 It’s the 7th day of Christmas, and the morning of New Year’s Eve. The gospel lesson for the day, Luke 2:22-40, picks up where we left off last Sunday.
Mary and Joseph take Jesus to the temple to be dedicated, and two old folks, Simeon and Anna, rejoice when they see the child, whom they recognize as the fulfillment of their lifelong hopes and prayers.
Bruce Wilson, one of our former pastoral interns who is now a hospital chaplain, is our guest preacher.
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Well, that was certainly a Christmas Eve to remember!
 As most of you know by now, we cancelled the 10:00 pm service due to the snow. It was a VERY tough decision to make. My opinion has always been that as long as I can get to church, we’ll have a worship service for whoever shows up. But by 7:00 pm, on my way home from the 5:00 pm service, I passed a bus that was stuck in the snow and jutting into the eastbound lane on Admiral Way. Then I got a call from Marshan, who lives on a very steep hill, saying that he was snowed in. Shortly after that he emailed the choir to say we wouldn’t be singing. Then a couple of church members emailed and texted to say they were snowed in and would be staying home.
At that point, the question became one of safety; the snow was forecast to continue and it could be much worse by 11:00 pm when we’d be going home. I consulted with a couple more folks, decided to cancel, and then did what I could to get the word out. Shortly after 9:30 pm Mary and I headed down to church, where Kathy Herigstad and Charlie Hinckley had gone by to turn off the heat and lights, Russ Thornock was clearing the sidewalk, and Jane Gunwaldsen was greeting the people who, like her, hadn’t heard about the cancellation.
As people kept arriving it was obvious what we were going to do. We  put the heat and lights back on, handed out the candles, and by 10:00 pm there were 25-30 of us sitting close together for an impromptu Christmas Eve service! No musicians, no choir, no worship bulletin, no homily, nothing fancy at all. We just all introduced ourselves, told the Christmas story together from memory, sang a couple of carols a cappella, had time for prayer, and then gathered in a circle in the dark to light our candles and sing “Silent Night.”
I hesitate to say this — because I know some of you would have been here if we hadn’t cancelled, and a few of you had come and gone before I got there — but it really was a magical, holy night. And you can’t plan something like that — it just drops in like a gift from above. I think every person said on their way out the door, “That was the best Christmas Eve service ever!” Or, as the Gospel of Luke said about the shepherds, “They returned to their homes, glorifying and praising God for all they had heard and seen.”
So while I still think we made the right decision — if only because I would never forgive myself if any of you had been hurt on the way here or on your way home — it was disappointing due to all the work that had gone into preparing for it. The choir had been having extra rehearsals for more than a month. Many of you stayed after church that morning to help set up the sanctuary — Anne Van Dyne and Verona Ryan changing out the altar setting and putting out the poinsettias (and an olive wood nativity set, direct from Bethlehem, that I’d brought from home for the service; Bonita Corliss handwashing all the glass chimneys for the aisle candleholders; Dave and Vicky Smith, Jeff Jolly, Kathy Herigstad and others taking out garbage, bringing down the boxes of candles and nativity figures for the 5:00 pm service, etc, and all who donated a poinsettia or two. At least we had a wonderful service that morning, and many others were here for the family service.
As for the choral anthems? We had already decided to do a couple of the Christmas anthems on January 7, since so many choir members were out of town last weekend. It’s not too far-fetched, since January 6 is Three Kings Day and that’s our focus in worship for January 7. And Advent was so short this year, we may just compensate by extending the Christmas season a couple of days with a few more anthems.
Blessings to all of you on this 5th day of Christmas!
— Pastor Diane
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For those grieving the recent death of a loved one:
Jeff Jolly & family, Marshan & Darrell Goodwin-Moultry, Gary Gesellchen, Charley Rosenberry, Lisa Doepken and her grandson's family, the family of Mary Mason, Russ Thornock, Doris Colbert, Jason Huynh, Trish Dodds, Cynthia Jolly, Julia Chase, Scott Mathews, Maria Brodahl
Recent hospitalization, illness and other concerns:
Sallie Neillie, Patty Magnuson’s brother, Joe Aprile, Lisa Burke, Mike Crowley, Elise Piraino, Sallie Neillie, Joe Mitter, Dan Kennedy's brother, Dayle Banks, Lesa Henry, Shelley Webster
Persons with ongoing needs: Jan Cochran, John Chowning, Eric Erickson
For home bound members/friends of Alki UCC: Ruth Okada, Doris Colbert
Wider World:
The victims and survivors of the horrible train crash in Pierce County; all those affected by the devastating California wildfires; victims and survivors of extremist violence around the world; victims and survivors of the devastation in California, Mexico, Puerto Rico, Texas, Florida, the Caribbean, India and Bangladesh; prayers for fewer guns and for all victims of gun violence; the migrants seeking refuge around the world, and for those who are trying to help and serve them. The rest of the missing schoolgirls kidnapped by Boko Haram, who remain in our hearts as long as they remain missing. The hungry and homeless, the ill and the addicted, the lost and the lonely; the unemployed; US officials and troops serving abroad.
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Supporting Alki UCC:
Online Giving
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Last Chance to Make a Tax-Deductible Gift for 2017
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Please remember your church as you make final charitable donations for 2017, especially since we did not have the opportunity to make an offering on Christmas Eve this year!
Just go to alkiucc.org, click on the big blue “Donate” button and follow the instructions.
Thank you so much!
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Worship (all ages)
Sunday at 10:00 am
Happy New Year!
Office Closed Monday
Choir Rehearsal
Tuesday at 7:00 pm
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Coffee Hour Hosts Needed ...
Please bring treats!
Sunday at 10:00 am
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No one has signed up, so we need folks to help set up/cleanup. Instructions are posted in the Parlor kitchen, or contact the Church Office.
We also need treats, so please bring some goodies from home. Christmas cookies, anyone?
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Second Wednesday Sacred Conversations on Race
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Wednesday, January 10, 7:00 pm
Diane and Mary’s home, 1922 45th Ave SW
We’ll continue our discussion of Waking Up White, by Debby Irving.
You are welcome to join us, even if you had to miss the last session. We are all finding the book extremely helpful.
For January 10, read the section on “Midlife Wake-up Calls,” Chapters 6-11 (pgs. 27-60)
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UCC Conference Men's Retreat
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Registration is now open for the PNC-UCC Men's Retreat at Pilgrim Firs, February 2-4, 2018 (Silent Day is Thursday, Feb 1)
To register at pncucc.org, first click on Pilgrim Firs, then on "Events" in the top banner. Scroll down to the Men's Retreat and choose either the Silent Day and Weekend, or the Weekend by itself. Cost is $185 and $135, respectively. Scholarship help is available.
The theme is Men's Relationships: When We Were Young. We will spend some time talking about those friendships that were so meaningful to us when young, and reflect on how those relationships shaped us for life as adult men.
If you have questions, contact Rick Russell or speak to Dan Kennedy, who has attended the last two or three of these retreats and would love to have another Alki person share the riches.
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Alki UCC Board of Directors
2017-2018
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Rod Peeler, Chair
Shannon Peterson,
Vice Chair
Jason Huynh,
Secretary
Susan Fairo
Emily Hitchens
Sandra Johnson
Dan Kennedy
Patty Magnuson
Scott Mathews
Ex Officio:
(Voice but no vote)
Kristin Michael,
Business Manager
Diane Darling, Pastor
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