It is with both sadness

and joy that I share with

you the resignation of

Lindsay Pulido as our

Director of Children and

Family Ministries…

sadness that she will no

longer serve in that

capacity, but joy in that

she is resigning in order

to concentrate on her

seminary studies.

Through her work here

she has discerned a call

to ordination as a deacon

in the United Methodist

Church. This past fall

she began her studies at

Duke University, and

she is even more sure

now of her calling than

ever.

Lindsay and her family

will continue to be an

integral part of our

church family. She plans

to continue to serve in

children’s ministry as a

volunteer. What a

blessing for the next

Children’s Director!!

We want to thank

Lindsay for her service

for the last two years by

having a reception for

her on Sunday,

December 30th during

the Sunday School hour.

Please make plans to

attend, and let Lindsay

know how much we

have appreciated her

work among us.

The Staff-Parish

Relations (Personnel)

Committee has already

identified a couple of

promising candidates to

fill this position. It is a

part-time position which

oversees all of our

children and family

ministries…nursery,

Sunday School,

children’s church, VBS,

district camp, family

events, and serves on the

board of the School for

Little People. It’s a big

job, and not for the faint

of heart…but if you, or

someone you know,

feels a calling to serve

God in this way, please

let me know.

God Bless,

Dr. Lynne Settlemyre Pastor

Volume 48, Issue 12

December 12, 2018

First United Methodist Church 404 Azalea St.

Lake Jackson, TX 77566

A Message From the Pastor

December Birthdays 2

Sympathies & Memorials 3

Children’s Ministry News 4,5

Youth Ministry News 6,7

Finance Committee Report 8

Women’s Ministry News 9

Society of St. Stephen Info 10

Welcome New Members 10

Inside this issue:

Special Points of

Interest

Christmas Eve Services

Info - pg. 2

Christmas Offering info -

pg. 2

Advent & Christmas Quiz -

pg. 11

Jasmine Ross 1

Max Mays 2

Sharron Shockley 3

Andrea Hazlitt 4

Lisa Pesek 5

Laurie Kilbourn 6

Kye Han Lee 7

Esther Lindsey 8

Christian Lee 9

Chris Colosimo 12

Pete Zafereo 13

Jason McCain 14

Laura Mays 15

Amy Wood 19

Ruth Munnerlyn 20

Linda Linder 20

Deborah Poundstone 20

D. C. Cameron 20

Shirley Stephenson 21

Carol Edwards 22

Larry Dorroh 23

Alan Edwards 25

Luke Abel 27

Madeline Zafereo 27

Rob Kelley 27

Pat Shaw 15

Tiffany DeAtley 15

Yvonne Goldman 15

Kaye Murray 16

Joe Morris 16

Shelby Benn 16

Merilynn Broaddus 16

Harrison Faickney 17

Stephanie Tribble 17

Shirley Brodeur 18

Val Janecek 18

Caitlin Scott 18

Terry Rios 19

P a g e 2 T h e M E S S E N G E R

If you have a birthday this month and do not see your name listed, please call the church office so we can update your record.

Do you have news you would like

to share in our monthly newsletter?

Contact the church office at

ljfumc@ljfumc.org or 979-297-3046

5 PM Candlelight Family Service Interactive Christmas Eve Service where the children can dress up to help reenact the Christmas Story. Costumes will be provided.

7 PM Traditional Candlelight Service

We hope you will plan to join us!

Bring your family & friends!

(Nursery care will be provided at both services)

Note: On Sunday, December 23rd, we will have Sunday school

and all three regular worship services.

This year’s Christmas offering will

benefit our children and youth

programs, as well as our Youth Foreign

Mission Trip planned for 2020.

Please keep both of these

families, as well as all

those who have lost loved

ones this year, in your

thoughts and prayers

during this difficult

time, especially here

during the holiday

season.

Robert “R.C.” McClure

passed away on November

23rd. Condolences may be

sent to his wife, Betty

McClure, 216 Oyster

Creek Dr., Lake Jackson,

TX 77566.

Jeff Fry,

passed away on

November 19th.

