Top Ten - December 22
1. Please Read!! – As I write this newsletter Thursday afternoon, the forecast for this weekend looks very threatening. Tomorrow, Friday, is supposed to be just awful, and Saturday and Sunday could be a problem. Of course, things may turn out to be better than expected, but we won’t know that until the time comes.
So, we are preparing a Christmas Eve service which will be available on our website and Facebook page and in the Northgate App in the event that we will not be able to gather together for Christmas Eve services. How will you know?
If we reach the place where we need to cancel Christmas Eve and/or Christmas Day services, we will distribute that information through all of the normal channels: our website, Facebook page, other social media as well as television stations. Please check these sources to find out if services are canceled. And if you learn that they are, please notify the people in your circles – your friends and family. Redundancy is a good thing. I would hate for someone to drive to the church and find it dark because they hadn’t heard that we had to cancel. Thank you and if you have any questions, you can always reach me at my email: vern@northgatefmc.com
2. Christmas Eve Services – If we are able to hold Christmas Eve services there will be a 4pm service at Arbor House; and at North a 5pm child-friendly service that will be especially geared to children; a 7pm communion/candle lighting service and an 11pm communion candle lighting service (these last two services will be very similar).
3. Christmas Day/New Year’s Day Services – Christmas and New Year’s come on a Sunday this year, and we will be holding services those days. Arbor House will meet at their usual time both weeks: 10am. At North we are holding just one service on Christmas and one on New Year’s Day, each at 10am. We will have our regular Saturday night service on New Year’s Eve at 6pm.
4. Childcare for Christmas Eve, Christmas Day and New Year's Day – Parents please note… there will only be childcare for the 5pm Christmas Eve service for Nursery and Toddlers. On Christmas Day there will be childcare for Nursery, Toddler and Preschool. And on New Year’s Day there will be full childcare provided (Nursery – Kto4) for the one service at 10am.
5. Year End Giving – Please note: If you’d like to get 2022 donor tax credit all gifts or donations need to be received or postmarked prior to 12/31/2022. If you have any questions, contact Mark Logan at mark@northgatefmc.com.
6. Office Closings – Please be aware that the office will be closed on the following days, due to the holidays and planned time off for staff… Monday 12/26-Thursday 12/29 and Monday 1/2.
7. Creation Museum/Ark & Sight and Sound Trips – It’s time to make plans! Angelique has been working on putting together the first of our excursions planned for next year. We are planning a trip to Sight and Sound to see “Moses”! This trip will take place on May 1-3, with travel days on the 1st and 3rd and a 3pm show on the 2nd. We plan to travel by bus (though individuals are of course free to drive separately) and we’ll be staying at “Bird-in-Hand Family Inn.” The cost is coming in at under $500 per person for the bus, hotel, show and two breakfasts. At this point we need to get a firm handle on the number of people who would like to go. We’ll be limited to 34 people for this trip. If you want to be part of it, please email Angelique at angelique@northgatefmc.com and let her know. Thanks!
8. Right Now Media – As a church we subscribe to Right Now Media, a web-based video service which offers thousands of videos on all kinds of topics of interest to the Christian community. Included are many Bible studies of various kinds which make leading a family or small group discussion really easy. It’s free for you to use as a Northgate attender, but you do need a password. To get that contact Sherrie in the office at sherrie@northgatefmc.com.
9. Prayer Shawl Ministry – The Prayer Shawl ministry meets the first Saturday of every month at 10am at Northgate North. This group makes prayer shawls which are given out to people going through difficult times in their lives. All are welcome to come and join in; if you don’t know how to knit a shawl this is a great place to learn!
