MISSION ROAD CONGREGATION EVENTS AND PROJECTS

HOLIDAY DECORATING SATURDAY NOVEMBER 30 @ 9:30AM

We will gather to decorate for the Christmas Holiday season on Saturday morning, November 30, 2019. Kick the season off with a Christmas decorating party and help decorate the sanctuary with Christmas Trees, holly and more.

JOIN IN A REVERSE ADVENT SEASON TO FILL THE PANTRY

Arlene Leonard announced a “Fill the Pantry” Reverse Advent project for the congregation. Each person is invited to join in and contribute as much or as little as you are able in the coming Advent Season.

Each day from December 1 to 25, you’re encouraged to purchase and set aside an item to feed the hungry (all collected goods will go to the Central Avenue Center of Hope). Collect the items during the week and then bring them to church each Sunday in December.

The following list is meant to assure that the Food pantry gets a well-balanced menu of items to help families served by the Center. Keep in mind that many of the children served by the Center are from families who depend on the school lunch program for one or two solid meals each day. With schools closed for three weeks over the holidays, the demands on the Center are greater than normal.

Week 1/December 1

December 1: Box of Cereal

December 2: Jar of Peanut Butter

December 3: Stuffing Mix

December 4: Boxed Potatoes

December 5: Macaroni & Cheese

December 6: Canned Fruit

December 7: Canned Tomatoes

Week 2/December 8

December 8: Canned Tuna

December 9: Dessert Mix

December 10: Jar of Applesauce

December 11: Canned Sweet Potatoes

December 12: Cranberry Sauce

December 13: Canned Beans

December 14: Box of Crackers

Week 3/December 15

December 15: Package of Rice

December 16: Box of Oatmeal

December 17: Package of Pasta

December 18: Spaghetti Sauce

December 19: Chicken Noodle Soup

December 20: Tomato Soup

December 21: Canned Corn

Week 4/December 22

December 22: Can of Mixed Vegetables

December 23: Can of Carrots

December 24: Can of Green Beans

December 22: Birthday Cake Mix and Frosting

WINTER WORSHIP SCHEDULE AVAILABLE ONLINE

The New Winter Worship Schedule is now available online at https://bit.ly/2qns1s3. Printed copies are available at church.

ADULT SUNDAY SCHOOL TOPIC

On Sunday, December 1, 2019, the adult Sunday school class will continue the study of “The Story of Christianity: The Reformation to the Present Day,” Volume 2, by Justo L. Gonzales.

Paul Bennetts will resume discussing Chapter 25 starting with the section on “The Great Awakening” (page 288) and then lead the discussion of Chapter 26 (“An Age Beyond Christendom”).

EXPLORING CHALLENGES DISCUSSION GROUP

The Exploring Challenges discussion group meets on Sunday afternoon each week at 4:00 PM in the Church Library. The next meeting will be Sunday December 1st.

Dennis Wood is leading the discussion group to explore issues that affect Mission Road’s future. United States demographics and cultural trends are issues that confront not only Mission Road but also all Christian churches in the U.S. The hope is that discussing these issues will help us better understand how to meet those challenges and fulfill Mission Road’s purpose and reason for being.

Discussion will focus on recent articles from the Herald, and two books: "Beyond Resistance" and "Christianity for the Rest of Us."

BOOK CLUB MEETING PLANNED FOR NEW YEAR

The next meeting of the All Good Books group will be on Thursday, January 9, 2020 at 7:00 PM in the Church Library.

The book club will discuss Educated: A Memoir by Tara Westover and everyone is invited to attend.

Discussion questions for the novel are available at https://www.readinggroupguides.com/reviews/little-fires-everywhere/guide.

ADVENT AT THE TEMPLE: DECEMBER 8, 2019, 7 PM

Join Jan Kraybill at the organ for music and a message of the holiday season. The service is open to the public and will include online participation from around the world.

VESPERS SERVICE ON DECEMBER 15th

Join us on December 15th for a Christmas Vespers Service, reception and a visit from Santa for those young at heart.

MISSION ROAD CALENDAR

Monday, November 25, 2019, 6:30-7:30 PM – Mission Bells rehearsal in the Church Sanctuary.

Wednesday, November 27, 2019, 6:30 – 7:30 PM – Saint’s Chorale practice in the Church Sanctuary.

Wednesday, November 27, 2019, 7:30 PM – Prayer Circle in the Church Library.

Thursday, November 28, 2019 – Happy Thanksgiving!

Saturday, November 30, 2019, 9:30 AM – Holiday Decorating party.

