November 23, 2022
Wishing you blessings of thanksgiving. Come gather for one of today’s Thanksgiving Eve Worships and Sunday’s celebration of the beginning of Advent. Don’t forget to bring a bag of nonperishable food for Bread for All!
The Church office will close at noon on Wednesday, November 23 for the Thanksgiving holiday. Regular office hours will resume Monday, November 28. If you are in need of a Pastor during this time, please email sheep@shephills.org. Happy Thanksgiving!
THANKSGIVING EVE WORSHIP
THANKSGIVING EVE WORSHIP
Today, November 23
Noon | Sanctuary
7:00 p.m. | Sanctuary + Livestream
We will be giving thanks for God’s blessings with beautiful music and a message. Don’t forget to take home a loaf of home-baked bread. We desperately need your help this year with our Food Drive benefitting our neighbors in Montopolis. Please bring a bag of non-perishable food and diapers for the Bread for All Food Pantry. Read here and learn why your food donations are so important this year.
This year’s special Thanksgiving Offering will go towards Meals on Wheels and Bread For All.
THIS SUNDAY
FIRST SUNDAY IN ADVENT
8:15 + 10:45 a.m. | Sanctuary
God–Immanuel–Everywhere! The untold stories of the Nativity are told for Advent. We begin with the question, “What do you want to fill your heart this season?” Added bonus: get in the Christmas spirit and help us decorate the Sanctuary after the late service!
ADVENT FESTIVAL FOR CHILDREN AND FAMILIES
9:45 a.m. | Family Ministry Space Upstairs
Come catch the spirit of Christmas at Sunday’Scool’s special Advent Festival! Celebrate the season by making an Advent Wreath, decorating cookies, and trimming the Sunday’Scool Christmas tree.
ADULT BIBLE STUDY
9:45 a.m. | Library + Zoom
Great discussions of the Good Book. Contact Ruby Cadenhead for more information.
CHRISTMAS GIVING TREES
Thank you for supporting this joy-filled ministry! Please return your gifts by Sunday, November 27 by placing them beneath the shelves by the stairs in the Gathering Space. Contact Linda Roesle with questions.
BEREAL
Gathering Space Display
There is a new Tree Display on the Gathering Space Shelf! Pick a card and bring some of the suggested hygiene items to put in the box. These will be distributed to the young women of BeREAL, a ministry of Upbring supporting youth transitioning out of foster care.
NEXTGEN THIS SUNDAY
7:00 p.m. | Activity Center
It’s all fun and games (and Bible Study!) for grades 5-12. Contact Joel Timmons, Student Ministry Coordinator
THIS WEEK
Check the calendars on Realm or the website for a complete list of events!
PALS (Parents of Addicted Loved Ones)
Monday, November 28
7:00 p.m. | Library + Zoom
Open to every parent with an adult child dealing with substance use. Come find hope and support. For more information about this group, visit www.palgroup.org or contact Rebecca Guengerich.
FEED MY PEOPLE
Tuesday, November 29
5:15 a.m. | Family Life Center of First United Methodist Church
Come care for our neighbors! Join the group of volunteers who feed breakfast to the hungry at Feed My People on the fifth Tuesday of the month. See this sign-up sheet for time, location, and volunteer opportunities! Please contact Weldon Allison if you have any questions.
WEDNESDAY BIBLE STUDIES
Wednesday, November 30
7:30 a.m. | Early Riser’s Study on Zoom
10:00 a.m. | Late Riser’s Study in the Library + Zoom
Two times, same great study! Both are Pastor-led. Contact Pr. Lauren or Pr. Tom with questions.
GRIEF SUPPORT LUNCH – TIPS FOR THRIVING AND SURVIVING THE HOLIDAYS AND BEYOND
Sunday, December 4
Noon | Room 205
Holidays can be difficult when the family dynamics change due to the death of a loved one or children leaving home. Join us for lunch and conversation as Alana Oehler helps us mourn our losses and offer Advent Prayers of Blessings for new traditions and past memories alike. Contact Rebecca Guengerich.
ADVENT MID-WEEK
Wednesdays, December 7 + 14
7:00 p.m. | Butterfly Center Chapel
Take a deep breath this season and remember the meaning and purpose of Advent. This short worship will give you time for reflection and peace, and to lift your voice in song as you prepare your heart for the arrival of our newborn King.
CAMPUS CLEANUP FOR CHRISTMAS
Saturday, December 10
9:00 a.m. | Meet in the Courtyard
We are looking forward to rolling out a warm welcome to our visitors on Christmas Eve! Come help us make God’s campus and buildings ready. We have projects inside and out, for all ages and abilities! View the “to-do” list and choose where you can help!
