Richmond First United Methodist News and Events
Happy New Year
Pastor’s Perspective
Songs of the Season, Luke 2:41-52
Pastor Dan Damon, Richmond 1st UMC, 12-27-15
Introduction
The season of Christmas is twelve days long, and the carols of Christmas are beyond counting, so let us sing and celebrate the season of our Savior’s birth. We will sing two old and two new carols this morning during our musical sermon.
Retell the Scripture Story in Song
In the Bleak Midwinter
Christina Georgina Rossetti (1830-1894) was an English poet who wrote a variety of romantic, devotional, and children’s poems. She is remembered for writing Goblin Market and Remember, and the words of the Christmas carols “In the Bleak Midwinter” and “Love Came Down at Christmas.” Christina, the youngest of four children, was a lively child. She dictated her first story to her mother before she had learned to write. Rossetti was educated at home by her mother and father, who had her study religious works, classics, fairy tales, and novels.
In the bleak midwinter, frosty wind made moan,
earth stood hard as iron, water like a stone;
snow had fallen, snow on snow, snow on snow,
in the bleak midwinter, long ago.
Our God, heaven cannot hold him, nor earth sustain;
heaven and earth shall flee away when he comes to reign.
In the bleak midwinter a stable place sufficed
the Lord God Almighty, Jesus Christ.
Angels and archangels may have gathered there,
cherubim and seraphim thronged the air;
but his mother only, in her maiden bliss,
worshiped the beloved with a kiss.
What can I give him, poor as I am?
If I were a shepherd, I would bring a lamb;
if I were a Wise Man, I would do my part;
yet what I can I give him: give my heart.
Christ Is Born Among the Poor
In this new carol I highlight the theme of reversal that is common in the biblical stories. Jesus was not born in a palace but in a barn. God, in the story of Christmas is shown to dwell with the most vulnerable of society. When I write a carol, I try to imagine what the characters would have been doing. I like to include Joseph in my carols.
Refrain:
Christ is born among the poor,
born for our salvation.
Glory to the child born low:
Savior of creation.
Weary strangers find a barn,
no one bids them enter;
Mary bears a son that night:
love’s child born in winter.
Refrain
Shepherds hiding in the hills,
dodging Roman taxes,
startle at a sudden sound,
as dawn’s first light waxes.
Refrain
Joseph tosses in his sleep,
dreaming of a danger.
Mary wakes to feed her son,
lifts him from a manger.
Refrain
Daniel Charles Damon
Words © 2000 Hope Publishing Company, Carol Stream. IL 60188. All rights reserved.
Rocking, Rocking, Mary Held You
Our next carol was written during a visit to my childhood home in the Black Hills of South Dakota. My dad told me about the town of Pactola which is now covered by Pactola Reservoir. The tune name is PACTOLA.
Rocking, rocking, Mary held you
to her body, soft and warm;
rocking, rocking, Mary fed you
from her body, soft and warm.
“Take your fill,” she sang,
“Take your fill, my child;
lie still, lie still.”
Rocking, rocking, Joseph carried
you to safety through the night;
rocking, rocking, Joseph hurried
through the desert, through the night.
“It’s all right,” he sang,
“It’s all right, my child;
tonight, tonight.”
Rocking, rocking, Mary told you
of the angel, Gabriel;
rocking, rocking, Joseph called you
child of God, Emmanuel.
“God is here,” they sang,
“God is in this child;
right here, right here.”
Daniel Charles Damon
Words © 2007 Hope Publishing Company, Carol Stream. IL 60188. All rights reserved.
It Came upon a Midnight Clear
Edmund Hamilton Sears was born in Berkshire, Massachusetts, in 1810; graduated at Union College, Schenectady, in 1834, and at the Theological School of Harvard University, in 1837. He became pastor of the Unitarian Society in Wayland, Mass., in 1838; removed to Lancaster in 1840; but on account of ill health was obliged to retire from the active duties of the ministry in 1847; since then, residing in Wayland, he devoted himself to literature. He wrote the classic carol, “It Came upon the Midnight Clear.”
It came upon the midnight clear,
that glorious song of old,
from angels bending near the earth
to touch their harps of gold:
“Peace on the earth, good will to all,
from heaven’s all-gracious King.”
The world in solemn stillness lay,
to hear the angels sing.
Still through the cloven skies they come
with peaceful wings unfurled,
and still their heavenly music floats
o’er all the weary world;
above its sad and lowly plains,
they bend on hovering wing,
and ever o’er its Babel sounds
the blessed angels sing.
And ye, beneath life’s crushing load,
whose forms are bending low,
who toil along the climbing way
with painful steps and slow,
look now! for glad and golden hours
come swiftly on the wing.
O rest beside the weary road,
and hear the angels sing!
For lo! the days are hastening on,
by prophet seen of old,
when with the ever-circling years
shall come the time foretold
when peace shall over all the earth
its ancient splendors fling,
and the whole world send back the song
which now the angels sing.
I love the vision expressed in the last verse of this carol. The prophets of old have seen the day of peace on earth and the time when the whole earth shall “send back the song which now the angels sing.”
Application
Why do we sing the Christmas story?
It is a story of love,
a story of “God with us,”
a story of the Word made flesh and pitching a tent with us.
When we feel alone, a song comes to us.