Condolences

may be sent to his wife,

Denise Fry, 504 Elm St.,

Lake Jackson, TX 77566

Sympathies

Memorials

Donation received in memory of:

Ann Orr

Given by:

JoAnn Collier

Bill & Curly Leshikar

Wayne & Lissa Harrison

W. R. & Denise Armstrong

John & Marilyn Bedwell

Jean Gustavsen

James & Ellen Montgomery

David & Cindy Orr

Gerald & Serena Andrews

Seekers SS Class

Gregory & Elizabeth Flynt

Louis & Linda Folse

Mary Nell Frucella

C.A. & Frances Hammond

Warner & Sandra Harper

Mary Florence Platt

Joe & Dorothy Morris

Don & Betty Petersen

Jim & Ann Snyder

Peggy Wille

Mr. & Mrs. William Bond

L.K. & Janet Hanks

Patsy Hewett

Kevin McGill

Jim Murray

Given by:

JoAnn Collier

Bill & Curly Leshikar

Nancy McGaugh

Gerald & Serena Andrews

James & Louise Carter

Mary Florence Platt

Ethel Tracy

V o l u m e 4 8 , I s s u e 1 2 P a g e 3

Prayer and Praise Notes:

To request prayer through our

Intercessory Prayer Team, complete the

Prayer Request form on ConnectCard in

your Sunday bulletin or contact the church

office at 979.297.3046 or ljfumc@ljfumc.org.

DEC. 16th

Through the

story of

Christmas, we

are going to

learn that through

every season, no

matter the circum-

stances, we can

find JOY! God loves

us so much that He

sent His Son to be

our Savior. God

came to dwell

among us in flesh!

During this glorious

season of Advent

our children will

experience what it

means to wait in

expectation and

make preparations

in our hearts and

homes for the birth

of Jesus. We will

read about Mary’s

unexpected visit

from Gabriel,

delivering the good

news of Jesus’

conception. Mary

was so faithful to

God that even in

her confusion she

willingly accepted

the call God placed

on her life.

I hope we can all

learn from Mary’s

trust in the Lord.

Next, we will focus

on Mary and

Joseph’s journey to

Bethlehem and the

events surrounding

the birth of our

newborn Savior. We

will talk about why

Jesus wasn’t the

type of king the

Israelites were

P a g e 4 T h e M E S S E N G E R

expecting. Jesus

didn’t bring political

peace to the world

like his followers

thought he would,

but he made it

possible for people

to have peace with

God. The story of

Christmas is both

an announcement of

hope and a call to

humility.

Elementary Bible

Verse:

“The time is

coming, declares

the Lord, when I

will raise up a

righteous descend-

ant from David’s

line, and he will

rule as a wise

king.”.

(Jeremiah 23:5)

Preschool Bible

Verse:

“Jesus was born in

Bethlhem”

(Matthew 2:1a)

Jesus is the reason we find joy!

P a g e 5 V o l u m e 4 8 , I s s u e 1 2

P a g e 6 T h e M E S S E N G E R

Dec 16 - First Youth Christmas Party - 5pm - 7pm

Dec 20 (Thursday) - Christmas Movie Marathon 6pm - Midnight

We’ll be locked in the youth center watching three Christmas movies. Bring your

dinner at 6 and we’ll provide snacks, drinks and hot chocolate. Pickup can be

arranged at 8pm or 10pm if you only want to see one or two movies instead of

staying until midnight.

Youth drivers need a signed permission slip to drive home at midnight

Dec 23 - No Sunday Night Youth - Merry Christmas

Dec 30 - No Sunday Night Youth - Have a Blessed New Year

JANUARY 2019 - New Year/New Worship

Jan 6 - God on Youtube - 5-7pm

Jan 13 - Paul and His Letters Challenge

Jan 20 - Secret Worship Location

Jan 27 - Personal Worship Experience

7th-12th

Graders

Welcome

Congratulations to our students who were confirmed on December 2

during the worship service

Top Row: Zack Nunn, Hayden Nunn, Nolan Patton &

Kaden Baldridge

Middle Row: Valerie Martinez, Hailey Edinger,

Sarah Grace Hankinson, Rachel Lopez & Sidney Slater

Front Row: Jaryn Tracy, Isabel Duarte & Korbin Baldridge

All 6th graders can now join the 6th, 7th and 8th grade10am Sunday School class

and will be welcomed into Sunday night youth when they complete the 6th grade.

All 7th - 12th graders are currently welcome at all youth activities.

Dec 2018 and Jan 2019

P a g e 7 V o l u m e 4 8 , I s s u e 1 2

2018 Recap - Thank you for it ALL

I cannot believe that I get to be a youth director to these students at our church. I can’t believe that I get to

work with Vannysa and Bryson and have such amazing youth sponsors, teachers and helpers as Terry,

Kyehan, Serena, Cody, Megan, Sharon, Bob, Amy and Becca; plus all the other youth volunteers and

church staff. It’s just too good to be true.

