Belle Meade United Methodist Church November 28, 2012The Spire

Getting Ready For Jesus There are little more than five weeks left until Christmas and the excitement is building in my house. What my kids are most excited about might surprise you. It sure surprised me! They are not making their lists for Santa; although those are coming I’m quite sure. The talk in the backseat lately has been about Advent. Lucy and Spencer can’t wait to make their Advent wreath at church on December 2, and are mak-ing deals with each other to see who will light which candle, and exactly how many times. Imagine their joy when I told them that this year not only would we make our Advent wreath as usual, but also paint a nativity set that we could take home! Lucy had to confirm that it would be theologi-cally sound, complete with Gabriel, animals and the wise men (and I quote “even they don’t come until later. You know, Mommy, Epiphany?”) Um, yes, Lucy, thanks for the reminder.

Sometimes it can be a challenge to observe Advent when there are Christmas parties, Christmas music, shopping for gifts, visiting Santa, and all the other things families must fit into the month of December. We don’t want to vilify Santa and all the other things that go along with that aspect of Christmas. Those things are fun and help us grow closer to family and friends in their own ways. However, we want to make sure our family focuses on the birth of our Savior and uses the weeks before Christmas Day for reflection and to grow closer to God.

Advent can restore Jesus to the center of the Christmas celebration, if we observe the birth of Jesus in some way every day. The whole family can participate and find the ob-servance meaningful. Props can be simple and inexpensive. The memories will last a lifetime.

Advent starts on the fourth Sunday before Christmas. Let your family know that this year you are going to start a new tradition to celebrate Jesus’ birthday, or maybe add to a tra-dition you already have. Decide which time of the day will work best for your Advent time. The half hour or so before bedtime works really well for my family. We save weekends for service projects and bigger events.

Some ideas for observing Advent: Light the candles on your Advent wreath, use an Advent calendar with 24 windows to open each day, or maybe make a paper chain with red and green links to mark the number of days until Jesus’ birthday. Pray together. Try saving the Christmas cards you get each day and use your Advent prayer time to pray for the senders. Sing a carol. Read from a devotional, or your favorite Bible verses. Do an Advent service project for the needy. Join your fellow church members as we carol to our homebound families on December 16. Use your freshly painted nativity set with lots of animals to enact the story (this is a really great way to get preschool children involved, especially if they helped paint the animals!) Make Advent cookies that are different from your Christmas cookies, read the story of the nativity and talk about it. One of my kids’ favorite tradi-tions is reading the Nativity Story along with “The Night Before Christmas” on Christmas Eve. These are just a few ways to observe Advent. Use them or create your own. Whatever you decide to do, make it a priority. Observe Ad-vent every day and I bet you will experience a new peace in Christ, even if it is just for a few moments, during what is usually a hectic, crazy time of year.

Peace be with you and your family. Blessings, Erin

MemorialsA gift was made to the General Memorial Fund in memory of Julian Gibbs by Joseph H. Allen.A gift was made to the General Memorial Fund in memory of Rogers Buntin by Helen Babb.

HonoriaA gift was made in honor of the baptism of Georgia Massey by Edward and Betty DeVault.

Belle Meade Passage Class ReunionAll fathers, sons, and mentors who have participated in a Passage class are invited to a breakfast reunion on Saturday, December 22nd at 8:30 am in the Fellowship Hall.

Please contact Randy Hearon (347-6858) or Mark Whitler (881-2313) for additional information.

Jennifer MullenChristine Thorpe

Robert and Rebecca Jacobs, Harper and HenryReed, Glenn and Jennifer Shirley

Welcome To Our Newest Members

December Joy Lunch,Thursday, December 1311:15 AM - 1:00 PMCome enjoy the sounds of the season! This special time of Christmas music and holiday stories will include your favorite classics as well as new songs from Lindsay’s latest recording, simply titled “Christmas.” Lindsay Huggins is a former classmate of Kristin Clark-Banks while they were at Trevecca Nazarene University. Lindsay has a beautiful voice and a heart for God. Come and enjoy her seasonal program while enjoying a delicious lunch by Erin Seay. Lunch is $9. Sign up in the administrative lobby or by calling the church at 615-352-6210.

Advent Workshop - This Sunday 3:00 - 5:00 pm

Nativity PaintingCome create a hand painted nativity on canvas while spend-ing quality time with your family! All ages are welcome. There will be a special part for everyone. Reservations are re-quired. You will have a table reserved with all supplies need-ed to complete this treasured keepsake. Guided instruction will be provided by Carrie Duborg. Reservation forms are in the lobby and on the church website www.bellemeadeumc.org or contact Erin Seay at erin@bellemeadeumc.org or 352-6210.

Advent Wreath CraftingCreate a live advent wreath to take home. All supplies are provided. The fee is $5. Additional children’s craft, cider, cocoa, and cookies will be offered. Come enjoy this relaxing time together preparing our homes for Advent.

