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(609) 587-1286
Volume 23, Issue 10
465 Paxson Avenue, Hamilton Square, New Jersey 08690
Fax: 609-587-6090 [email protected] www.saintmarkhamilton.org -
:M.arkinns
December, 2014
From the Pastor's Desk:
I want to know that at the end of my life that I did something more than eat the food, breathe the air and
have a pretty good life. I want to know that I left it all on the field, sowed all that I was given, and reaped
a harvest that will continue to have an impact for the Kingdom, long after I have physically left this place.
Reverend Mike Slaughter in Shiny Gods
What legacy are we committed to leave? At the end of Advent/Christmas 2014, what difference do we hope to
make? Maybe we seek to make our friends and families happy with the offering of gifts or make retail establishments
nappy with holiaay-purchases. Is rnis our-l-egacy?
Last year, we as a church conducted our Christmas is Not Your Birthday Campaign when we challenged ourselves to
set a percentage of what we would normally spend on Christmas celebration and make a gift to God, and God's work in
the world. As part of that campaign we raised nearly $10,000 in a special Chr istmas Eve Offering for A Future With
Hope.
It is still not our birthday, and once again we as a congregation seek to challenge members and friends to make a
difference in the world. This year there will be a Special Missions Offering received on Christmas Eve in support of
the Imagine No Malaria campaign of the United Methodist Church. Special envelopes will be available for this mission
offering.
Did you know:
• Malaria is 100/o preventable .
• In sub-Saharan Africa, malaria kills a person every 60 seconds
• 90i'o of the victims of malaria are children under the age of five, and pregnant women
• In 2007 the World Health Organization estimated 1 million malaria-related deaths each year,
by 2012, that number decreased to 627,000.
• Since the inception of the Nothing But Nets Campaign, the UMC and its partners have distributed 2,300,000 bed nets.
• The United Methodist Church has set a goal of $75 million for Imagine No Malaria, and we
approach 85% per cent of that goal.
What is our legacy? How can we make a difference in the name of Christ? Come to worship in Advent as we learn
more aoout ways we can Imagine No Malaria. Be in prayer as to how you will demonstrate this season, that Christmas is
not Your Birthday.
Peace, 'BobYear End Giving
2014 has been a challenging fiscal year for Saint Mark UMC. A difficult winter, higher than expected utility charges and church maintenance projects have us entering November significantly in the red. Saint Mark depends almost
entirely on the generous giving of members and friends to meet its ministry and mission obligations. If you are in a position to make a year-end gift to the ministry, it would be deeply appreciated. We encourage members and friends to
consider giving an extra week's offering before the end of the year to assist us in meeting the shortfall.
Church Staff:
Robert L. Marks
Senior Pastor
Bill Wieszczek
Director of Music
Eric Johannsen
Director of Youth Ministries
Lorraine Wilson Children's Ministry Coordinator
Lynn Wilson
Bill Garrett
Linda D'Errico
Judy Smith
Director of Visitation
Organist
Office Manager
Secretary
Meg Hanson
Praise! Pianist
Sharon Clarke
Praise! Director
Bob Sharp, Tim Marks, Gary Fuller
Custodians
ADVENT POT LUCK DINNER
THANKS FOR YOUR GRANOLA BAR DONATIONS!
We begin the season of Advent by gathering as a
congregation for an Advent Pot Luck Dinner on November 30, at 6:00PM. Plan to be with us for dinner and
devotions. Forms are available in the narthex to let us
know of your plans to attend, and the kind of dish that
you will bring (entree, salad, dessert, etc).
Our Trenton Area Soup Kitchen Volunteers took approximately 80 boxes of granola bars to the Soup Kitchen on November 5. These bars are a vital part of snack
bag giveaways for diabetic patrons and children. Thanks
for thoughtful donations!
