DECEMBER 2020

FIRST PRESBYTERIAN CHURCH 10612 DAYTON PIKE , SODDY DAISY , TN 37379

MAIL: P.O. Box 9, SODDY DAISY, TN 37384 TEL: (423) 332-2327 E-MAIL: FIRSTPRESBYTERIAN@EPBFI.COM

KNITTED TOGETHER
“… speaking the truth in love, we are to grow up into Him in every way who is the head, into Christ,
from whom the whole body, joined and knit together by every joint with which it is supplied when
each part is working properly, makes bodily growth and upbuilds itself in love.” Ephesians 4:15-16 RSV
“For Thou didst form my inward parts, Thou didst knit me together in my mother’s womb.” Psalm 139:13

LET’S PRAY Pastor’s Notes

TOGETHER As we enter the Advent and celebrate the Christmas, we are
reminded of our Savior who came to bring comfort to those
Members & Participants who are suffering in a sin strained, fallen world. Jesus came to
Sherry Clark, Billy Crowe, Nita
give us new life in Him by suffering on the cross. This is
Crowe, Danny Curvin, Dottie compassion and it comes from our God. Compassion means “to
Curvin, Gene Curvin, Bud Ellis, Bill suffer with”, and God chose to do just that with His people so
Newberry, Barbara Newman, Jan that we might know the God who came to draw near to us and
Newman, Dora Sowell, Lorie be with us. Our God cares for us and our God provided all
Tessmer, Charlie Burks, Nancy things for us to be saved. This is what we celebrate during the
Burks, John David Kurzenberger
Christmas season. Jesus Christ the Savior was born to us.
Family & Friends A Savior came to this earth over two thousand years ago to suffer and die
for the sins of the world. As we come to close 2020, spend some time
Becky Burchard (Irene Ammon’s
re ecting upon His goodness, His grace, His faithfulness and His
niece), David McCarell, Karen
compassion that was given to us and give thanks to God for everything.
Smith, Vickie Sullivan, Jill Tobin,
Sophia Turner, Rick Kephart, Rev. Even through the hard times, trails and suffering we face today. We look
Bud Little, Becky Burchard, C.B. to Jesus Christ who came, walked among us and who is going to come
Spicer, Behrouz Ahmadi, Barbara back.
Castleberry, Kathy Castleberry,
Frank Copeland, Tillery Phillips, Bill I pray for Faith, Hope and Love to grow in Christ as we prepare for the
Shelton, Jackie Sherrell, Bumper new year of 2021. May the Grace and Truth of Christ surround us and
Davis keep us and lead us.

Military Rev. Peter Choi

Thomas Pelham and Family
(Thomas is the son of John and
Jody Pelham; grandson of Billy and “The Word became esh and made his dwelling among us. We have seen
Nita Crowe)
his glory, the glory of the one and only Son, who came from the Father,
full of grace and truth. (John 1:14)

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CHURCH SCHEDULE
* Sunday Worship reopened on
News From The Session
June 7 As we move from fall into the Advent season, we paused to
celebrate Thanksgiving and re ect on all the blessings God
has bestowed on us as His church and family. We remain
Services ever thankful that God sent Rev. Choi and his family to lead
Sunday Worship 11:00 am our congregation. God has blessed us and provided the
(Also on Facebook Live) nancial resources needed during the covid19 pandemic
through the generous gifts of former and current members
Nursery (not open) and friends of our church. We look forward with anticipation
to celebrating Jesus’ birth and the opportunities to worship
Caregiver - Kathleen Djami
and serve Him. Even though Physical contact activities are
* Available for children ages
cradle to 4 years old
limited, we are planning some activities including lighting
Advent candles and a hybrid video and in-person Christmas
Children’s Worship program. We will have a Christmas eve candle-light service
(only by YouTube video) with communion. We pray that you can participate either in
person or virtually.
Sunday Worship 11:00 am
* Available for children ages 5 to As part of our outreach ministry the Presbyterian Women are
5th grade again providing gifts for some of the nursing home
residents. Also, a special offering was collected to help a
Wednesday Bible Study nancially needy family that had been regular participants.
(by Zoom) On a global basis, Rev. Choi introduced us to Gabriel Chung,
a next-generation missionary who has requested support
Adult Bible Study 7:00 pm
from churches like ours. We are praying for God’s guidance
Ministry Opportunities on how to support this young man. Around the church we
continue to work on improving the sound system and
Newsletter Editor: Monthly installing security cameras. We also purchased a new copier
to replace the old one which was not working properly.
We hope everyone has a joyous Christmas and can
experience God’s wonder in this world through His son
Jesus Christ. Please stay safe as you spend time with family
and friends. We continue to pray for everyone in the world as
we all struggle with the coronavirus pandemic. We are
especially prayerful for those in our congregation who
struggle with physical and mental ailments. If you have any
issues or concerns, please call the church.

May the Peace of Christ be with you.

Jim Hargrove, Clerk of Session

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Financial Notes
We thank those of you who have contributed your offering this past month. The following is the
status of the church’s finances as of November 30, 2020. These amounts include the Special
offering of $706.00 that was received and paid to the needy family.

Income Year to Date November Monthly Accounts Status Balance

General O ering $ 52,800.00 $ 4,421.00 Checking $ 32,788.83
Dona ons-Coats $ 100.00 $ 0.00 Money Market $ 104,348.33
Special O erings $ 731.00 $ 706.00 Investments $ 509,003.70
TOTAL INCOME $ 53,631.00 $ 5,127.00 TOTAL $ 646,142.60

TOTAL EXPENSES $106,464.44 $ 8,739.31

Please note that our year-to-date income from tithes and offerings only paid 50% of our
expenses. We encourage everyone to continue their financial stewardship.

