The 2008 Annual meeting of Messiah will be held in Arlington Hall on Sunday, January 20. Following a luncheon coordinated by Lynne Howard, the church will approve reports of boards and committees, discuss other business, and then have a celebration party as we begin our second 100 years. This will be the final centennial event observing Messiah’s 100th anniversary. All members are asked to attend. We must have a quorum in order to carry on church business.

Annual Reports from Boards and Committees are due Sunday, January 7. Those who handle the finances of the Church must wait until after December 31 to close their books, and their reports should be in the Church Office January 14.

When you prepare your report, please use 3/4 of an inch margin. Please edit it carefully as it will be printed as submitted. If it is handwritten, the secretary will retype it on the computer.

Your cooperation is greatly appreciated.

Bills with transaction dates (not posted dates) through December 31, 2007, should be given to the Chief Financial Officer, Bill Lord, by Sunday, January 6, 2008. Bill needs to close the many accounts of the Church for the year 2007 and needs time to prepare his report for the Annual Meeting in January. Let’s cooperate and help Bill with this immense task.

Thank you to everyone who pledged support to Messiah for 2008.

If you believe God wants you to pledge to Messiah, please make a pledge as soon as possible, so the Board of Directors can formulate the budget for next year. You may bring your pledge on Sunday or mail it to the financial secretary at the Church.

Watch for new projects from Memorials to include a new fountain and landscaping in the patio courtyard and upgrading of the entrance to the Narthex from the alley. Coordinated by the Benevolence Committee, Board of Directors, and House and Grounds, these memorial projects will be welcome additions to Messiah. They are expected to be accomplished in the first months of our 101st year.

We thank the Hanna Barbour and Mable Cook Memorial Fund donors for the ability to make these lasting improvements without impacting our regular operating budget.

The Future Planning Committee has met monthly during the 100th anniversary year at Messiah to consider how the future of our church can be fruitful. Some of the suggestions made have been implemented, such as the monthly Band of Merry Christians, the brown bag and video, and the pot luck and movie. Other ideas for ways we can reach out have been suggested and will be considered as the committee continues to meet. New ideas are always welcome.

Members of the committee are Carol Cole, Ron Del Cid, Milo Sather, Marjorie Poe and Dr. Gray. Former members were Pat Wilson and Darlene Gaston.

The fall Cal-West meeting was held at the Oneonta Congregational Church in South Pasadena on November 4 with Moderator Rev. Dr. Beth Bingham presiding.

One of the highlights of the meeting was the election and installation of new officers for 2008. Members from Messiah who were elected are Lynne Howard, moderator; Dr. David Gray, assistant moderator, Bill Garber, scribe; Peggy Stone and Janet Garber, board of directors; and Carol Cole, corresponding secretary. Others serving from Messiah are Marjorie Poe, missions committee and Bee Del Cid, spiritual resources committee. Twelve churches in the southern California area are represented by the officers and committee members of Cal-West.

An unusual worship service was presented by the pastor, Dr. Douglas Brandt, in the Redwood Room. He led the group in a power point presentation about Congregationalists and the Pilgrim Fathers. The meeting closed with a dinner.

Attending from Messiah were Dr. Gray, Carol Cole, Lynne Howard, Marjorie Poe, Janet and Bill Garber.

Your generous year-end gift and pledges will help keep our church strong and effective.

Thank you.

As followers of Christ, we are realistic enough to see and admit there are serious things breaking down in the world God created. To change this destructive direction, Dr. Gray will present four fundamental factors which, when put into practice, change the direction of our broken world.

Try not to miss any of these important Advent Sundays preparing us for Christmas 2007 and the coming of 2008.

This Advent, select one of the four Gospels, Matthew, first and longest; Mark, written first and shortest; Luke, written by a physician who also wrote Acts (read in sequence); and John, perhaps most loved for the emphasis on Jesus’ love.

God often uses our minds to inform our hearts and bodies how to respond to the God shown through written words.

Each of the four Gospels contain letters which form words that are capable of becoming LIVING WORDS from God to you, the receptive reader.

So the challenge includes—should you dare to accept it—not only reading the words as they are written, but reading them with a heart open to whatever God may be saying (active tense) to you. May the Spirit of the living God Who sent us Advent and Christmas, fall fresh on you.

David

Three community groups—Westchester Woman’s Club, Altrusa International of Los Angeles and the Congregational Church of the Messiah—combined their resources to offer a variety of items for holiday buying on Saturday, November 17, in the Fireside Room. Each group benefited from the sale of its contributions.