TRENTON AREA SOUP KITCHEN
ADVENT MID-WEEK DEVOTIONS
On December 3, 10, and 17, we will gather for a time
of Advent Dinner and Devotions, from 6:00-7:30PM.
This is a great time to center in on the meaning of the
Advent season. Our devotions this year are based on a
resource entitled Mary Had A Baby and center around
four African American spirituals. Put these dates on
your calendar. NEEDED: Persons who would consider
providing a light dinner prior to our time for devotions.
See Pastor Bob.
ADVENT COIN FOLDERS
Each year we offer Advent Coin Folders for you to
fill with quarters as part of your Advent spiritual disciplines. The coin folder is to remind you to pray for your
church each day of Advent. Thank you for your support
of the ministry of Saint Mark this Advent Season.
CHRISTMAS EVE SERVICES
Once again this year we will offer four worship experiences on Christmas Eve. There will be a Family Service led by our Tunesday young people at 3:00PM. At
5:00PM a traditional service will be offered with sermon, carols and candlelight. At 7:00PM we offer a Contemporary worship service with sermon, carols, and candlelight, and at ll:OOPM a traditional service with sermon, carols, and candlelight. Bring your family with you
to worship as we celebrate the birth of Christ.
CHRISTMAS DAY SERVICE
An informal Christmas Day service will be held at
Saint Mark at 10:30AM. This service will include carols,
special music, a Christmas meditation, and the Lord's
Supper.
The children's Nativity will take place Sunday
December 7, at 5:00PM. Weather permitting, the
animals will join us. Rehearsal for kids and youth
readers will be Saturday, December 6, at 9:00AM.
We will work on costume fittings, then begin rehearsal at 9:30AM. Children in the program should arrive
at church on Sunday, December 7, by 4:30PM.
Our dedicated group of volunteers goes down to the
Trenton Area Soup Kitchen the first Wednesday of every month. We meet at 9:30AM in the church narthex to
carpool to Trenton, returning by 1:10PM. So, if you are
available on December 3 and/or January 7, we would be
happy to have you join our team. Contact Bill Wieszczek
(587-1286 or [email protected]) if you have any questions or if this is your first time serving.
UMW PRESENT VOLUNTEER OPPORTUNITY OF THE MONTH
The Salvation Army is an evangelical part of the universal Christian Church. Its message is based on the
Bible. Its ministry is motivated by the love of God. Its
mission is to preach the gospel of Jesus Christ and to
meet human needs in His name without discrimination.
The Salvation Army is committed to serve the whole
person, body, soul and spirit, with integrity and respect,
using creative solutions to positively transform lives. Its
objectives are the advancement of the Christian religion,
education, the relief of poverty, and other charitable
objectives beneficial to society or the community of
mankind as a whole. Whether it is shelter for a displaced family or a warm cup of coffee for our bravest
and finest-hope and healing is the message of The Salvation Army.
The Salvation Army accepts donations of cars, clothing, furniture, and household goods as well as monetary
donations. There are also many ways to volunteer including: emergency disaster services, food drive organizer,
teachers/aides, and bell ringers. Check out their opportunity
directory
online
or
email
[email protected].
website: http:/ /www.salvationarmynj.org/trenton
Phone: 609-599-9373
If you would like to share some cookies or brownies for
the fellowship hour after the Nativity, please mark them
and leave them in the kitchen. Thanks to all parents and
friends that help each year with this important part of the
Sunday School experience.
A special THANK YOU to the dedicated teachers that
share their time, talent, and love with the Saint Mark children each week God bless you everyone
OPEN MIC IN THE BLEAK MID- WINTER
Our next Open Mic sessions will be on Friday, December 5, and January 9 (note that January's session is
on the second Friday of the month) at 7:30PM. We welcome and encourage performers of all ages and abilities
to come out and give it go. Each performer gets up to 3
songs/12 minutes.
Sign-up with Bill W. at 7:15PM.
Please bring a snack to share - hot and cold beverages
are provided.