When we are not sure of the way ahead, a story is there to guide us.
When we are angry and weeping, we can sing the blues,
we can sing the Psalms of lament
until we are again ready to sing
of hope,
of peace,
of joy,
and of the love which we believe to be eternal.
Like the birds of heaven, we sing, not because we have the answer, but because we have a song.
Let us be in prayer.
Joys and Concerns
Linda WoodyWood had hip replacement surgery on Wed., December 2. Update: Linda is doing well. Walking with a walker for stability but is pain free! She is staying with an aunt and uncle who need assistance to stay in their home because of aging issues. She is thankful for our prayers and good wishes and hopes to get back to church soon. Cards may be sent to Linda at 5584 Circle Drive, El Sobrante, CA 94803.
Pastor Dan had ankle surgery on November 19 and his cast will be removed next week!
Susan Wickesser, Doris Swope’s niece, has been cancer free for two years and living life to the fullest. She has just sent a message that new tumors have been found on her lungs. She has started chemotherapy. Please remember her in prayer for healing.
Our dear church friend, Pat King, is sending thanks for the warm wishes and prayers for her recovery.
Kathe Kiehn is asking for healing prayers for her daughter, Karen Gagnier. Karen has survived breast cancer once and is now facing treatment for a new aggressive cancer in her other breast. Karen is currently undergoing a 5-6 week course of chemo and once that is completed she’ll have a second round with different drugs. She is trying to live her life as normally as possible and your prayers are welcome.
Please keep Katherine Parker, our missionary, and the people of Nepal in your prayers.
Deby McFadyen is requesting prayers for two young friends who are battling cancer. Please remember Sarah Talkington and Jimmy Lowe in your prayers.
News
On Sunday, January 3, Clair Anastas, from Bethlehem, will be bringing hand-crafted items on behalf of craftsmen from Bethlehem and the Palestinian occupied territories for sale. Items include: Olive wood nativity scenes, hand embroidered purses, shawls, scarfs, jewelry and more. She will speak briefly at the Sunday Service about how the people of these territories benefit from the sale of these items. She will be offering items after church in Friendship Hall.
Memorial Service for Brent Westerveldt, Saturday, January 16, 2 pm. Brent died unexpectedly last October and his life will be celebrated by friends and family. All are welcome to attend.
Pastor Dan will be away January 19-21 at the Gathering of Orders. he will be playing piano for this event at the Mount Herman Conference Center.
The United Nations has announced that they have met their 2015 goals for reducing and eliminating Malaria. Internationally they have reached a 60% reduction. In Africa alone a 90% reduction in deaths which are mostly children under five. Their goal is to eliminate Malaria by 2030. More immediate goals are to reduce the occurrence by 40%. Your donations to “Imagine No Malaria” count!
Katherine Parker, missionary in Nepal: Update
The Blockade by Nepali dissidents near the Indian border is causing severe shortage of supplies, mainly fuel and medicines in Nepal. Many businesses have been shut down and hospitals will soon be running out of fuel to run their generators which means that surgeries and life saving incubators for babies will not be operational. The violence at the border has increased. Katherine is safe but electricity is dicey and life is harder. She is having to bathe in cold water and the team she is with are sharply curtailing driving. Hundreds of cars without fuel clog the streets of Katmandu. Winter is causing a crisis as is the loss of fuel for heating. Negotiations between the government and the dissidents is bogged down.
Katherine has sent pictures of the Christmas celebration she attended. Go to Facebook and “friend” her to see the photos.
Generosity
Parsonage Sewer Line: The parsonage sewer line is leaking and needs replacement. It’s a long line that connects to the main sewer below the Catholic Church. Estimated cost is $7,100. We will check with Tom Butt when he returns from Paris next week to see if the church would qualify for some funding from the city since it is a historic building. We are also asking our congregation for donations to help fund this project.
General Budget update: We are currently behind our projected budget by $5,252. End of year donations are welcome to close this gap.
We are continuing to move ahead with plans for the long-term financing of our church for generations to come through an Endowment program.
Remember your church in your Will and Living Trust.
Imagine No Malaria continues to need your donations.
Events
Finance Committee Meeting: It’s that time of year to plan the General Budget for 2016. The Finance Committee is meeting Saturday, January 9, 1:30 pm at Matthew and Jennifer Foster’s home, 1052 Hawthorne Dr., Rodeo, CA. Please let Fran Smith know if you plan to attend: 510 685 2338 or junosmith@aol.com.
Thursday, January 14, 7 pm, Administrative Board Meeting in Friendship Hall.
Friday, January 15, 7:30 pm Point Richmond Acoustic Presents Steve Seskin, Craig Caruthers and Don Henry,” Trading songs in the Round”. These are three of the best award winning singers and songwriters working in Nashville today. Tickets in advance $15, at the door $20. First United Methodist Church, 210 Martina St., Point Richmond. For advance tickets and more information about this program: pointacoustic.org.
Friday, January 22, 7:30 pm, Point Richmond Jazz presents Tarika Lewis. Tarika is from Oakland and is best known for her bluesy style and appearances with John Handy and his group “Class”. Tickets are $18 in advance (prjazz.org) and $25 at the door. First United Methodist Church, 201 Martina St., Point Richmond. Door opens at 7 pm.