10. Merry Christmas! – Please allow me a moment to say Merry Christmas to all of you. This has been an unusually busy week at the church, with numerous ministry needs to respond to as well as the normal busy-ness of preparing for Christmas Eve services. But I want you to know that your Northgate staff considers it a privilege and a joy to serve Christ here, and to serve you here. As the Senior Pastor I am constantly humbled by and appreciative of the way our staff responds to all that is needed with grace and love. And I am also constantly humbled by our congregation. As Paul said to the church at Philippi… “I thank God every time I remember you. In all my prayers for all of you I always pray with joy because of your partnership in the gospel…”. You are a wonderful group of people and I wish you a very Merry Christmas. Pastor Vern
To learn about all of the groups being offered by Northgate please check out this link: https://northgatefmc.churchcenter.com/groups/unique. You can also view the list on the Northgate app.
Can We Pray For You? – Please let us know how. Email us at prayer@northgatefmc.com. And if you’d like to join one of our several prayer teams (Sunday mornings, Wednesday afternoons, the Care Team) please let us know that too.
On Sunday mornings from 9:30 to 10:30 a prayer team meets in meeting room 4. During this time people pray for the services, needs of our congregation and other topics as God leads. We would love to have you join this prayer team.
To learn more about these opportunities, or to suggest an idea for a group or a gathering, or to inquire about reserving space at the church or the pavilion you can always email the office (office@northgatefmc.com) or call 343-4011. You can check out our website too (northgatefmc.com).
***********************************************************************************************
You Can Count on This – 2 Corinthians 13:11 – Finally, brothers and sisters, rejoice! Strive for full restoration, encourage one another, be of one mind, live in peace. And the God of love and peace will be with you. (Read 2 Corinthians 13:1-14)
Here’s a wonderful word of encouragement for all of us who are part of a church congregation. The first phrase likely means something like, “grow to maturity” which is how the NLT translates the Greek words. In other words, make every effort to become everything that God desires you to be. And encourage one another! We all need encouragement on a daily basis; don’t be stingy with it! Look for areas of agreement with one another, instead of being obsessed with where we might disagree. When it comes to loving Jesus and loving others, be of the same mind. Live in peace. Work for it. Pray for it. Ask God to show you how to move toward it. And may God’s love and peace be with you!
When you’re not sure what you can count on in the world around you, know this: You can count on God keeping his word. So read what God has to say in scripture! And count on it.
So, we are preparing a Christmas Eve service which will be available on our website and Facebook page and in the Northgate App in the event that we will not be able to gather together for Christmas Eve services. How will you know?
If we reach the place where we need to cancel Christmas Eve and/or Christmas Day services, we will distribute that information through all of the normal channels: our website, Facebook page, other social media as well as television stations. Please check these sources to find out if services are canceled. And if you learn that they are, please notify the people in your circles – your friends and family. Redundancy is a good thing. I would hate for someone to drive to the church and find it dark because they hadn’t heard that we had to cancel. Thank you and if you have any questions, you can always reach me at my email: vern@northgatefmc.com
2. Christmas Eve Services – If we are able to hold Christmas Eve services there will be a 4pm service at Arbor House; and at North a 5pm child-friendly service that will be especially geared to children; a 7pm communion/candle lighting service and an 11pm communion candle lighting service (these last two services will be very similar).
3. Christmas Day/New Year’s Day Services – Christmas and New Year’s come on a Sunday this year, and we will be holding services those days. Arbor House will meet at their usual time both weeks: 10am. At North we are holding just one service on Christmas and one on New Year’s Day, each at 10am. We will have our regular Saturday night service on New Year’s Eve at 6pm.
4. Childcare for Christmas Eve, Christmas Day and New Year's Day – Parents please note… there will only be childcare for the 5pm Christmas Eve service for Nursery and Toddlers. On Christmas Day there will be childcare for Nursery, Toddler and Preschool. And on New Year’s Day there will be full childcare provided (Nursery – Kto4) for the one service at 10am.
5. Year End Giving – Please note: If you’d like to get 2022 donor tax credit all gifts or donations need to be received or postmarked prior to 12/31/2022. If you have any questions, contact Mark Logan at mark@northgatefmc.com.