SAINT MARK SINGERS AND THE NASSAU BRASS
Our choir teams up with Nassau Brass on December
14 to present Bill Wieszczek's cantata, The Promise Fulfilled at the 8:00 and !1:00AM services. Make plans to
join us at one of these services as we reflect on the
promise God makes to his people through the psalms,
the prophet Isaiah, and the apostle Luke.
TUNESDAY CHOIR- HAS A "SPECIAL REPORT"
The Tunesday Choir is getting ready to present the
musical, Christmas Carol: Special Report for the 3:00PM
family worship service on Christmas Eve. Although it is
getting close, we still will welcome other kids and youth
in grades 1-8 to join with us on any Tuesday from 4:30
~The Music Corner
to 6:00PM as we put the finishing touches on this fun
and informative musical. Contact Bill Wieszczek (5871286 or ([email protected]) if your child will be joining us.
HANDBELLS RING FOR RW J TREE OF LIFE LIGHTING
We have been asked to ring for the annual Tree of
Life lighting ceremony at RWJ Hamilton Hospital on December 5 at 6:00PM. Come out and enjoy a short program presented by the RWJ Auxiliary. This event is
held inside down near the cafeteria. Talk with Bill Garrett for more details.
SUPER BELL SUNDAY IS JANUARY 25
Our annual service featuring our handbell ministry is
set ior January 25 for the 8:00 and !1:00AM. services.
Both Silver Bells and Saint Mark Handbell Choirs will be
participating and leading the hymns and other service
music for the services. Take this opportunity to
come and enjoy the sounds of handbells. If you are interested in learning to ring, please talk with either Pam
Rooney or Bill Garrett.
MISSIONS
As I watch the election returns on November 4, I am
reminded that no matter what our personal circumstances
(and no matter how we feel about the election results) as
we enter the Advent Season, we are blessed beyond
measure in our country. With much to be grateful for, we
answer God's call to be faithful servants both locally and
• December 14: Monetary Giving for the United
Methodist Homes - Our giving allows elderly residents of
the homes who use all their resources living there, to
continue to live in the Methodist Homes
• December 21 and Christmas Eve - Please bring the
Christmas envelope you will receive by mail. This will be
our gift to Imagine No Malaria. 2014 is the second year
globally.
Here is the Advent calendar for giving to those less
fortunate in our community and in our world. Imagine No
Malaria is part of our Bishop, John Schol's Future With
Hope Initiative. -S._aint ~ar]Lwill lo~ok to generoi.J~Iy support _
this initiative again this Advent. Saint Mark families will
have the opportunity to make a generous gift to Imagine
No Malaria as part of their Christmas giving.
• December 7: Hat and Mitten Creche - Please bring
hats and mittens for adults and children. As is our
tradition, these gifts will be given to Mercer Street
Friends whose programs serve Mercer County infants
through the elderly. We would also like to provide 90
women's winter hats to the residents of Dunham Hall at
the Trenton YWCA. Dunham Hall is a 90 bed residence
that provides housing to low income and homeless women.
The goal of this organization is to improve personal and
social functioning of their residents whose disabilities
impede their ability to live independently in the
community.
of three years of Bishop Schol's Future With Hope
Initiative. We gave to Imagine No Malaria last year and
the difference our gifts made is simply stunning. The
frequency of death by malaria in Africa has literally been
ctJt in half! This is just- -amazing progress. With otlr
generosity, this work will continue and so many more lives
will be saved. Imagine No Malaria is providing education,
malaria prevention medicine, and mosquito nets to
families in African nations. Please continue to make this
generous giving a tradition in your family Christmas
celebration. Pastor Marks reminded us last year, "It's
Not Your Birthday." It's important that we remember
this and give with gratitude.
THANKS!
Thank you so much for being a part of our awesome
summer. Through your hands, we were able to make
Nicholas County a little bit warmer, safer and dryer.
