What’s Happening at Good Shepherd
Christmas Caroling A group of Good Shepherd parishioners will be going caroling in the church neighborhood. If you’d like to join in, please meet at the church, 4pm on Sat, December 15th. We will be giving out a packet containing an invitation to the Christmas Pageant, and a cinnamon Christmas tree ornament. If you would like to bake a batch of ornaments, please email Anne Thompson (thompam02@gmail.com). Sample recipe: https://fountainavenuekitchen.com/3-ingredient-cinnamon-ornaments/. Please pray that many of our neighbors will respond to the invitation and be drawn into fellowship with us and with Jesus.
Bible Studies All of the bible studies that Matt teaches will be canceled from now until after January 1.
- Tuesday Morning Bible Study will resume on Tuesday January 8, 2019
- Thursday Evening Beginner Bible Study will resume on Thursday January 3, 2019
- Friday Men’s Breakfast and Bible Study will resume on Friday January 4, 2019
The Good Shepherd Christmas Pageant is receiving some much-needed attention and care this year in the form of some scheduling, rehearsal and script changes. We would love all the children to participate and any adults who would like to help. We also welcome children from outside the church to join us. If you have any questions, you can reach Anne through the office or on Sunday morning. Thank you so Much!
Rehearsal schedule:
- December 16 – Full rehearsal
- December 23 – Full rehearsal
Christmas Concert at St. Andrew’s Today, December 16th, celebrate the birth of our savior with music: vocal and instrumental solos and ensembles, plus congregational carol singing! The concert takes place at 3 p.m. at St. Andrew’s Anglican Church, 400 W Wendell St., Endicott. A free will offering will be collected.
The Soup and Stew Cookoff was scheduled to be held during the January Potluck. It will be postponed until the Potluck on February 3rd.
Christmas Cookie Exchange On December 21 at 6pm there will be a Good Shepherd Christmas Cookie exchange at the home of Ben and Ronnie Murphy, 3109 Burris Rd, Apt 4, Vestal, NY 13850. If you’d like to participate, please see Ronnie Murphy for more details. Each person will need to bring 4 dozen cookies to swap.
Christmas Schedule
- December 24 – Good Shepherd Christmas Pageant, 5pm.
- December 25 – Christmas Day service, no music, 11am.
Blessing of a Marriage During the 10:30 service on January 6th, Good Shepherd will be having a ceremony to bless the marriage of Michael and Allyson Beauharnois. Immediately following the 10:30 service, there will be a special potluck held in the parish hall to mark this special occasion. Everyone is welcome, please bring a dish to pass and join the Beauharnois in celebrating this joyous occasion!
Ongoing Ministries
Women’s Bible Study will be taking a break and will resume on Dec 29 with Micah 6:9.
Good Shepherd Youth Group Youth Group meets on Sunday night from 6:00 – 7:30pm at Good Shepherd. All youth between the ages of 12-18 are welcome to join as the youth group continues to study the book of Romans. Please contact Tyler Van Fossen if you’d like to know how to help or be involved in the Good Shepherd Youth Group in any way. Email: tvf.arrowhead@gmail.com
Youth Group dates to remember:
- Dec. 16th @ 6pm – Youth Group Christmas Party (games, snacks, and Advent lesson. Bring treats if you can!)
- Dec. 23 & 30 – Winter Break (No Youth Group)
- Jan. 6 @ 6pm – Youth Group meetings resume!
- Feb. 8-10 – Youth Group Overnight Missions Trip to Arrowhead. (working/serving, study, games, tubing, yummy food, and fun times!)
Bread and Wine If you are interested in joining a group of ladies for a monthly supper and discussion, please contact Liz Hull. The group is currently studying a book called Money, Possessions and Eternity, by Randy Alcorn. The next meeting will be in January at 6pm, at the Hull home.
Good Shepherd Food Pantry With the holidays upon us, it is essential to keep our food pantry stocked with healthy food so that those who use it can feed their families well. Many go without the foods traditionally used at holiday time because they don’t have the money for such luxuries.
Needs: Peanut butter, pasta sauces, canned veggies, cereal, one box meals, stew, salad dressings, oils, rice, canned chicken and other meats, canned fruit, powdered milk, sugar-free drinks, and crackers. and anything else you’d like to bring.
Last Week
Last Week in Christian Ed we continued our discussion of God’s Communicable Attributes. This is the third part of our discussion of God’s communicable attributes. You can listen here.
Last Week’s Sermon was called ‘The True Bread that Comes Down from Heaven‘ and was based on John 6:26-34. It can be listened to or downloaded here.
Preventing Grace Podcast Did you know that Matt and Anne have a podcast? They talk about everything from church polity to rustic breads. This week’s episode is called, ‘Why Everything you Love is Wrong‘, in which Matt and Anne discuss Christmas music, pageants, midnight masses, when and where Jesus was born, and an 80’s remake of Handel’s Messiah.
You can catch up on all of the older podcast episodes here.
Tuesday Morning Bible Study This Tuesday morning’s class was based on Leviticus 18.
This Tuesday we studied Leviticus 18…sexual relationships that are not permitted.
You can watch the recording here or in the window below.
Posted by Matt Kennedy on Tuesday, December 11, 2018
This Week
Christian Education For the next four Sundays we will take a break from Systematic Theology and do something we rarely do during Christian education. We work closely with and in the bible during Christian Education, but we’ve rarely studied an entire book or section of scripture in an in depth way, usually reserving that kind of verse by verse study for the sermons, mission groups, and weekly bible studies. That will change this Sunday as we begin a study of Jesus’ birth narratives from the account of John the Baptist’s birth in Luke one to the visitation of the Magi in Matthew 2. We’ll start in Luke and Gabriel’s appearance to Zechariah in the Temple and work our way through chapter 1. Class starts at 9:15 am Sunday morning. Hope to see you there.
This Sunday’s Sermon will be based on John 6:35-40.
Jesus said to them, “I am the bread of life; whoever comes to me shall not hunger, and whoever believes in me shall never thirst. But I said to you that you have seen me and yet do not believe. All that the Father gives me will come to me, and whoever comes to me I will never cast out. For I have come down from heaven, not to do my own will but the will of him who sent me. And this is the will of him who sent me, that I should lose nothing of all that he has given me, but raise it up on the last day. For this is the will of my Father, that everyone who looks on the Son and believes in him should have eternal life, and I will raise him up on the last day.”
Team Corinthians is working on the altar this Sunday.
The readings for this week are Zephaniah 3:14-20 and Philippians 4:4-9.
Christine O. will be serving on the altar guild this Sunday.
Carrie M. and Rachael L. will be working in the nursery this Sunday.
Shepherd’s Bowl Team 3 with Micheline Raphael
To download a PDF of the 10:30 service bulletin, click on this link.
Have an item for the Update or an Announcement?
Email the secretary at:
gs.binghamton@gmail.com
by Monday night.