The Advent: a time of expectant waiting and preparation for the celebration of the Nativity. The anticipation is a critical part of any great activity. When I was growing up, we didn’t use this term or even acknowledge it.
I suppose the church decided to leave it to the liturgical churches. Whether or not we use this particular term, this time of year is important—and joyous—as we look forward to the celebration of the Incarnation, the birth of Jesus: Immanuel, God with us.
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This week, we will hear from our children, as they present a very special Christmas program for us in our 10:00 service. Let’s be in prayer about the impact not only on the lives of those who attend to hear their children and grandchildren (and sometimes these young voices are the way God will get through to some), but pray for the children themselves, that deep in their spirits they will truly comprehend that the Lord of the universe loved them so much, he came down to live with us—and die for us.
The program will take most of the time on Sunday, but I will share a few remarks on John the Baptist (tying it into what the children are sharing). You can read ahead in Luke 1.13-17, 76.
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At 6:00 pm, we will have a van leaving the church to drive through Fort Wayne’s annual Fantasy of Lights. You can find more information
here. Thanks, Mike Krempel, for leading the way on this excursion!
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We had a wonderful time of prayer on Wednesday evening last week. We are looking forward to some great seasons of prayer together in the new year. We will begin our weekly evening prayer gathering at 7:00 on January 3.
We will also begin our morning weekly prayer meeting on Thursday, January 4, at 10:00 am.
We would like to invite you to begin the new year with fasting. At some point, hopefully soon, we can take some time to look together at fasting in detail. We would encourage you to fast, and plan to end it (whether it be 1, 2, 3 days, or more!) on the day of the prayer meeting (whether you come on Wednesday or Thursday).
There seemed to be some interest in an early morning prayer meeting, as well. If this would like to consider, please
email me and let me know.
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We want to remind you again of a very special communion service we have planned for Christmas Eve. Eileen and I would like to share communion with you and your family or friends (or even individually if you would like!). Simply come to the church anytime between 3:00 and 6:00. Please click
here for more information.
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In the new year, there are some very significant events you should put into your calendar now:
On Sunday, January 21, we will be holding a new member meeting after the morning service for anyone who would like to become a formal member of The Ridge.
The following week, January 28, we will have a congregational meeting to approve the 2018 budget, and to share some exciting things going on at The Ridge, as well as to give everyone some important information on a number of issues. We want to keep you all informed!
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The church’s website has been getting updated and getting a little makeover week by week. If you haven’t been there in a while, check it out
here.
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If you would like to get involved with The Ridge, please let me know. What is your passion?
Here are some things we need right now:
We need someone who would like to help keeping our website and Facebook pages up to date. If you or a young person in your home who would be interesting in this, please
contact me.
I also need a librarian for the worship team. This would involve maintaining our music files, and putting our sheet music away every week. This would normally only take about 10 or 15 minutes a week.
I would also encourage you to stop in on a Thursday evening at 7:00 for Celebrate Recovery and see if this is something you would like to be a part of. It is an exciting, intense ministry that makes an incredible difference in the lives that it touches.
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Here is a link to the
Bethlehemian Rhapsody that we showed on Sunday morning. I’m sure a lot you would enjoy seeing it again!
And here are the songs we sang on Sunday:
This week, we will be singing traditional Christmas carols.
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Celebrate the Nativity! God is with us!
Pastor John
jmoser@theridgefw.org