for thefood, the fun and the fellowship. Please direct any questions to Pastor Jean.

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Community Service OpportunitiesSafe Harbor Meals Provided by Arndt's

Safe Harbor Lunch - The next date for the Safe Harbor lunch will be Monday, Dec. 12th. This will be the lastmonth we prepare lunch for Safe Harbor (due to the limited number of people available to help during the day).

Safe Harbor Dinner - No dinner preparation is needed for December. Safe Harbor receives many fooddonations throughout the month of December and they anticipate having enough food to serve in December.Thank you to everyone who participates in this community ministry.

MANY THANKS to everyone who helped with the Safe Harbor Thanksgiving Meal. Again, we were ableto assist them in serving over 150 people. Thanks to Dave Siegfried for securing the Thrivent grant to

assist with purchasing the extra items needed.

The 2017 Dinner Meal dates are now posted. We currently have 5 teams who prepare 2 meals per year. Please consider signing up on the team of your choice so we can continue the dinner ministry. We serveapproximately 40-50 residents so every team could use additional help. The team captain will select the monthsthey wish to serve and then will contact you about the menu. Whether you are willing to do a dessert, providebread, or a side….any help will be greatly appreciated! Any questions, please call Marlene at 610.393.2461.

Arndt’s AnnouncementsSpecial news in our congregation

Baptisms

On Saturday, November 5, 2016, we welcomed Alaina Marie Faust, daughter of Heather (Hernandez) and Joseph Faust,through the sacrament of Holy Baptism. Alaina was born on July 31, 2016, at Lehigh Valley Hospital. Thank you to . . . .

Rich and RuthAnn Siegfried for chairing the Pork & Sauerkraut dinner and to everyone who helped with the dinner.Over $1500 profit was realized. A portion of the proceeds will be donated to Lutheran Congregational Services.

Thank you from . . . .

ProJeCt of Easton, Inc.'s Board of Directors, staff and all the people who benefit from our programs. Thank youfor your donation of various food items to the Interfaith Food Pantry. It is only through the generous support of ourcommunity that we are able to offer the services we provide to the public through the Interfaith Food Pantry and theASSIST program at no cost. Your support makes a difference to those in need.

Janice D. Komisor, Chief Executive Officer

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Worship at Arndt's

Sunday, December 4, 2016 – Second Sunday of Advent - Holy CommunionAt the heart of our Advent preparation stands John the Baptist, who calls us to repent and make a new beginning. As thedarkness increases we turn toward the light of Christ's coming. For Christians he is the root of Jesse, the righteous judgewho welcomes all, especially the poor and meek of the earth. We wait with hope for that day when the wolf will dwellwith the lamb, and there will be no more hurt or destruction. From the Lord's table we are sent in the spirit of John theBaptist to proclaim that in Christ the kingdom of God has come near.

Sunday, December 11, 2016 – Third Sunday of Advent - Holy CommunionA note of joyful expectation marks today's worship. Isaiah announces that the desert shall rejoice and blossom, Jesuspoints to signs of God's reign: the blind see, the lame walk, lepers are cleansed, the deaf hear. We wait with patience for the coming of the Lord, even as we rejoice at his presence among us this day: in word and holy supper, in church and inour homes, in silent reflection and in works of justice and love. We pray that God would open our eyes and ears to thewonders of Christ's advent among us.

Sunday, December 18, 2016 – Fourth Sunday of Advent - Holy CommunionToday Isaiah prophesies that a young woman will bear a son and name him Emmanuel. The gospel is Matthew's accountof the annunciation and birth of the one named Emmanuel, God-with-us. During these final days of Advent we pray, "Ocome, O come, Emmanuel," a beloved hymn based on ancient prayers appointed for the seven days preceding Christmas.On this final Sunday in Advent we prepare to celebrate the birth of the one born to save us from the power of sin anddeath.

Saturday, December 24, 2016 – Nativity of Our Lord - Christmas Eve - Holy CommunionOn a long winter evening we gather to proclaim the coming of the light. Isaiah announces that the people who walked indarkness have seen a great light. Paul reminds us that the grace of God has appeared, bringing salvation to all. In the familiar account of Christ's birth, the evening sky is bright with the heavenly host singing, "Glory to God in the highest."Amid our broken world we proclaim that the prince of peace is born among us. God comes to us in human flesh--inChrist's body and blood--so that we may be bearers of divine light to all the world.

Sunday, December 25, 2016 – Nativity of Our Lord - Christmas Day - Holy CommunionOn this Christmas morning the people of God gather to celebrate the birth of the Word made flesh, Christ our Lord. Lukerecounts the familiar story of shepherds and angels; John's gospel tells of the Word that dwells among us, full of graceand truth. The meaning of Christmas is made clear: the light shines in the darkness. It is in the liturgy that we encounterthe Word made flesh--in the people of God gathered together as the body of Christ, and in the meal around the holy table.We go forth to be bearers of light as we proclaim this good news to all the ends of the earth.

Sunday, January 1, 2017 – First Sunday of Christmas - Holy CommunionAs we celebrate the Twelve Days of Christmas, our gospel today confronts us with the death of innocent children at the hands of Herod. The birth of Christ does not remove the power of evil from our world, but its light gives us hope as wewalk with all the "holy innocents' of past generations and today who have suffered unjustly. In our gathering aroundword and meal, God continues to redeem us, lift us up and carry us as in days of old.

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POINSETTIAS FOR CHRISTMASThe Worship & Music Committee is sponsoring a poinsettia sale. The plants are florist quality andmake wonderful gifts. You may also help us decorate the sanctuary for Christmas by purchasingpoinsettias. The cost is $7.50 per plant. Please make checks payable to “Jeri Leiendecker”.

Complete the order form below, include payment, and place everything in the offering plate. Ordersmust be received no later than Sunday, December 11thth.

You may pick up your plants after the Christmas Eve Services.

Poinsettia Plant Order Form

Given By______________________________________________________________________________

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Telephone_____________________________________________________________________________

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In Honor of / In Loving Memory of:

_____________________________________________________________________________________

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# of red _____@$7.50 ea $_________

# of white _____@$7.50 ea $_________

# of pink _____@$7.50 ea $_________

Total Payment Enclosed $_________

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