“But you, O Bethlehem Ephrathah,
who are too little to be among the clans of Judah,
from you shall come forth for me
one who is to be ruler in Israel, …
And he shall stand and shepherd his flock in the strength of the Lord,
in the majesty of the name of the Lord his God.
And they shall dwell secure, for now he shall be great
to the ends of the earth.
And he shall be their peace.”
(Micah 5:2, 4-5 ESV)
Dear Friends,
Greetings in Jesus’ name.
It’s only stuff! Remember that as you are shopping and pondering what you might receive for Christmas.
Remember that God loves you more. Stuff doesn’t love and it doesn’t give – it can only take. Stuff costs to get, takes time to care for, and diminishes with time (how many times have you disposed of something broken only to find the box that it came in stored away in the basement now looking better than the thing you’re now getting rid of?)
But the One born in Bethlehem is the “ruler” who would “be great to the ends of the earth. And he shall be their peace.”
Jesus’ rule of salvation through His Holy life and redeeming death and victorious resurrection is the source of peace for all who would believe in Him – now and forever. His kingdom shall have no end!
Please be sure to take in as much of the true meaning of Christmas this season. The Lord be with you.
Coming Up at Prince of Peace …
December 6 (2nd Sunday in Advent)
9:00 a.m. Sunday School & Adult Bible Class
10:30 Divine Service with Holy Communion
PoP News …
“Christmas Now!” Carol Sing: Prince of Peace is hosting an evening of carol singing this Friday, December 4 at 7:00 pm. Light refreshments will be served. Admission is free. Come join us! Invite your friends!
Readers Appreciation Breakfast: To our Sunday lesson readers, we want to serve you breakfast! As a thank you and a chance to talk about the importance of what you do, let’s get together on Saturday, December 5 at 9:00am.
Adult Instruction Class: Would you be in interested in attending a class or know someone who might be interested? This course could lead to membership at Prince of Peace if so desired. It may well bring up some points you hadn’t considered or that might differ from the teachings you heard from somewhere else. In this class we consider what God says in the Bible as packaged in Luther’s Small Catechism. The plan is to meet Sundays after church. If we begin at 12 noon, we will be done at 1:15. I figure it will take approximately 6 weeks. We will take December 27 off since it’s so close to Christmas. You receive a free new catechism. Each session incorporates a video and then discussion on that part of the catechism. Homework would involve looking through the coming section of the catechism to stir up questions you might have. We begin at noon this Sunday. If you miss a session, we can make it up later.
Knitting for Missions will meet Monday, December 7, at 7:00 pm, at Laila home. If you are unable to make it, you can knit/crochet at home – just speak to Laila or June.
Joyful Seniors: We are starting this group to enable our members to become better acquainted by spending a few hours together once a month. There will be no potlucks – just come and enjoy a “joyful” afternoon. All seniors are invited to our first gathering, Wed. December 9 at 1 pm. It would be nice if you could bring your favourite Nativity and we will display them for all to see. We hope you can join us for a fun Christmas celebration.
Family Christmas Event: On Sunday, December 13, beginning at 4:30 you are invited to a special three-part event. Part 1 will feature an Advent/Christmas craft and other hands-on activities. The second part is a delicious Christmas dinner followed by Part 3, a Christmas pageant where you all are the participants. It will an enjoyable and uplifting time for everyone. Oh, come let us worship Baby Jesus!
The Ladies Bible Study Breakfast will be a festive morning! In addition to our Bible study, we also will take time to share in some Christmas festivities. Everyone is asked to bring a small gift for their secret prayer pal. Come join the fun on Saturday Dec. 12 at 9 am.
Men’s Bible Study Breakfast –An invitation is extended from Pilgrim Lutheran Church (1054 Upper Sherman Ave, Hamilton) to their Men’s Bible Study Breakfast at 8:00 am on Saturday Dec. 12.
God Hidden in Our Work is a Sunday Bible study workshop that helps answer life questions. This study continues on Sunday. See you there!
Youth Bible Study: This Sunday at 9:15am. Share with me your favorite music title. We’ll look at the lyrics together. I will come prepared with a mini-Bible study to go with our review. Some breakfast stuff will be there.
The Christmas Celebration …
In addition to Christmas Now and the Family Christmas Event, the worship schedule for Christmas is as follows:
- Christmas Eve Services, December 24 at 5:30pm and 7:30pm
- Christmas Day Service, December 25 at 10:30am
Of course, everyone loves Christmas. Why not talk to friends and relatives and invite them to attend service at Prince of Peace.
Online News …
YOUR DAILY LUTHERAN BIBLE CLASS…Issues, Etc. is a radio talk show produced by Lutheran Public Radio in Collinsville, IL and hosted by LCMS Pastor Todd Wilken. This week’s topics include: Faith & Works, The Birth of Jesus Foretold, Christians & Social Media, The Movie “Spotlight,” Martin Luther’s Heidelberg Disputation and more. You can listen at your convenience at http://issuesetc.org/ and on the new Lutheran Public Radio mobile app.
Share some joy this upcoming advent season with a CD from The CREW. “Consider Well… a Christmas Journey with the CREW” is available online <http://www.thecrewguys.com/> for $20. If you want to get more directly involved and take this on as a fundraiser, they will sell groups of 5 CDs to us for $15 each. We could use the profit as we see fit. Think about it! Joel Haberstock, joel@thecrewguys.com.
In your prayers, please remember:
- Those battling cancer
- Those under doctor’s care
- Our Christian witness in these later days
The Lord be with you.
Yours in Christ Jesus,
Pastor Kevin Walrath