Breakfast with SantaSave the date for Breakfast with Santa! Saturday, December 15 from 9:00 am - 10:30 am in the Fellowship Hall. To volunteer go to www.bellemeadeumc.org and look under the Children and Youth tab for December volunteer op-portunities or contact Erin Seay erin@bellemeadeumc.org 352-6210

White Christmas Gifts ProjectWhite Christmas is our church’s opportunity to reach out to others at Christmas. The children in the YWCA Weaver Center, Dare to Dream Community Care Fellowship after school program and the seniors at Bethlehem Center are recipients of this years Christmas gifts. There are still tags available on the board in the administrative lobby. Price point suggestion is $50 maximum. The date for bringing your gifts to the Chrismon Tree in the Narthex is Sunday, December 9th.

Prayer Concerns

The church prayer list cannot be included on our website due to privacy issues.

You can find the list in the church bulletin

or in the e-mail newsletter.If you would like

to receive the newsletter by e-mail please contact

the church office at 352-6210 or sign up at the church website,

www.bellemeadeumc.org, under the newsletter and events page.

Wednesday Night TogetherSupper is served beginning at 5:00 pm and programming begins at 6:00 pm. To make a reservation for dinner call the church at 352-6210 or sign up at the front desk.

Programming includes: Prayer Time 5:45 to 6:15 pm in the chapel; Men’s Bible Study; DISCIPLE Bible Study; Prayer Shawl/Knitting Group; Pastor’s Bible Study; Youth Bible Study; and Children’s Choirs.

Experience Handel’s Messiahby the Nashville SymphonyJoin us for an evening of outstanding music as the Nashville Sym-phony and Chorus present Handel’s Messiah at The Schermerhorn Symphony Center, Thursday, December 20th. Reservations include dinner, travel on the church bus, and a ticket to the concert all for $50. This event is open to all members of our church. Call the church to make reservations, sign up at the front desk in the admin lobby, or for more information contact Betty Willis: 352-9233.

Hendrix College Choir Presents Candlelight Carol Service on December 13The Hendrix College Choir, under the direction of Dr. Nancy Flem-ing, will present the 48th Candlelight Carol Service at Belle Meade UMC on Thursday, December 13th at 7:30 pm. This is a not-to-be missed event!

Food and Housing Needed ForHendrix College ChoirOur church is hosting the Hendrix College Choir on Thursday, December 13th. Housing is needed for 50 college students, if you can house two or more of these students in your home and pro-vide breakfast on Friday morning, please contact Mark Acker at the church. Also we will be providing dinner to the choir prior to their concert. If you can provide a vegetable, salad or dessert, please contact Mark Acker at the church. 9352-6210)

Poinsettia DedicationsYou are invited to make a poinsettia dedication in memory of or in honor of someone. All poinsettias are red and all dedications will be published on Sunday, December 16th. Plants will be available for pickup after the services on December 16th, 23rd and Christmas Eve. The cost is $15 per plant.

To make a dedication, send your payment along with an order form (one order form per plant, please) to the church or place it in the offering plate. Forms are available in the Narthex, the administra-tive lobby, and at www.bellemeadeumc.org. The deadline to place an order is December 12th.

NONPROFIT ORGU.S. Postage PAIDNashville, TNPermit No. 1002

121 Davidson Road, Nashville, TN 37205www.bellemeadeumc.org(615) 352 - 6210

Belle Meade United Methodist Church

Worship This Sunday

8:30 am - Worship in the ChapelSermon: Tom Gildemeister

Music by BMUMC acoustic ensemble 8:45 am - Holy Communion in the Sanctuary

A 15-minute time of communion with prayers and liturgy.

10:30 am - Worship in the SanctuarySermon: Tom Gildemeister

Music: Belle Meade Choir and Instrumentalists9:15 am - 10:15 am Sunday School for all ages

ADVENT CALENDAR OF EVENTS

SUNDAY, DECEMBER 23:00 - 5:00 pm Advent Workshop in Fellowship Hall

WEDNESDAY, DECEMBER 5

6:15 pm Advent Vespers in the Sanctuary

WEDNESDAY, DECEMBER 12 6:15 pm Children’s Choirs Musical in the Chapel

THURSDAY, DECEMBER 13 11:15 am J.O.Y. Lunch for Older Adults

7:30 pm Lessons and Carols sung by Hendrix College Choir of Conway, Arkansas

SATURDAY, DECEMBER 15

9:00 - 10:30 am Breakfast with Santa in the Fellowship Hall

SUNDAY, DECEMBER 16 10:30 am Belle Meade Festival of Carols

Children, youth, adult and handbell choirs, soloists, and instrumentalists lead in our annual Festival of Carols. 6:00 pm All Church Caroling

CHRISTMAS EVE 3:00 pm Children’s and Family service (30 minutes)7:00 pm Candlelight Service with Holy Communion11:00 pm Candlelight Service with Holy Communion

Music by choirs and instrumentalists begins 30 minutes prior to the 7:00 pm and 11:00 pm services.