Please read ALL of the ANNOUNCEMENTS!
Advent Updates!
This is the season of God coming to us. How shall we prepare for Christ’s coming?
Third Sunday of Advent, December 15th, we will hear God’s promise of joy in our life. Fourth Sunday of Advent, December 22nd, we will listen to God’s promise of love through the Christmas Program directed by Susannah Wood. She will help guide our children to reenact the beloved story of Jesus’ birth. We give God thanks for the gift and grace of Susannah Wood and our children for sharing their presence. They truly shine with God’s light and love. Come and let us adore our newborn King Jesus!
There are two opportunities to share your generosity during this Advent season: one is through your Christmas offering on the Fourth Sunday of Advent, 12/22. Your Christmas Offering will go toward our Children and Youth Ministry. Secondly, by continuing to bring gifts that will give warmth and comfort to our unhoused community in need. Place those gifts in worship in the basket under the Christmas tree. Our Connectional Ministries will distribute them during the Christmas season as we serve the Lake Lunches.
Christmas Eve Service meets with our Joint Circuit Churches at Twin Towers UMC at 5:30PM on December 24, 2024.
Last Sunday of 2024, December 29th, we will gather around the sanctuary in a circle and share the stories of how God’s grace carried us this year. Join us.
Sound Bath On Hiatus After December 13th Gathering
Thank you to everyone who has participated in this beautiful ministry.
December Food Pantry and Lake Lunches
Please join us on Friday and/or Saturday Dec 20 and 21 to put on our monthly food distribution. We could use help on Friday for setting up from 10-11 am, an early riser on Saturday to help with set up the lines, welcoming & helping hands to work alongside our many community volunteers who come visit the church through this community service. Spread holiday cheer to our neighbors through Lake Lunches. We will continue without interruption during the holiday weeks and we’ll be sharing the goodies you’ve been donating. This is a good time to help out if you’ve been thinking about it. Help is needed with preparing food, wrapping gifts, and delivery food and goodies. Sign up here and invite your people to do the same!
Lastly, would you like to help us thank our dedicated food ministry volunteers? We have a special gift to prepare and need a couple of hands to prepare them. If that is you, please contact Kathleen or Rose Lynn (liftconcertoakland@gmail.com)
Church Office Holiday Closure
12/25, 12/26, 12/31, 1/1
Please note that the church office will be closed on December 25th, 26th, 31st, and January 1st. The church office will be open on December 30th and reopen for regular office hours on January 2nd. Our church administrator, Lulu, will also be on holiday from December 25th to January 1st.
Important E-blast Announcement Deadline:
The deadline to submit announcements for the December 26th and January 2nd E-blasts is Monday, December 23rd at 12pm. Please ensure your submissions are sent in by this time to be included in these editions.
Thank you for your understanding, and we wish you a joyful holiday season!
Oakland Churches Together (OTC) Presents
Holiday Caroling at the Grand Lake Farmers Market
December 15th, 10:15am
Join us as we gather at the Grand Lake Theater at 10:15 a.m. before moving across the street to the Grand Lake Farmers Market. Wear festive lights, hats, sweaters to celebrate and highlight the Advent Season. Lakeshore Avenue Baptist Church will provide songbooks and lead the singing. All are welcome!! Afterward, some of us will gather at Peet’s on Lakeshore Avenue for more socializing. For more information, contact Dan Strauss danjeffstrauss@gmail.com or Marlene Yamashita maryamca@att.net. Hope to see (and hear) you there!!
(Re)Kindling a Steadfast Hope
December 15th, 3-6pm
You, your friends, communities, and circles are warmly invited to an Interfaith4Ceasefire year-end gathering to hear from recently returned faith-rooted activists, reflect with them, strengthen our solidarity, and support Palestinian crafts people. Enjoy community building around some food and crafts, all supporting local Palestinian crafts people or relief efforts in Palestine. We’ll hear from Rev. Allison Tanner (Apartheid-Free Communities), Shelley Sella (Chavurah for a Free Palestine), and Noura Khouri (Al-Awda), each of whom spent time recently in Palestine. We seek to strengthen our solidarity by seeing, hearing, and understanding what the community there is doing and what they are asking of us. The event will be held at Barnett Hall, 3534 Lakeshore Ave, Oakland. Please RSVP here.
Cooking Up Solidarity:
Cooking Class Series and Fundraiser
Thriving in Community 2025:
Art and Story Submission
As we step into 2025, the California-Nevada Annual Conference is continuing to embrace the bold and transformative vision adopted in 2023, focusing our attention this year on Thriving in Community. Rooted in the scriptural foundation of Jeremiah 29:7 and Acts 2:41-47, this part of our vision invites us to seek the welfare of our communities, nurture the spiritual growth of our churches, and witness the ripple effects of God’s love throughout the world. In preparation for this year long focus, we are inviting all in the California-Nevada Conference to get involved!
Snapshots of Thriving:
Throughout the year, we will highlight stories of congregations and ministries living out the focus in powerful ways. From innovative small group ministries to creative community outreach efforts, these snapshots will inspire and challenge us to think differently about what it means to thrive. If you have a Snapshot of Thriving to share, please submit it here! Conference Communications will turn these ideas and leads into fully fledged stories.
Art Call:
In preparation for this year long focus, we are inviting all in the California-Nevada Conference to submit art that will serve as our logo for the 2025 focus, as well as the 2025 Annual Conference Logo. Please read the guidelines below before submitting.
Submission Guidelines:
Please submit the art as a PNG or JPG. Art must be Conference header size,1,875×625 pixels. If your art is not within this size, Conference Communications reserves the right to resize and make edits to the art as needed. You are welcome to include the phrase, “Thriving in Community” within the art, as well as the California-Nevada Conference Logo, which can be downloaded here. While the art must be submitted in a digital format, you are welcome to paint, sketch or use any other mediums and then scan it for submission. We are so excited to see the creativity and hear the stories of Thriving in Community from across the California-Nevada Conference. To submit, click here. If you have any questions about either , please contact Conference Communications by emailing communications@calnevumc.org.
If you would like to submit an announcement for our weekly e-blast, please adhere to the guidelines found here. All submissions are due Wednesday by noon.