Excerpts from the COS Bulletin. For the full bulletin, please visit the Members and Friends portal.

Happening This Sunday

December 2 marks the first Sunday in Advent. Intergenerational Sunday School will be held at 9am and then we’ll move into our Prism worship service where we will worship in the large sanctuary with both BES and SES brothers and sisters. During the service we have the privilege of witnessing the baptism of Quinton Saul, infant son of Garrett & Andrea Saul. We will welcome several new members and afterward we will continue our fellowship with a Christmas brunch immediately following worship. Please bring food to share—muffins, and egg dish, or something sweet. If you didn’t bring anything, stay anyway! 

Next Sunday

Church of the Servant’s Lessons & Carols service is always a special evening. The format is simple: scripture and song. But somehow the combination is profound. We hear scriptures of waiting and fulfillment, sing cherished carols of the season, and experience the variety of voices that make up our congregation. It is truly a wonder-filled service. Join us December 9 at 6 pm for this year’s Lessons and Carols Service. Following the Lessons and Carols service, we invite all to stay and take part in a dessert potluck. Please bring a dessert to share. 

Youth News

Prelude Musicians Wanted! If you would like to provide Christmas music by singing or playing an instrument during our 5 PM Christmas Eve service prelude, please sign up on the sheet in the café area or email andrea.saul@coscrc.org.

Our Puerto Rico Mission Trip signup is technically full—but we can still accept a few more participants! Contact Annette today if you want to claim a spot.

Serve 1st will actually be Serve 2nd in December!  High school students are needed to help run games at the Angel Tree Christmas Party on Dec. 8 from 4:30-6: 30 pm at COS. Contact Annette or Lucie Marsden if you are available.

Youth Auction Donations Accepted through tomorrow! Our Youth Group Fundraising Auction to raise funds for our mission trip to Puerto Rico is taking place this Wed., Dec. 5.  If you would like to donate an item or a service for the auction, contact Annette by 5 pm Monday, Dec. 3.

Youth Auction Help Needed! Students, parents, and leaders – Your help is needed to make our Youth Auction a success!  Let Annette know where you can help:

  • Set up tables on Sunday, Dec. 2, after COS Christmas Brunch
  • Set up auction items on Wednesday, Dec. 5, 3-5pm
  • Help with meal prep on Wednesday, Dec. 5, 3-5pm
  • Help “closing tables” and distributing items during auction
  • Help cleaning up after auction (7-8:30pm)

Church News

Calling all storytellers, young and old! The 5 PM Christmas Eve Service is returning this year and will continue the much-loved tradition: Retelling stories of hope leading up to Jesus’ birth. We welcome anyone who would like to be angels, shepherds, narrators, musicians, backstage crew, stage/cleanup crew, and more! Our rehearsals will take place Sun., Dec. 23 at 9am and Mon., Dec. 24 at 3pm (before the service). If you and your family would like to be a part of this storytelling, please add your name/s to the sign-up sheets in the cafe area or email andrea.saul@coscrc.org.

The Thursday Bible study meets this week on December 6. We will study Colossians 4:2-18 and Lesson 7. 

The Thanksgiving offering totaled $3844. Coit Community and Celebration Fellowship will each receive half of that amount. Additionally, Coit received $100. “Then the people rejoiced because they had offered so willingly, for they made their offering to the Lord with a whole heart, and King David also rejoiced greatly.” 1 Chronicles 29:9

Check your COS mailbox for details about this Wednesday’s Fundraising Auction as well as a coupon for $5 in penny auction tickets (limit 1 coupon/family)  See you at the Puerto Rican themed Dinner and Auction this Wednesday, Dec. 5 from 5-7pm!

This Friday, December 7 is the Meijer Simply Give Double Match – For every 10.00 Simply Give card purchase at Cascade Meijer, Meijer will match this with 20.00, so the COS food pantry will benefit with a 30.00 gift! If you buy a 30.00 Meijer Simply Give card, it will turn into a 90.00 gift to the COS food pantry. This year Ellen Westrate will be taking monies from those who cannot easily go to the Cascade Meijer and will be purchasing these cards on your behalf on Dec 7 Double Match day. Please give your name and money in an envelope to Ellen by Dec 5. It is our hope and goal this year to surpass the $25,000 COS received from Cascade Meijer for our food pantry which feeds over 100 families a month. Thank you for participating in this partnership with Meijer! Card stands are the back of the large sanctuary and on the Café counter.

Looking for two volunteers for the nursery during ESL Bible study this Thursday, Dec. 6, 10-11:45am. We’d like to include our usual childcare givers in our last study of the semester. Contact Barbara Hampton.

COS Prisoners in Christ will host a Christmas party this Saturday afternoon, December 8, 4-6:30 p.m. for about 20 children whose incarcerated parents have requested connections at Christmastime through Prison Fellowship Angel Tree. There are many ways COS members can be involved – purchasing a gift on behalf of the parent who is in prison, helping out with the party, donating funds, and through your faithful prayers. If interested, contact Lucie Marsden.

Finance Committee report on the first quarter of the fiscal year

(Sept–Nov).                 

Budget      $ 357,000                                    

Estimated Receipts    $257,789                                     

Estimated Expenses   $19,330                  

Deficit    ($61,541)             

Even with Council approved budget reductions in place, our giving is 20% below expenses. Further reductions will necessarily affect programs and/or staff.