Dear Centenary Church Family:

This Sunday at Centenary:
December 2, 2008 – The Second Sunday of Advent /
Sacrament of Holy Communion

9:00 AM – Adult Study: A Christmas Carol Bible Study (Sunshine Room)
10:15 AM – Worship & Sunday School (Pre-K through 12th grade)
Preacher: John D. Painter Theme: Prepare a Way in the Wilderness
Lectionary Readings: Isaiah 40:1-11 2 Peter 3:8-15a
Psalm 85:1-2,8-13 Mark 1:1-8
11:30 AM – Fellowship Time (Room 20)
11:45 AM – Junior Choir Rehearsal (Music Room)
6:30 PM – Centenary Youth Fellowship Pizza & Baking (Youth Room/Kitchen)

Attention Centenary Youth
Sunday, December 7: Baking fun! We will meet in the youth room after church for pizza. Then we will bake treats to sell during the Pageant next Sunday as a fundraiser. We should be done around 3:00 in the afternoon. Come whenever you can. We will not have regular youth group this Sunday evening.
Next Sunday, December 14: Youth Christmas Party! We will go ice skating at Roosevelt Park and then have dinner together. More details to develop soon.

ADULT CLASS OFFERS
A CHRISTMAS CAROL BIBLE STUDY AT ADVENT
Around the world, two Christmas stories are greatly loved. The first is the sacred birth of Jesus as told in the Holy Scriptures, and the second is Charles Dickens’ A Christmas Carol, which was written in 1843. As its Advent offering this year, Centenary’s Adult Class will combine these beloved stories into a four-week study beginning Sunday, November 23.
With practical applications for daily living, this DVD-based Bible study will feature the classic black-and-white film, A Christmas Carol, and relevant Scriptures on the teachings of Jesus.
We invite you to join us in the Sunshine Room, on Sunday mornings from 9:00 AM to 10:00 AM, as we follow Ebenezer Scrooge on his life-changing journey from fallen man to redemption. The remaining schedule is as follows:
December 7 Ghost of Christmas Present: Repentance
December 14 Ghost of Christmas Future: Salvation
You don’t necessarily have to make a year-long commitment to be part of the Adult Class. We usually schedule our courses to run no more than five or six weeks so you can attend as your schedule permits. If you see a course that has special interest for you, please join us. If you have suggestions for courses you would like the Adult Class to offer, please contact Bob Carlson at 732-549-6296.

PANCAKE BREAKFAST

Blueberry Pancakes
Plain Pancakes
Waffles
Scrambled Eggs
Bacon and Sausage
Orange and Apple Juice
Coffee, Tea, and Milk

Saturday, December 6, 2008

8:00 AM – 11:00 AM

Only $7.00 per person
Children 10 and under – $5.00

Proceeds will be designated to support a proposed Spring 2009
Volunteer-in-Mission Trip to work with our
United Methodist Committee on Relief (UMCOR) in disaster repair and relief.

Centenary United Methodist Church
200 Hillside Avenue, Metuchen, NJ
732-548-7622

THE UNITED METHODIST WOMEN’S MITTEN TREE is in place in the Narthex. Please bring your mittens, hats, scarves, etc. These items will be sent to Red Bird Mission in Beverly, Kentucky.
The Red Bird Mission is a mission of the United Methodist Church and it is the place where we send our Campbell Soup Labels. It gets cold in the mountains of Kentucky so they really need our gifts to keep them warm. Be on the lookout for special bargains at our local stores for mittens, hats, etc. Frequently Target and Walgreens have good bargains. The deadline for collecting these items is this Sunday, December 7.

Watoto Children’s Choir in Concert: Christ United Methodist Church (485 Hoes Lane, Piscataway, NJ 08854) will be hosting a concert by the Watoto Children’s Choir on Tuesday, December 9th at 7:30 PM. This wonderful free concert is open to all. The free-will offering taken will go directly to Watoto Childcare Ministries, which affords housing and a family to children in Uganda, Africa who have been orphaned by AIDS and the ravages of war. For more info call Christ United Methodist Church at 732-463-1517.

2009 Offering Envelopes Are Now Available
Weekly offering envelopes for 2009 are available on a table in the Narthex. Please check the boxes and take your packet of envelopes (arranged alphabetically) home with you…and please take a packet for a neighbor or friend, if you see it still there. Mailing out these offering envelopes costs quite a bit per set, so by taking them with you, you assist us greatly in reducing mailing costs. If you do not find a packet of envelopes with your name on them and wish to have a set, please notify the Church Office, and Sue Brownlow, our Financial Secretary, will prepare a set for your use. We encourage everyone to use these envelopes to share their gifts with the church as it makes it much easier for our financial teams to maintain accurate giving records throughout the year. Thank you.
Have You Returned Your 2009 Financial Commitment Card?
The financial support of everyone at Centenary is imperative if we are to meet our ministry and mission goals for 2009. If you have returned your Financial Commitment Card indicating your pledge for the coming year, thank you. If you have yet to return your Commitment Card indicating your intention to share from your resources, we request that you do so as soon as possible. Additional Commitment Cards are available from the ushers during Worship each Sunday, and from the Church Office. Thank you for your faithful support of our shared ministry.

The 2009 Deluxe Christian Family Appointment Calendars
for Centenary United Methodist Church
are available in the Narthex
Please pick up a copy for your use at home or work, and you may want to take an extra calendar or two to share with neighbors and friends. We are grateful to Costello-Runyon Funeral Home for again providing these beautiful calendars to the congregation.