Carol Cole, chair person of the Holiday Mart, reports that Messiah’s proceeds were over $500. We thank her and the crafters who worked throughout the year to make the Holiday Mart so successful, and those who donated items.

I wish to express my special appreciation to Leslie Hanson, chairman of the board of deacons who was in charge of the worship services in my absence, and Marjorie Poe, who gave the sermon Sunday, November 18. Leading in worship is one of the most vital and sacred parts of our covenant together.

God blesses us often through others. This is part of why we are a Messiah church family.

David

The joy of Christmas will fill the Messiah Guild of Service meeting on Thursday, December 13 (the second Thursday of the month), 2007, at 10:30 am in the Sanctuary.

Once again, we are pleased to have Melinda Goodall, soprano (former Director of Music at Messiah for over 25 years) and Louise Thomas, Pianist (former Pianist/Organist of Messiah) return to present “Songs and Carols of Christmas.” Melinda, principal of Loyola Village School in Westchester, and Louise, Director of Collaborative Arts at Chapman University in Orange, have agreed to return to Messiah to repeat their wonderful Christmas program for the Guild. Please note the earlier time (10:00 am) of the program. They will bring you music of Christmas which will lift your spirits with songs of the beauty and joy of the season. You are encouraged to bring your neighbors and friends to this free concert.

Following the program there will be a short Guild meeting in the Sanctuary followed by salad and dessert potluck luncheon in Arlington Hall. Please sign on the poster in the church hall to designate your dish or call Peggy Stone to have your name added to the list. For more information call Erny Doidge, Guild President. The church office can take your number and have them call you.

The flowers that are in the Sanctuary on Sunday mornings add freshness to the beauty of the Worship Service. Donating flowers is a wonderful way to remember friends and relatives or to share a special event in your life, and signing up early gives a wide selection of dates.

If you would like to donate flowers, please sign up on the flower chart in the hallway or call the church office at 310-670-2242 and your name will be added to the list.

The total price of the two bouquets is $43.30. If you have any questions please contact Marianne Lindsay.

At 9:00 am on Wednesday, the Early Birds meet in the library for a time of Bible Study and prayer. They study the Scriptures related to the sermon to be preached the following Sunday.

Everyone is invited to attend and learn more about God’s Word and pray for persons in need of our prayers.

Messiah is collecting plastic bottles and aluminum cans for recycling, as well as printer cartridges. Money received from the cans and bottles go to the Harry R. Butman Capital Improvement Fund. Cartridges are sent to Empties4Cash which redeems them, and the proceeds go into the general fund. You may also bring Campbell’s Soup labels for Loyola Village School.

Televisionaries are on vacation until further notice.

Mission giving for the fourth quarter of 2007, as administered by the Benevolence/Missions Committee in September, includes 26 recipients. The four areas of missions are Congregational Continuance, Education, Home Missions and Foreign Missions. The total amount given this quarter is $4,650. Each quarter the committee chooses from a list of more than 40 deserving missionaries and projects.

Foreign Missions constitutes 20% of the mission budget, going this quarter to missionaries in Argentina, India, Honduras, Myanmar, Mazahua and the Pan-American Institute in Mexico.

Home Missions donations are 40% of the budget and this quarter’s recipients are the AMCS Counseling Center, Braille Institute, Christian Appalachian Project, LAX Food Pantry, Midnight Mission, Para Los Ninos (for Southern California impoverished children and youth), Promotorous Leadership Training, Salvation Army, Step Up On Second (a program for those with severe mental illness), and the YMCA.

Educational missions receives 20% of the missions budget, this quarter recipients being Bangor Theological Seminary, Indian Trails Missions in Arizona, Piedmont College in Georgia, Olivet College in Michigan, and St. Andrews Priory in Valyermo (Messiah’s Spiritual Retreat location.)

Twenty percent of the missions gifts goes to Congregational Continuance. Those receiving donations this quarter include NACCC administration expenses and ministerial assistance, and Congregational Foundation for Theological Studies.

These are all deserving causes your pledges to benevolence and missions help to support.

At the January Annual Meeting, events for the year were announced as Messiah planned our centennial celebration for 2007. Special events were held throughout the year.

The February event was “Congregationalism and the Abolition Movement,” a talk by Carol Cole on the various quilt designs used to alert run-away slaves as to safe places to stay.

In March, Dr. Beth Bingham, pastor of Pilgrim Congregational Church in Pomona, spoke at the luncheon on “Women’s Roles in the Church.”