Thanks for doing God's work and keep spreading His love.
the Nicholas County-Staff
*****
If you would like to contribute to a Love Gift
for the Saint Mark staff, please send your
check payable to Saint Mark UMC (clearly
marked "Love Gift") by December 15 to our
Financial Secretary: Carol Conklin
5 Cheverny Ct.
Hamilton, NJ 08619
Thank you for your kind contribution.
CeCe6rate Christmas
J\t Saint :Mark!
As we look forward to the holidays, the Missicr.s Teum would
like to inform you of opportunities to share
our blessings with those less fortunate:
December 7
Hat & Mitten Creche
Mittens, Gloves. Scarves
For Mercer Street Friends
Women's Hats for Dunham Hall
December 7 5:00PM Live Nativity
With actors, animals and carols
December 14 All Services
The Giving Tree
Monetary contributions for
The United Methodist Homes of NJ
December 14 8:00 & 11:00AM
Saint Mark Singers, The Chamber Singers,
Saint Mark Handbell Choir,
and the Nassau Brass
present the Cantata The Promise Fulfilled
9:30AM
Contemporary Worship
December 24
3:00PM Family Service
Christmas Carol: Special Report
Presented by Saint Mark's Kids & Youth
5:00PM Traditional Candlelight Worship with
sermon, carols, special music &ensembles
7:00PM Contemporary worship
with candlelight
11:00PM Traditional Candlelight
Worship with lessons and carols with the
The Saint Mark Singers, Sacred Strings
and Candlelight Bell Choir
December 25
!0:30AM We invite you to join brothers and
sisters in an informal worship service
Little Givers
by Joanne Leilich
This year's annual stewardship campaign is entitled first:
putting God first in living and in giving. In his campaign letter , Pastor Bob said that this program "will challenge us to
identify the idols that compete with God for first place in
our lives; examine the role of work and debt, and discover
how to save and give from the heart."
Just reading these words unleashed a flood of memories
for me. I saw myself about seven or eight years old clutching my weekly church envelope, very proud of the 25 cents
my mom gave me each week for my church contribution. As
an adult, however, it always bothered me to just hand out
money for my own children to put in the basket. Since a
part of this plan has us examine how we save, I thought I
would focus on how our youngest givers can be shown how to
save in a way that includes the concept of stewardship.
Around the time children begin elementary school, start
having conversations with them about the differences between needs and wants. Talk to them as you make selections
at the mall or flip through store brochures together. Later
set up three piggy banks for your child or grandchild to keep
their gift money or money earned from household chores or
good behaviors like starting homework without needing to be
reminded. Label each piggy bank "saving," "spending," and
"giving."
Help your child set a goal for each bank and help them
come up with a plan for how they will divide up any money
they receive or earn. Should equal amounts always go into
each bank? Can the child be allowed to put all of one earning
into one bank? These are real life skills that they will be
learning at their own level. For younger elementary children
you might want to use only dimes because they are easily
counted.
Surprisingly, many children will often want to put all
their money into the "giving" bank. My own kids wanted to
do this with their earnings when they were younger. Isn't it
interesting how giving to God and community can be at the
forefront for our littlest donors but gets pushed aside by
the stresses of adulthood? It's time to take a lesson from
our children and learn how to "put God first in living and in
giving."
UNITED METHODIST WOMEN
The Annual UM W Christmas Party Christmas Memories
will be held Friday, December 12, with a buffet dinner at
6:00PM. The Angel tree donation will be sent to UMCOR/Ebola
aid. Cash or checks accepted (payable to Saint Mark UMWEbola donation in the memo line). Please bring a $1.00 wrapped
gift for exchange game and a past Christmas picture of you
for Name that Person Game. Also we would like to gather one
of your Christmas Memories to be put into a booklet after the
party and distributed to the Christmas Party attendees. You
may sign your name or be anonymous. The dinner cost is
$15. Sign up in fellowship Hall by December 6/7.