Nonprofit Organization US POSTAGE PAID Stillwater, OK Permit No.

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Facts & Figures for December 2, 2012 Attendance (137 and 141)...........................278 Sunday School...........106 General Fund Receipts.....$11,600.00 Capital Fund Receipts..........................$712.00 Loose Offering/Sunday School...$1,026.00 Non-Budget Funds Receipts....$16,073.50 Facts & Figures as of October 31, 2012 YTD Budget Receipts.........$390,901.41 YTD Budget Expenses...$377,418.90 Net Receipts over Expenses$13,482.90 Presented by Kay Smith, Treasurer, dkwsmith@suddenlink.net

Volume 2012
Announcements Care and Feeding of a Candle Children & Youth Birthdays & Anniversaries

The Stillwater Christian

1 2 3 3

December 4

In This Issue

Christmas Eve Service, Dec 24 7pm Make plans to attend our special Candlelight and Communion Service at FCC on Christmas Eve. Children will also be invited to reenact the Christmas Story in costume as the story is being told. Invite your family, friends and neighbors to come with you that evening; it will be beautiful!

Central Area Churches Praying for Churches This week we are praying for: FCC in Moore

CWF Monthly Meeting, Wednesday, Dec. 5 We will have a covered dish luncheon at 12:00, followed by the General Facts & Figures 4 meeting at 1:00. Rick Hendricks will share Christmas stories for our program. Idamae Mattheyer will lead the worship. Guests are always welcome for both luncheon and program. Members are encouraged to bring gift items for the childrens Christmas Store. CWF Executive will precede the luncheon at 11:00 a.m. Celebrate Christmas with FCC Staff!! Please take this opportunity to thank our staff for their hard work and dedication this past year. Donations are being accepted for Christmas bonuses for the staff. Please mark your contribution Staff Christmas Bonus. Thank you. Jim Rutledge, Official Board Chair Budget 2013 Approval Process Underway, Meeting Sunday Dec. 9 Following both services, the congregation will vote EXPENSES on the Trustees recommended budget for 2013, Elders as approved by the Board, and also the Official Disciple Dev. and Education 18,040 Board Appointments for 2013. Here is the 2013 Evangelism 1,200 recommended budget, as listed in the new strucShepherding ` 500 ture. More information is available on the FCC Worship Program Dept 6,420 website, under Members, and copies are available TOTAL ELDERS 26,160 in the church Trustees office. Human Resources Dept 326,364
INCOME Pledged Receipts 354,579 Non-pledged receipts 74,145 Other Income 126,635 Parking Income (from 2011) 20,000 Reserve Funds 14,143 TOTAL INCOME 481, 214 Stewardship Property TOTAL TRUSTEES Diaconate Outreach Public Relations & Comm. Kitchen Fellowship & Leisure TOTAL DIACONATE TOTAL EXPENSES 175 92,700 419,239 27,400 2,790 2,000 3,625 35,815 481,214

First Christian Church (Disciples of Christ) Of Stillwater, OK, Inc. 411 W. Mathews Ave. Stillwater, OK 74075-7517

ADDRESS SERVICE REQUESTED

Christmas Offering to be Taken Dec. 9th and 16th More than 75 ministries receive support through Disciples Mission Fund and DMF Special Day Offerings. More than 2,500 congregations allow these ministries to touch the smallest of communities in the U.S. and Canada and reach to every corner of the globe.

The Stillwater Christian is a weekly publication of First Christian Church (Disciples of Christ). The deadline for articles each week is 1pm Monday. Tracy Freeman, Editor editor@fcc-stillwater.org Church Office Phone: 405.372.7722 Fax: 405.372.7726 Find The Stillwater Christian and more information at www.fcc-stillwater.org

Send prayer requests and general email to office@fcc-stillwater.org

Join us this Sunday for Owen Caytons Message, The misguided Quest for the Perfect Christmas based on Luke 3:1-6 & Phil. 1:3-11 Traditional 9:00am Sunday School 10:10 Contemporary 11:10