I constantly get to see God in the faces and actions of our students. God has blessed me this year with the

most difficult challenges I’ve ever faced on the job and those challenges have produced some incredible

blessings. I think that growing up means being grateful for the challenges, too, and recognizing how they

build our character.

When people ask me what love is, I can simply show them pictures of the cross, my family, my church and

youth staff and my youth group. To close 2018, I thank God for the blessings AND the challenges.

In His Service, Kim (with Vannysa and Bryson as my two right hands)

Wednesday nights from 6:30 to

7:30 in the youth center.

January Dates: 9, 16, 23 and 30

IGNITE

Feb 22-24

estate and more. For some, life income

deferred gifts, donor advised funds,

charitable trusts or annuities may make

sense. Act now to make certain you

have accomplished your charitable

goals for the year!

The conference's financial partner,

Heartspring Methodist Foundation, can

help with year-end charitable planning:

713-533-3780, 800-521-9617

or office@heartspringmethodist.org.

As we enter the sacred season of

Advent and Christmas, we celebrate

God's great gift of the Christ Child.

As we experience the tremendous

joy of God's blessings upon us, you

may be looking for ways to give back

and support our church and other

charities that help those in need. For

many, end-of-year giving can also

provide tax benefits. The most

popular gift is cash, but there are

many other ways to give, including

gifts of stocks, bonds, securities,

mutual funds, life insurance, real

Chr i stma s i s a T i me of Gi v i ng

Stewardship Report as of

11/30/2018

Budget needs weekly .......... $ 13,372

Budget needs to date .......... $ 637,358

Budget receipts to date ....... $ 630,008

P a g e 8 T h e M E S S E N G E R

2018 Communion Offerings Amount Given

January — Pastor's Discretionary Fund

$ 1,453

February – Freeport Port Ministry

$ 688

March - UMCOR

$ 2,132

April - Easter Offering

$ 10,824

May - Golden Cross

$ 633

June - Prison Ministry

$ 557

July - Habitat for Humanity

$ 875

August - Crystal Crafters

$ 734

September - BackPack Buddies

$ 910

October - Society of St. Stephen

$ 1, 177

November - Food Basket

$ 761

December - Christmas Offering

$ 1,027

MOMS in PRAYER GROUP

9:30am Wilson Parlor Meets every Monday morning

(during school year)

GIRLS’ NIGHT OUT December 14 5:30pm

Picket Fence

Contact Mary Helen Israel, 297-6968 or

maryhisrael@gmail.com

PRAYER SHAWL MINISTRY 3rd Wednesday of each month

11am

Contact Linda Neumann

blneumann@hotmail.com

P a g e 9 V o l u m e 4 8 , I s s u e 1 2

Women’s Ministry Dinner

Sunday, January 27

5pm - 7pm Asbury Room

I would just like to thank you for your care package. I am currently deployed in the Middle East and my team received a care package from your church. Inside the care package was a note from Courtney D. It stated that they had discussed our service overseas and that they had prayed for us. What a blessing it is to hear other believers are praying for us! I am originally from Texas so this note particularly blessed me. I in turn will pray for your church during my quiet time. Thank you for making this Texan smile and may God bless your whole congregation.

Peace and Grace, Josh Brimmer

The church office recently received the following email from a young soldier

who is actively deployed overseas. We aren’t certain when he received the care

package from our church but it obviously touched him in a special way.

Society of St. Stephen begins this Advent Season with a heart full

of Thanksgiving for the three

churches who have banded together to do God’s work in our

community.

Our case load has continued to be heavy. Our

monetary balance dwindled to a dangerously low amount last month. But, through these

caring, loving churches, we not only made it

through, but have enough funds to operate well into next year.

Each church has prayerfully contributed to our support, and we are grateful. Special thanks

goes to Christ Lutheran Church, who gave a

percentage of this year’s sales at The Pumpkin Patch to Society. The $6000 you donated will

go a long way to enabling us help others. We have also received communion offerings, bake

sale profits, regular and special designated funds from all three churches. We will prayer-

fully do our best to be good stewards of your

donations. Thank you! Thank you! Thank you!