6. Office Closings – Please be aware that the office will be closed on the following days, due to the holidays and planned time off for staff… Monday 12/26-Thursday 12/29 and Monday 1/2.
7. Creation Museum/Ark & Sight and Sound Trips – It’s time to make plans! Angelique has been working on putting together the first of our excursions planned for next year. We are planning a trip to Sight and Sound to see “Moses”! This trip will take place on May 1-3, with travel days on the 1st and 3rd and a 3pm show on the 2nd. We plan to travel by bus (though individuals are of course free to drive separately) and we’ll be staying at “Bird-in-Hand Family Inn.” The cost is coming in at under $500 per person for the bus, hotel, show and two breakfasts. At this point we need to get a firm handle on the number of people who would like to go. We’ll be limited to 34 people for this trip. If you want to be part of it, please email Angelique at angelique@northgatefmc.com and let her know. Thanks!
8. Right Now Media – As a church we subscribe to Right Now Media, a web-based video service which offers thousands of videos on all kinds of topics of interest to the Christian community. Included are many Bible studies of various kinds which make leading a family or small group discussion really easy. It’s free for you to use as a Northgate attender, but you do need a password. To get that contact Sherrie in the office at sherrie@northgatefmc.com.
9. Prayer Shawl Ministry – The Prayer Shawl ministry meets the first Saturday of every month at 10am at Northgate North. This group makes prayer shawls which are given out to people going through difficult times in their lives. All are welcome to come and join in; if you don’t know how to knit a shawl this is a great place to learn!
10. Merry Christmas! – Please allow me a moment to say Merry Christmas to all of you. This has been an unusually busy week at the church, with numerous ministry needs to respond to as well as the normal busy-ness of preparing for Christmas Eve services. But I want you to know that your Northgate staff considers it a privilege and a joy to serve Christ here, and to serve you here. As the Senior Pastor I am constantly humbled by and appreciative of the way our staff responds to all that is needed with grace and love. And I am also constantly humbled by our congregation. As Paul said to the church at Philippi… “I thank God every time I remember you. In all my prayers for all of you I always pray with joy because of your partnership in the gospel…”. You are a wonderful group of people and I wish you a very Merry Christmas. Pastor Vern
To learn about all of the groups being offered by Northgate please check out this link: https://northgatefmc.churchcenter.com/groups/unique. You can also view the list on the Northgate app.
Can We Pray For You? – Please let us know how. Email us at prayer@northgatefmc.com. And if you’d like to join one of our several prayer teams (Sunday mornings, Wednesday afternoons, the Care Team) please let us know that too.
On Sunday mornings from 9:30 to 10:30 a prayer team meets in meeting room 4. During this time people pray for the services, needs of our congregation and other topics as God leads. We would love to have you join this prayer team.
To learn more about these opportunities, or to suggest an idea for a group or a gathering, or to inquire about reserving space at the church or the pavilion you can always email the office (office@northgatefmc.com) or call 343-4011. You can check out our website too (northgatefmc.com).
***********************************************************************************************
You Can Count on This – 2 Corinthians 13:11 – Finally, brothers and sisters, rejoice! Strive for full restoration, encourage one another, be of one mind, live in peace. And the God of love and peace will be with you. (Read 2 Corinthians 13:1-14)
Here’s a wonderful word of encouragement for all of us who are part of a church congregation. The first phrase likely means something like, “grow to maturity” which is how the NLT translates the Greek words. In other words, make every effort to become everything that God desires you to be. And encourage one another! We all need encouragement on a daily basis; don’t be stingy with it! Look for areas of agreement with one another, instead of being obsessed with where we might disagree. When it comes to loving Jesus and loving others, be of the same mind. Live in peace. Work for it. Pray for it. Ask God to show you how to move toward it. And may God’s love and peace be with you!
When you’re not sure what you can count on in the world around you, know this: You can count on God keeping his word. So read what God has to say in scripture! And count on it.
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