Owen Cayton, Senior Minister

The Care and Feeding of A Candle

pastor@fcc-stillwater.org

CHILDREN & YOUTH MINISTRY NEWS

Sondra Ladd, Children/Youth Ministry Director youth@fcc-stillwater.org

On Sunday, somewhere in the middle of all the stress after the Chrismon Tree fell over on the Bell tables(Thank you, Lyle, Adeana, Laura, Aaron, Tim, Sandi, Sonny, and Jim for coming in at 7 a.m. to put it upright again and if I have forgotten anyone, I am sorry; I am grateful for you also) and the preparation for our Hanging of the Greens service in the evening, I ran across this great online Advent calendar. If you have the means, you can find it at http://bustedhalo.com/features/advent-calendar-2012. The calendar begins with a great introduction to the season, and a great word that I needed to hear on Sunday. It was a video from Sesame Street of all places! Elmo and guest star Zac Efron explained the meaning of the word patience. Patience means waiting in a calm way But the tree fell over! I replied with great angst. What a great word, patience. What a hard word, patience. Oh, sure, it is easy to tell our children, Youll just have to be patient and wait until Christmas, as they are bouncing off the walls in their sugar-from-Christmas-cookies-and-candy-filled anticipation! But, to actually do it ourselves, to wait patiently in this season of rush around, things must go right, I only have 21 more days to fit everything in, no time for a deep breath, well, thats a whole other thing altogether! Yet that is what the season of Advent is about! It is, on the one hand, about preparing. But it is also about waiting: knowing something is coming and waiting expectantly for it. Now, lets not confuse waiting in a calm way for sitting on the couch quietly as it all happens for us. The hope we talk about during Advent is not an accept things the way they are until God changes them for us sort of hope. No, Advent is the expectant waiting, hopeful anticipation, and cheerful preparation of God breaking into our world in sometimes surprising and unexpected ways in the past, present, and the future. To put it a different way, waiting in a calm way is not equal to being complacent with things the way they are war, hunger, pain, anger, poverty, injustice, loneliness, anguish, disease, death (remember the human cry we talked about on Sunday?). Rather, waiting in a calm way is pausing, looking around, and observing how God moves in the world to heal, give life, love, reconcile, befriend, bring justice, comfort, feed, offer shalom, provide rest, lead us beside waters still, and hold our hand through it all so that we can join in and be partners with God! Christ is coming! Christ comes now! And Christ has come! Let us prepare the way of the Lord! Shalom, Pastor Owen P.S. What are you doing this week to exchange something that brings hope and faith for something that depletes bank account and energy?
Weve had some technical difficulties with our church emails this week. If you are awaiting a reply from one of us, and havent gotten it, please call us to make sure we got it. The problem should be resolved on Wednesday, Dec. 5.

Success at First Childrens Christmas Store THANK SO VERY MUCH to sooo many who helped contribute to the success of our first Children's Christmas Store! There are WAY too many people to mention, from those who donated items and merchandise, to those who volunteered as elves or helpers, those who contributed cookies, cakes or other goodies, Santa Claus, and his photographer, and to those who came and shopped. Your support is so appreciated. The totals are not completely tallied, but proceeds should be somewhere between $1,200-$2,000 and even more important than the financials are the numerous children provided the opportunity to shop for their own Christmas gifts. I have heard numerous positive reports and stories and have already been asked multiple times if we are planning this again for next year. THANK YOU FCC for once AGAIN working together to accomplish amazing results Christmas Parties TBA Soon! I am working on the details for our FCC Children, Chi Rho and CYF youth Christmas parties. Watch for details to be announced SOON.

FCC Participating in Operation Christmas

FCC is collecting new toys, socks, gloves, and underwear for children for Operation Christmas on behalf of JSL and COCAA. These will be collected thru December 7th.. A collection bin is in the church office. Thank you so much for your continued support of COCAA thru our monthly food drives and weekly bread deliveries. COCAA is extremely thankful.

Blessed Are the Saints of Past FCC has been blessed by those before us who provided financial support, spiritual leadership, our building, and our history. Once a month, we highlight an endowment fund that provides regular income to benefit many of our ministries. Today we honor the Cliff & Bess Elder Endowment, a restricted endowment fund. Reflecting their love for the church and Cliffs dedication to beautifying our grounds, the Elders gift is designated for landscaping our church property. Over the past three years, this endowment has generated over $355 in landscaping funds. Please keep the FCC managed endowment trust in mind as you make plans for your future financial gifts and asset allocations. Happy Birthday to: 12/5 Lauren Andrew; 12/6 Zac Clark, Emily Croft, Abby Matthews; 12/7 Jacqui Lutterbie, Diana Watkins; 12/9 Ron Beer, Jon Baker, Bill Kusik; 12/10 Tad Cox, Catherine Dermer