RECAP-COFFEE WITH THE PASTOR – WEDNESDAY. DECEMBER 15, 2021
Today Pastor Dave is coming to us from Wells, Minnesota to celebrate the 4th birthday of their granddaughter.
They will back into town on Thursday, December 16th. Pastor Dave is still receiving concerns about the Covid pandemic and how we are helping people who come to church to be safe. He wanted to revisit our policy again for those who still have concerns. We recommend wearing masks and practicing social distancing. We offer masks in the lobby and hand sanitizer as well. We also have the ability for you to listen to the worship service in the lounge and in the fellowship hall if you are concerned about being in the large crowd. If you still have safety concerns, then please join us online. We will post those ways to remotely join us at the end of this recap.
On Christmas Eve we have taken further measures to ensure safety for you. Our 4:00 PM service (family service) is also for those who are not comfortable driving to join us in the dark. We are expecting all who attend this service will wear a mask. At the 7:00 PM service we return to recommending that you wear masks. Jacksonport will not hold services again this year due to the inability to allow people to safely distance. We all pray that next year the pandemic will allow us to gather together again at Jacksonport on Christmas Eve.
We have a lot planned in the coming year and hope to return to our normal programming as the pandemic allows. There still is much to celebrate. Thanksgiving Dinner went well with our All Community Dinner. Toys for Tots worked diligently here at the church to another successful completion. The Lumberjack Dinner will take place the end of January with a pickup dinner only. There will not be “Home Delivery” so please have someone plan to pick up your dinner if you are unable to do so.
Pastor wants to remind you of the advent study that he and his Son Christopher are doing called “The Heart that Grew Three Sizes”, based on the story of the Grinch that Stole Christmas, by Dr. Seuss. This study is written by Matt Rawle, who we have enjoyed in the past. Pastor Dave and Christopher will be having and recording discussions on some of the concepts in this study. An example would be the fact that the Grinch really hated Christmas. These four discussions will be available on our Website https://sturgeonbayumc.org/, Facebook (Sturgeon Bay United Methodist Church Page, and on YouTube, search David Leistra. The discussions will be posted a few days prior to each Sunday of Advent leading up to Christmas Eve. Pastor Dave is hoping that these discussions will provoke thoughts on these topics and getting us to thinking about how they apply to our own lives. If you have missed any of the four sessions they are archived on those sites so you can begin at the beginning.
As we come to the end of the year we also have to settle accounts. There is a combined Thanksgiving & Christmas letter that is coming to you soon, if it has not already arrived, asking for a year end donation to help us meet our expenses and hopefully allow us to end with a small surplus to carry us through the year. Pastor Dave also has included a message of hope for us in that letter that is most worthwhile and inspiring.
Please pray for your church, our staff, and Pastor Dave as we all pray for you and keep you in our hearts. May God Bless and Keep You.
Pastor Dave
Submitted by Lorna Magliaro, Adm. Assistant