Opportunity to Serve
The Nominating Committee is looking for two members for the Session next year. One position is a none
year term and the other is for three years. The Session is the governing body of our congregation under
the guidance and direction of the Christ who is the head of the church, and is responsible for all the
ministries of the church. If God is giving you the willingness to serve in your heart, please contact Pastor
Peter or one fo the members of the Nominating Committee (Jim Hargrove, Danny Curvin, and Judy
Newberry).

“… love the Lord your God,

and serve Him with all your
heart and all your soul.
Deuteronomy 11:13

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 NOVEMBER 2020

The Advent
“Advent” means “coming” or “arrival.”
During the season of advent, we celebrate Christ’s coming into the world and watch with
expectant hope for his coming again. In its historical origins, the season of Advent was patterned
after the season of Lent, a six-week period of penitence and preparation for Easter. Similarly, the
four weeks of Advent present an opportunity for communal discernment and personal
examination, as the church prepares to celebrate the Nativity of the Lord and looks with hope for
Christ’s return.

Christ has come! Christ is risen! Christ will come again! In Advent, we are living between the first
and the second coming of the Lord. The dialectical tension of maranatha (“Come, our Lord!” or
“Our Lord has come”) placing us between memory and hope, past and future - may strengthen
our Advent liturgies. Perhaps we need to cling to the ancient cry of maranatha! and its paradoxical
meanings so we may freely embrace “the new thing” prophesied by Isaiah (Isaiah 43:19) that God
is doing among us right now. The tension and paradox we find in Advent shapes our celebrations
during the season.

(Presbyterian Mission, “Advent”, PresbyterianMission, Presbyterian Mission Agency, 2020.)

 DECEMBER 2020

Missionary
Gabriel and his family were called as missionaries sent from U.S. to Korea. God had lead their
hearts through prayers to reach out to the churches in the U.S. for Gabriel’s 2-year short-term
mission to find sending church and sponsorship. Then Gabriel was introduced to us. God led my
heart to pray and I felt that God has put a good purpose for us in it. I know that this is God-given
opportunity. And when God gives opportunity to serve, it also means
that God will provide everything needed to serve, because it is
God’s work being done not our’s. Through many prayers, our
church has become a sending church for Gabriel.

If you would like support Gabriel, please talk to Pastor Peter.

Angela Choi.

Women’s Bible Study

Bible Study And Prayer
Tuesday, December 8 @10 am Wednesday @ 7pm with ZOOM
(@church & zoom)

Contact church for zoom information. Contact church for zoom information.
(423-332-2327 soddydaisypc@gmail.com) (423-332-2327 soddydaisypc@gmail.com)

Children’s Bible Message

Every Sunda
The Children’s video is still made every week. It has the Bible story, the message, questions, and a
craft that kids can follow. The new video goes up on YouTube (Angela Choi) and also on our
church Facebook page on every Saturday night. All the videos are available in the YouTube
channel Angela Choi and will not be deleted. You can watch at any time on any day.
So if you have internet access, please turn it on for kids so they can have the time of worship.

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Christmas Program
We would like to bring an alternate Christmas program, with social distancing, that glorifies God
through a unique celebration of the birth of Christ including music, testimony, recitation, and
singing. Please contact Gary Newman if you would like to participate.

Please send video or a picture to the church email. (soddydaisypc@gmail.com)

Guidelines:
✦ Adhere to all social distancing requirements by CDC.
✦ Approach the scripting by asking families to participate as a unit.
✦ Ask family units to practice at home and sit together in church following CDC guidelines.
✦ Present the program in segments where one group sits before another begins.
✦ Provide an opportunity for our homebound members to participate by incorporating pre-
recorded segments or using Zoom presentation.
✦ Coordinate through the Christian Education Committee.

JOY
Peace
LOVE
HOPE

 December SUN MON TUE WED THUR FRI SAT

1 2 3 4 5
Bible Study 7PM
Prayer Meeting
(Zoom)

6 7 8 9 10 11 12
Worship 11AM Women’s Bible Study 7PM
(Also Facebook live) Bible Study Prayer Meeting
10AM (Zoom)
(In-person & Zoom)

13 14 15 16 17 18 19
Worship 11AM Session Meeting Bible Study 7PM
(Also Facebook live) 6:30PM Prayer Meeting
(Zoom)

20 21 22 23 24 25 26
Worship 11AM Bible Study 7PM
(Also Facebook live) Prayer Meeting
(Zoom)

27 28 29 30 31
Worship 11AM
Bible Study 7PM
(Also Facebook live)
Prayer Meeting
(Zoom)

December Birthday December Anniversary

12/6 Gary Shannon 12/26 Charlie Burks 12/23 Bobby & Julia McRee
12/13 Casey Fuller 12/26 Christina Perrine
12/14 Dottie Curvin
12/19 Jim Hargrove

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8
Soddy Daisy, TN 37384
P.O. Box 9
First Presbyterian Church
Newsletter will be published monthly near the 1st of the month. Please send items to publish to Pastor
Peter, soddydaisypc@gmail.com by the 20th of the previous month. Thank you.
Our newsletter staff is: (production manager); Jim Hargrove (distribution manager).
Review editors include Ef e Heiss, Doug Stephenson, Danny Durvin, Peter Choi.
Please give Jim Hargrove (423-760-8787; jhargrove@epb .com) the names, mailing addresses or email
addresses of family and friends, and possible new members, so that we can send them our monthly
newsletter. Please let Jim know if you prefer your newsletter via email.
Newsletter can also be found on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/fpc37379
Church telephone number: 423-332-2327
Church email: rstpresbyterian@epb .com