Dear Grace Family,
These announcements and prayer requests are being sent out every Thursday to inform us of what is happening in and the needs of our church. If you have an announcement or prayer request that you want to be included in next week’s email, please send it to office@gfccsf.org by Tuesday night.
Grace and peace, The Session and Staff of GFCC
Announcements for the week of 12/9/24
Join Us for Sunday Worship, December 15 at 10:00 AM
Pastor Al will be preaching from Luke 1: 26-56. “A Star-Studded Cast: Elizabeth, John, Jesus, and Mary”
Last Week Pastor Paul preached on “A Deep Ache and the Gift of Silence.”
Here is the link to the slides that Pastor Paul used during his sermon.
Slide Deck Link
Parallel Old Testament passages in Zechariah’s Song:
Parallel Passages
If you want to re-listen to Pastor Paul’s sermon (and any other previous sermons), you can do so on our church’s website.
Sermons | GFCC (gfccsf.org)
Advent Retreat 2024
What a blessed time we had sitting with Zechariah and Elizabeth last weekend. Thank you to Pastor Paul Conti, Irene Fong, Margie Chiang and Karen Seth for leading us in our time of reflection and silence.
Sign the “This is Us” Document
The link to this document is below. We are invited to sign the “This is Us” document if we resonate with what is stated. This is a tangible way for us to say yes to who we are and why we exist.
The “This is Us” document will be left at the front of the sanctuary each Sunday. Please feel free to sign it.
If you have any questions, please contact Pastor Al or Pastor Paul.
This Is Us
A Request for Stuffed Animals for the Loops of Love Ministry
While you are out shopping in person or online, please consider purchasing some stuffed animals for the Loops of Love Ministry. We would like to bring these animals to Laguna Honda Hospital and Rehabilitation Center in the next few weeks.
We would like them cuddly and soft. For safety concerns, Laguna Honda does not allow beanie babies (because of the bead stuffing), anything that can be easily detached from the stuffed animal (bows, scarves, hats, toys), and no large stuffed animals (bigger than 14 inches). Please drop off your donation in the "Loops of Love" basket in the sanctuary.
If you have any questions, please contact Linda Kay.
Refreshment Signup
Our signup is looking pretty light. Please consider bringing in refreshments for our Sunday coffee hour.
Sign Up for Refreshments After Sunday Service
Sharing Advent Hope Together, December 17, 7PM - 8:30PM at Church
As the season of Advent returns to our weary world, we ask, “How does a weary world rejoice?” Christ was born into a world of hardship—under a ruthless king and an oppressive empire, where poverty and suffering were widespread, yet He brought joy for all. From the opening chapters of Luke’s Gospel, we find answers: acknowledge our weariness, make room for God’s in-breaking presence, and trust in our belovedness.
Join in a casual evening to find joy in connection and share the hope in Emmanuel, God with us.
Advent Gallery Walk: Do you have an Advent or Christmas artifact that holds special meaning for you? Bring a nativity set, ornament, keepsake, or artwork, along with a brief description, to share in our gallery. Check out this example: Nativity Set
If you need printing help, send the short description to myfoo2210@yahoo.com by December 16th.
Testimony, Poem, or Musical Offering: How has God been meeting you in this weary world? Share a story, poem, or song . Email Mylene Foo at myfoo2210@yahoo.com by December 15th if you like to make an offering.
Refreshments: Would you like to bring your favorite treats to share? Your contributions of festive snacks will make our gathering even more delightful!
We look forward to celebrating this season of hope with you!
Al Anon, which uses our church courtyard, every Tuesday night will be meeting at the same time as our service. For privacy reasons, the courtyard will be closed and no one should be in the courtyard. Please see Caroline if you have any questions.
Christmas Eve Service, December 24 at 7PM at Church
Let’s welcome our Lord’s birth by gathering together to worship and celebrate on Christmas Eve.
For those who want to continue the fellowship after the service, we will have refreshments after the service.
If you wish to bring some Christmas goodies to share, let Jennifer or Caroline know.
Christmas Offering - Bridge Ministry
This year, we want to direct our Christmas Offering to the Bridge Ministry of Pastor Nelson Ng’ang’a and his wife, Annet. The link below details what their dream for the Bridge Ministry would look like in Kenya. They are called to minister to the most vulnerable in Kenya - children.
Our offering will go toward the purchase of a 4-wheel drive pickup truck. This truck will be most valuable for their outreach, travel and transportation of people and goods.
If you wish to make a gift to the offering, you can do so online or by placing a check in the offering box and indicating that it is for the Christmas offering.
The Bridge Ministry
Please see Pastor Nelson's response (via email) to our planned Christmas Offering in the Family Matters and Prayer Requests section of this email.
New Year’s Eve Event at Church
Let’s put on our dance shoes and let loose on the dance floor. If you want to share part of New Year’s Eve with the church family, come to church for some good music (from Motown, Elvis, Beatles to Sabrina Carpenter, Taylor Swift), fellowship and food.
4PM - 7PM at church.
Any questions, contact Caroline
Cana Winter Weekend for Couples
Discerning our Priorities Together
Jan 31- Feb 2 Mount Hermon, CA
In the day-to-day grind, we sometimes fail to remember what is really important to us. Take some time away for a weekend in the beautiful Santa Cruz mountains and revisit your priorities as a couple! The weekend will include time alone and together, teaching, free time, prayer & worship, and the good company of other couples. Click here for more information, or go to canausa.org/events. Questions? Ask Dave & Lisa or Robert & Margie.
Registration Deadline is January 13, 2025
Ministry Partners Update
2024 Alternative Gift List
It has been our congregation’s practice, during Christmas, to direct our monetary resources, away from purchasing gifts for each other, to different ministries. Here is the Integral Mission Team’s list of recipients for this year’s Alternative Gifts:
Alternative Gift Giving Worksheet (to indicate what gifts and amounts you wish to give) and Gift Cards are available by the offering box.
As a reminder, here are GFCC’s 2024 Ministry Partners (their support is already a part of the church budget). All our partners are listed on the church website on the link below:
https://www.gfccsf.org/IntegralMission
Global
National
Agape Church
Deliberate Dialogues (Joy Kreider)
Intervarsity in Hawaii (Brenda Wong)
Maranatha Church
Oriented to Love (Christians for Social Action)
Local
Intervarsity in San Francisco (Brenden and Samantha Gutierrez-Graczak)
Jubilee Immigration Advocates
New College Berkeley
Rise University Preparatory
Jubilee Immigration Advocates (Randy Chang is the liaison)
Here is Jubilee's most recent post-election newsletter, launching their 2024 gift matching campaign.
https://mailchi.mp/jubileelegal/fall-2024-newsletter1-unshakablehope
If you would like to purchase an alternative gift card for Jubilee, please contact Clare between now and Dec 22nd.