Sunday, December 1, 2019, 8:45 AM – Breakfast (provided by Jonathan Bacon), join us for conversation and fellowship!

Sunday, December 1, 2019

· Nursery available – 9:15-11:30 AM, in downstairs Nursery.

· Children’s Sunday School class – 9:15-10:15 AM, taught by Mary Reichenbach.

· Teen’s Sunday School class – 9:15-10:15 AM, taught by Clint Reine.

· Adult Sunday School class – 9:15-10:15 AM, discusses "The Story of Christianity: The Reformation to the Present Day Volume 2" by Justo Gonzalez, taught by Jonathan Bacon, Paul Bennetts, Marilyn Gairns, Jane Landrum and Dennis Wood in the Church Library.

Sunday, December 1, 2019, 10:30 AM – Jane Landrum will speak on the theme “Wait in Hope” with Ron Millard presidingand serving as worship planner. A Men’s Quartet will offer the ministry of music and Jonathan Bacon will provide the PowerPoint.

Sunday, December 1, 2019, 4:00 PM – Exploring Challenges Discussion Group led by Dennis Wood meets in Church Library.

WORSHIP and SPECIAL MUSIC AT MISSION ROAD

If you are not able to attend the Sunday Worship services at Mission Road, you can listen to our posted podcasts each week. If you miss our worship services and wonderful musical ministry, please join us for the peaceful Spirit of Worship. Links to our weekly podcast are listed below.

MISSED LAST SUNDAY’S SERVICE?

Audio recordings of past worship services are available online at https://bit.ly/2MSgZW8. This is a short URL for a Google Drive folder with past recordings.

Recordings are located in folders corresponding to the year (e.g., 2017, 2018). If you missed a Sunday, this provides you a way to hear the music and the message.

Each audio recording begins with the date of the service (20190224 represents February 24, 2019). The date is followed by a dash and the first initial and last name of the speaker.

NOTE: If you experience problems playing these audio files be sure you’re running the latest version of your browser or try a different browser. In some cases, you may be required to download the audio file before playing it.

The following list includes some recent audio recordings:

24 November 2019 message by John O’Neal, filename 20191124-JONeal.mp3

17 November 2019 message by Ed Slauter including the confirmation of Guy Malone, file name

20191117-ESlauter;Guy.Malone.Confirmation.mp3

10 November 2019 the message presented through music by Ray Adams, Brad Johnson, Joe Racine and Larry Wheeler, filename 20191110-Olathe.Folk.Music.mp3

3 November 2019 message by Jonathan Bacon including the ordination of Roxann Kosmicki, file name

20191103-JBacon;RKosmicki.Ordination.mp3

DO YOU KNOW SOMEONE WITHOUT EMAIL OR FACEBOOK ACCESS?

If you know someone in the congregation that does not have email and does not use Facebook, please let Jonathan Bacon know. We’re trying to be sure everyone in the congregation has access to periodic news updates and information on congregational activities.

FOR FUTURE CHURCH CLOSINGS

In the future, if inclement weather forces the cancellation of church services at Mission Road, we’ll post the closing on our church Facebook page, send a message to the church email list and list the closing on KCTV Channel 5 and KSHB Channel 41.

Be sure to check the TV listings for either "Community of Christ – Mission Road" (KSHB 41) or "Community of Christ – Prairie Village" (KCTV5). The listing will be under one of those two names.

CONCERNING PRAYER REQUESTS

Please know that any member of the congregation can post prayer requests or share information about members and events on the Mission Road Members Only Facebook page. You do not need to send the information for approval to anyone. In fact, doing so may slow down the dissemination of your request. Be sure to include the person needing prayers and what situation has occurred (if you wish to share that information). If your post concerns an event or news item, be sure to include the basics in your posting (such as who, what, where and when).

For prayer requests, if you do not have access to Facebook, then please call Paul Bennetts our Congregational Pastoral Care Coordinator.

IMPORTANT CONGREGATIONAL LINKS

The Mission Road Congregation hosts the following social media sites:

Congregational (public) website at www.mission-road.org

Facebook Page (public) at https://www.facebook.com/MissionRoad.CoC

Facebook Group (open only to congregational members) at https://www.facebook.com/groups/MissionRoad/

The link to Mission Road worship service audio recordings at https://bit.ly/2MSgZW8

The All Good Books discussion group website at https://allbooksclub.wordpress.com/

Visit and "like" each of these sites to keep up-to-date on congregational news.

CONGREGATIONAL NEWS EMAIL

If you have news items and calendar additions or changes that need to be included in the congregational news email, please contact Larry Birkby. His email address and phone number are both in the Church Directory.