HOPE FOR THE HOLIDAYS
Gathering Space Display
Stop by the table and pick a Christmas card from one of the cards supplied, write a brief message (we have prompts), then put it in the “mailbox” in the Gathering Space. The Developing Missions Team will package and send your cards for distribution to families being detained at the border. Available through November 27.
ANNOUNCEMENTS
COUNCIL AND ENDOWMENT BOARD ELECTIONS. Tamara Allen, Ted Powell, John Robertson, Denise Seidel, and Michael Watt were elected to Council at Sunday’s Congregational Meeting. Bobby McQuiston was voted on the Endowment Board. We extend our thanks to all of them for their willingness to serve! Read more about our new representatives here.
On behalf of the staff and congregation, we would like to thank Debra Ayoub, Judy Haugen, and Tim Stein for their service on the council; and Deb Darnell for her term on the Endowment Board. Their guidance, especially during challenging times surrounding COVID, is greatly appreciated.
GIVING
Giving is an expression of joy and gratitude for the bounty of God’s goodness! There are so many ways to give-both financially and through serving.
SPECIAL THANKS TO SMOKEY MO’S. This past Monday Smokey Mo’s of Round Rock donated 100 turkeys, 50 of which went to Austin City Lutheran’s Bread for All Food Pantry. That’s beautiful!
BREAD FOR ALL DONATION NEEDS
Gathering Space Bins
Last Monday Bread for All served 114 families. This week Bread for All needs peanut butter, canned tomatoes (all kinds), plus spaghetti sauce, pasta including spaghetti, and Mac & cheese. Bring your donations anytime! Read here and learn why your food donations are so important this year.
DEAR GOD, THANK YOU! 2023 STEWARDSHIP
Thank you to all who participated in last Sunday’s Thanks-Giving Banquet Worship! It was an awe-inspiring day. If you have not yet done so, prayerfully consider making a gift in support of our Mission and Ministry Fund and/or Facilities and Campus Care Fund for 2023. Use a printed pledge card found in the hymnal holders in the Sanctuary, or make a pledge online. Pledges are an estimate of giving and can be changed if your financial circumstances change. Thank you for helping us do God’s work in the world!
PLEDGES, GIFTS, AND DONATIONS
Keeping current with your pledged or regular giving has never been easier because you can do it all online!
BEYOND CAPITAL FUND APPEAL
Thanks to your early giving support, we have reduced our borrowing for the Butterfly Center Renovation Project saving almost $5600 in interest cost. Please consider a gift to the Beyond Capital Fund Appeal as part of your finance and tax planning. The more we collect early, the less we pay later!
Learn more about Beyond here.
SERVING
Serving is a great way to give back and get to know others in our community. Whether you are interested in serving locally, being part of a global mission, or volunteering to help in a variety of ways on Sundays, we have a place for you!
PRAYERS
In need of prayer? Please contact a pastor to be put on the prayer list.
Would you like someone to pray alongside you during troubling times? Contact a Stephen Minister who can travel with you on life’s sometimes bumpy road.
We pray for Rodney Varner, Shirley Murray, Marc Wissman, and Curtis Johnson.
We pray for family and friends of Shepherd members: Adryana Aldeen, Director of Advancement at Mariposa.
We pray for the family of Shirley Murray on her death this past Tuesday. Surround her children, Karen and Dave, and all her friends, with comfort and peace. We thank you for her ministry with us at Shepherd of the Hills.
We pray for the families and communities impacted by the tragic shootings in Virginia and Colorado. May the senseless violence that infects our culture be transformed into acts of compassion and kindness.
We pray for the people of Ukraine caught in the middle of war and violence. Our hearts break when women and children are displaced and families torn apart by the evil actions of others. May you break open hearts so that swords may be beat into plowshares, spears into pruning hooks.
We pray for our global ministry partners: Rev. Karen Castillo in Guatemala; Iglesia Luterana Augustina Virgen del Rosario, Aurora 8 de Octubre, Guatemala. We pray for Malcolm and Joy Henderson and the ministry of CHARIS in Haiti.
We pray for our local ministries: Mariposa Family Learning Center, Bread For All, and Upbring Ministries.
We pray that our faith community makes a saintly difference that we may behold, and that we are courageous in our generosity. May the pledges we make be a sign of our gratitude and love. May we say Thank You with humble hearts and renewed commitment to being a beacon of hope in the world!
We pray for our faith community, that we may be a church without walls and live out loud…faithfully!
*Prayers for family and friends are listed for 2 weeks, unless we are notified otherwise.