Society of St. Stephen

P a g e 1 0 T h e M E S S E N G E R

This month we have had several clients with

greater needs than we usually encounter. We

ask that you join us in prayer for the family of

a two year old cancer patient. The child has

just had surgery to remove a tumor and has

been in MD Anderson for quite a while. The

mom’s job is being held, but she has not

worked for over a month while she is at the

hospital with the child. The dad works, but

both incomes are needed to help the family

pay their regular bills and meet their needs.

There are other children in the family and

their blind mother-in-law also lives with them.

The Society of St. Stephen is a group of people

from the First United Methodist Church,

Chapelwood United Methodist Church, and

Christ Lutheran Church who are committed to

providing emergency or temporary assistance

to local people in need.

CONGRATULATIONS to

Joe & Dorothy Morris

on the birth of their newest

grandbaby...this time a girl!

Eden Rose Harley was born on November

16th to Clay & Bethany Harley.

Kenneth & Debra

Kinsey

Advent & Christmas Quiz P a g e 1 1 V o l u m e 4 8 , I s s u e 1 2

5. Why did Joseph not divorce Mary

after he found out she was

pregnant?

Divorces 2,000 years ago

were very expensive

He didn’t want to lose the

dowry

All of the above

None of the above

6. What happened in December of

1914?

The first living Nativity

scene was enacted

Macy’s held the first

Christmas Parade featuring

Santa Claus

A ‘Christmas truce’ went

into effect between British

and German soldiers

A Canadian inventor broad-

cast the first radio

program, which included the

carol “O Holy Night”

Hallmark released its first

series of holiday cards

7. Which historic period(s)

mention fruitcake?

Ancient Egypt

Roman Empire

Middle Ages

Victorian England

All of the above

8. Who originated Watch Night

services?

John the Baptist

Martin Luther

King Henry VIII

John Wesley

President William McKinley

9. What was the shepherds’ first

reaction when an angel of the

Lord appeared to them?

They began dancing with joy

They ignored the angels

because they were tired

They were terrified

All of the above

None of the above

10. According to tradition,

approximately how far did Mary

travel to visit Elizabeth?

10 miles

50 miles

100 miles

500 miles

1. True or False: Like the 40

days of Lent, Advent is a

fixed number of days before

Christmas.

True False

2. One of the Wise Men gave the

gift of myrrh, which is….

Middle Eastern Money

A brewed drink

An easily shaped metal

A perfume

Rare, expensive food

3. What is a traditional living

Nativity celebration called

in Mexico?

Feliz Navidad

Las Posadas

Nochebuena

All of the above

None of the above

4. Which of these Advent hymns

was written by Charles Wesley?

Lo, How a Rose E’er Blooming

Come, Thou Long Expected

Jesus

O Come, O Come, Emmanuel

Hail to the Lord’s Anointed

Answers:

1. False

2. A perfume

3. Las Posadas

4. Come, Thou Long Expected Jesus

5. An angel of the Lord appeared to him in a dream

6. A ‘Christmas truce’ went into effect between British and

German soldiers

7. All of the above

8. John Wesley

9. They were terrified

10. 100 miles

The Messenger is published monthly by the First United Methodist Church, Lake Jackson, TX 77566. Periodicals Postage paid

at Lake Jackson, TX 77566. POSTMASTER: Send address changes to 404 Azalea St., Lake Jackson, TX 77566.

Youth Ministry Assistant:

Vannysa Vega

College Youth Assistant:

Bryson Wintjen

Choir Director:

Laura Mays

Contemporary Music Director:

Jordan Goldman

Church Secretary:

Kelly Colosimo

ljfumc@ljfumc.org

Pastor:

Dr. Lynne Settlemyre

pastor@ljfumc.org

Administrative Pastor:

Rev. John Settlemyre

johns@ljfumc.org

Children’s Director:

Lindsay Pulido

children@ljfumc.org

Youth Director:

Kim Copeland

youth@ljfumc.org

Membership & Finance Secretary:

Patti Polasek

membersecretary@ljfumc.org

Custodians:

Dora Riojas

Lety Delgado

Our Staff

Phone: 979.297.3046

Email: ljfumc@ljfumc.org

First United Methodist Church 404 Azalea St. Lake Jackson, TX 77566

We’re on the web!

ljfumc.org

Address Service Requested

Sunday Worship Service Times:

8am - Classic - Chapel

9am - Contemporary - Sanctuary

11am - Traditional - Sanctuary

10am Sunday School - all ages!

PERIODICALS #954360

LAKE JACKSON, TX 77566