The April celebration was a formal dinner in Arlington Hall, attended by 60 people. Entertainment was provided by the guitar duo, Guitar Romantica.

Reunion Day was held in May with visitors and former members attending. Five new members joined Messiah on that day.

Fathers were recognized with a barbecue on the patio in June and the contents of the cornerstone were displayed in the Fireside Room.

In July, veterans from Messiah were honored with a potluck on the patio and music provided by the Messiah guitar ensemble.

Two celebrations were held in September. On Kickoff Sunday, Melinda Goodall and Louise Thomas presented “An Autumn Serenade.” Later in the month, a group of students from the Pan-American Institute in Tijuana entertained at the luncheon and Juana Santos, director, told about the students at the school.

Prayer Day was observed in October with guest Betsey Kenworthy of Washington, sister of our pastor, bringing the message.

The December event will be a tea today in Arlington Hall and a display of crèches by members of Messiah.

The final celebration party will be at the Annual Meeting in January following the luncheon and business session. It has been a great year for Messiah!

Bill Lord
Bill Lord, teacher and leader of the community guitar ensemble, is the son of Earle and Marjorie, husband of Bonny, and father of Earlene and Shane. He has been interested in the guitar since childhood and has led the guitar ensemble for ten years. He also teaches private lessons.

Bill is Messiah’s Chief Financial Officer, in charge of seeing that church bills are paid.

Leslie Hanson
Leslie Hanson, hand bell director, is the daughter of Ed and Mildred and the sister of Nels, Nancy, and Michele. She has played hand bells at Messiah since she was in high school. She is chairman of the Board of Deacons, church clerk, a liturgist and usher, and volunteers in many other capacities. Leslie is employed by the UCLA School of Dentistry and lives in Santa Monica.

Yana Reznik
Yana Reznik, Messiah music director and organist, is a native of Russia. She has a Masters in Music from USC and is now attending the Colburn School of Music. She is a concert pianist who has performed throughout Europe and the United States, including Lincoln Center and Carnegie Hall as a soloist and with symphony orchestras. She is one of the artistic directors of the “Meet the Music” concerts sponsored by the Western Society of Chamber Music.

Yes, Children. It is that time of the year again! This year we are especially blessed because we are celebrating the opening of the new LAX Pantry location at 355 E. Beach in Inglewood. Bags and lists of items needed are available at the Church. They are due to be turned in by Sunday, December 9th.

That is not a misprint it is indeed bags. The boxes proved to be too cumbersome and heavy for workers and clients at the Pantry. Clients are given a bag for each four members of their family. Additional items are added to the bags at the pantry before they are distributed.

We will have a box in the Fireside Room for those of you who wish to bring a few separate items. Please do not bring perishable or breakable items for the Bags.

Erny Doidge will accept Checks (made out to the Church with Bag-it-Up in the memo spot) and Money.

We know that we are blessed because we can provide a better Christmas for people who live with far less than we have.

I am always amazed at your generosity. You are wonderful!

Messiah members and friends are invited to the Christmas Posada at the Panamerican Institute in Tijuana, Mexico, on Saturday, December 15, at 2:00 pm. The students will make piñatas and sing Christmas carols. We are invited to join in piñata breaking and eating tamales with them. The directions to the school are on the poster on the bulletin board.

The Institute, a junior high school, is sponsored by Congregational Churches in the United States. It offers regular academic courses plus typing and computer use. Mexico provides free education only through six grades of elementary school. Beyond that, students must pay private school tuition, which many families cannot afford.

We also have the opportunity of providing Christmas food baskets to the students and their families each Christmas. The baskets are $40 each, but donations may be combined; your gift may cover any portion of a basket. We send all gifts and mail to a United States Postal Address: P.O. Box 433872, San Isidro, CA 92143.

The National Association of Congregational Christian Churches (NACCC) does not have a Leadership Center, but would like to establish one, or several around the country. Our candidates for ordination as Congregational ministers currently may attend any accredited seminary, augmented by some correspondence courses and a seminar offered each year in Boston. The executive committee of the NACCC has chosen Olivet College, a Congregational College in Michigan, as the first location for a Congregational Leadership Center.

Congregationalists who share this ambition and are able to make significant donations may consult Dr. Gray or Carol Cole or Bill or Janet Garber about opportunities to give to the “Branching Out” campaign. If there is any interest, we may arrange for a speaker from the NACCC on the potential for a Congregational Leadership Center.

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