Sending New Year Birthday Wishes to:  

10 – Olivia

19 – Markus Adler

23 – Jim Balfour

31 - Sue E

Blessing for the New Year

O God, you have been our help in ages past, our hope for years to come. As we welcome this new year, bless us with peace. Fill our days with the light of Christ and lead us on the path of life until we see you in our heavenly home. You live and reign forever and ever. Amen.

Join us on January 12 at our 10AM Worship Service as we welcome new members into the life of our community. We'll continue our celebration with cake and coffee following the service.  

What are those numbers over the church door? A new algebra formula? 

Come to our Epiphany Sunday service  on January 5 at 10AM and find out! 

Star words or star gifts are a practice connected to the celebration of Epiphany, when a star in the sky guided the magi to baby Jesus. A list of words are written on the back of a star shape (either paper or wood cutout) and then arranged face down on a table or large basket. On the Feast of the Epiphany, participants are invited to draw a star from the table and trust the word they receive as offering guidance for their life in the coming year.

Your star word is already waiting for you on a table set up underneath the Epiphany Star in the narthex. You can choose it as you make your way in to the sancturary this Sunday. 

After you receive your word, you might ask:

• How do I feel about my word?
• How does the word connect to my life?
• What is one way I could live into my word in the coming week?
• What scripture, phrase, or song can I carry with me to help me focus on my word?

Another suggestion is to lookup your word in the dictionary; we hear the word grace all the time, but what exactly does it mean? A word that seemed unclear at the beginning may gain new meaning as the year goes on.  

My hope is that you will hang up your star word where you are sure to see it every day—on your bathroom mirror, or next to your computer screen or on the door of your bedroom. When you look at it – I hope you will see it as a chance to reflect on how God may be speaking to you through it. As you move through the season of Epiphany – when we celebrate Christ’s revelation to the whole world – what treasured wisdom might your star word hold for you? And as you move through the year, how might its meaning evolve and change?

May your star gift remind you of our generous giving God, all year through.

PRAYER 

God, we acknowledge that we are not always ready to receive your best gifts for us. 

You have given us an epiphany star word in order that our searching will bring us to you. 

It is often our habit to turn aside, stumble over, or even reject experiences and encounters 

that we later understand to have been precious gifts. Help us to be open to the gift that you 

offer us now through our star words. 

We acknowledge that we do not fully understand what this word might mean for our faith, 

but we receive it from you with gratitude and pray that your Spirit will enable us 

to live into our word with intention and faithfulness. Amen.

Prayer for Younger Children

Thank-you for my star word gift.

I wonder what message it might have for me?

Just like the star the Magi followed led them to Jesus,

may my star word help me discover Jesus speaking to me in unexpected ways. Amen.

The federal governement announced that it intends to amend the Income Tax Act to extend the deadline for making donations eligible for tax support in the 2024 tax year, until February 28, 2025. Learn more here.