Refreshments for 2009
Persons are invited to sponsor the time of coffee and refreshments following our Sunday Worship services in 2009. Please consider sponsoring a refreshment time and signing up for one of the many available weeks on the new 2009 Refreshment Chart in the Narthex. Information on what you need to provide is available on the information sheet attached to the Refreshment Chart. Thank you for providing hospitality on a Sunday morning.

Flower Arrangements for 2009
Persons are invited to sponsor flower arrangements for our Worship services beginning on January 6, 2008. A new 2009 Flower Chart has been posted in the Narthex. Floral arrangements cost $25.00 each week to sponsor. Information is available from our Flower Chairperson, Linda Serentino (732-940-2135) or by calling the Church Office. Thank you for providing these beautiful tributes for our Sunday services.

A Christmas Carol—Friday, December 12 @ 6:30 PM: Our Children’s Ministries program will provide dinner and a movie. Come and see the classic story A Christmas Carol. Menu: salad, soup and sandwiches. A barrel offering will be taken.

Centenary Book Club – Friday, December 19 @ 7:30 PM
Book for Discussion: Atonement by Ivan McEwan. Centenary Book Club continues to seek members. Men and women ages 18 and older are invited to come and join us. The Book Club meets on the 2nd Friday of each month, unless otherwise noted, at 7:30 PM in the Library. Come, read, discuss and enjoy.
Upcoming Music Ministry Events:
Sunday, December 21, 10:15AM Candles and Carols: A special lessons and carols service featuring instruments, choir, and congregational singing.
Sunday, December 21, 6:30PM Carols & Cookies: A community carol sing in the sanctuary followed by refreshments featuring a “cookie exchange.”

Christmas Eve at Centenary
Wednesday, December 24, 2008
7:00 PM — Christmas Eve Service for the Young of Heart and Spirit
Special Children’s Message, Junior Choir Sings; Carols and Candle lighting
Preacher: Keith A. Swatzel, II
11:00 PM — Christmas Eve Service of Carols, Candlelight and Holy Communion
Chancel Choir and Soloists; Congregational Carols and Candle lighting
Preacher: John D Painter Theme: The Bethlehem Wall
Lectionary Readings: Isaiah 9:2-7 Titus 2:11-14
Psalm 96 Luke 2:1-20

Some Thoughts for This Week:

Be slow in choosing a friend, slower in changing. – Benjamin Franklin

The expression of praise as thanksgiving, gratitude, and joy is among the most powerful forms of affirmation. – Catherine Ponder

The image that concerns most people is the reflection they see in other people’s minds. – Edward De Bono

The best way to predict your future is to create it. – Unknown

Compassion and justice are companions, not choices. – William Sloane Coffin

A small house often holds more happiness than a mansion.

It is better to be prepared for an opportunity and not have one than to have an opportunity and not be prepared. – Whitney Young, JR.

I am beginning to learn that it is the sweet, simple things of life which are the real ones after all. – Laura Ingalls Wilder

Every great mistake has a halfway moment, a split second when it can be recalled and perhaps remedied. – Pearl S. Buck

Every new moment that arises in your life can now be a point of choice…in which you can choose to treat yourself and others with Compassion rather than Judgment. – David Harp

Getting people to like you is merely the other side of liking them. – Norman Vincent Peale

As well as the creed we profess, true religion is the life we lead.

Don’t tell God how big your storm is; Instead, tell the storm how big your God is.

The best leaders are those who know how to follow. – Anonymous

Next Sunday at Centenary – December 14, 2008
The Third Sunday of Advent / Annual Sunday School Pageant

9:00 AM – Sunday School Pageant Rehearsal (Sanctuary)
9:00 AM – Adult Study: A Christmas Carol Bible Study (Sunshine Room)
10:15 AM – Annual Sunday School Christmas Pageant — A Night in Bethlehem
Lectionary Readings: Isaiah 61:1-4, 8-11 1 Thessalonians 5:16-24
Psalm 126 John 1:6-8, 19-28
11:30 AM – Fellowship Time Sponsored by Children’s Ministries (Room 20)
6:30 PM – Centenary Youth Fellowship Christmas Party

A Night in Bethlehem—Christmas Pageant—During Worship on December 14: Lights, Set, Action! A full rehearsal will be Saturday, December 13, at 1:00 PM. Hear the festive music…wander through a bakery and marketplace shops. Meet shepherds who can’t wait to share a remarkable story. We need adults to participate as the shopkeepers and shepherds. Please join us in a Hands-On Bible Times Event AND HAVE SOME FUN.
Food Collection—Sunday, December 14
Please bring cereals, staple food items in plastic jars or cans, and paper products to share with senior residents in Perth Amboy. We and they are deeply grateful for your generous sharing.
Special Appeal for Diapers and Infant/Toddler Food for Amandla Crossing: Your assistance is needed to provide diapers (sizes #4, #5 & #6…not pull-ups) and infant & toddler food for children at Amandla Crossing. Please bring the items to Centenary and leave them in the boxes provided in the Narthex. Thank you. —Your Mission Committee

Next Sunday, December 14: Youth Christmas Party! We will go ice skating at Roosevelt Park and then have dinner together. More details to develop soon.

Prayer for the Week of December 7: Great God of adventure and Advent, come again to our lives and to our church. Come to us in these days of pain, sorrow and warring. Come to us with new strength and vitality. Help us in these days of expectation and preparation to get ready for the amazing arrival again of the Baby of Bethlehem. Guide us as we move forward to these journeying days and hours of getting ready; in the name of Jesus, born for us long ago and again now. Amen.

I look forward to sharing with you in Study, Worship/Holy Communion and Christian Fellowship with you on this Second Sunday of Advent at Centenary.

In Christ’s Love, Pastor John