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Happy December!  (Yeah right!)  This is the month of Advent, Christmas, and the final hoorah of 2025!  It is also the beginning of winter, Oh yay. Even though the temperatures outside are dropping, it doesn’t mean that the warmth of our Christian hearts and spirits must follow.  No, in fact with Advent and Christmas we should be igniting renewed flames of spirituality and devotion, which should translate into increased fellowship and love for our fellow mankind.

This Advent season might bring some change to how it has been celebrated in the past within our church.  I am going to be making efforts to get more of our people involved every week and hopefully spur a bit of seasonal transformation in some of us.  Afterall, this time of year is the season of giving (as they like to remind us in the commercials) and what better giving is there than giving of yourself?

But as Christians, we also know it will soon be the season of receiving.  As we soon will be commemorating the receiving of the greatest gift ever known, Jesus, God in human form.  It is during this time of year that we focus on what we have been given, God in the flesh of a newborn babe.  It is from that miraculous, humble beginning that the world was given the chance to come to know our God, and to receive the eventual blessing of redemption.  (There could be no Easter without Christmas.)  This wonderful birth changed the world.  This wonderful birth brought us closer to our creator than anything prior or since.  What a miracle!  It is only right that we celebrate and commemorate this spectacular moment with joyous hearts, sharing of our resources, and air filled with music that heralds the birth of our Lord!  How wonderful it is to be counted among those that belong to the Lord!  How wonderful it is to recognize Jesus Christ as our Lord and Savior!  In short, how wonderful it is to be us!  When we keep our focus on what we have in Christ, it really doesn’t matter too much what we don’t have of this world.  Could we have more money?  Surely.  Could we have a bigger/fancier home?  Probably.  More jewelry?  Toys?  Absolutely!  But how do all these things compare to what we DO have?  They are trivial, meaningless, and temporary.  Whereas in Christ we have the promise of salvation and eternal life with God the Father!  What could be more important? NOTHING!

If you have someone on your Christmas list that you don’t know what to get, think about introducing or re-introducing them to Jesus.  You could never give a better gift (and you don’t have to wrap it!)

Marian and I wish you and yours a blessed Advent and Christmas.  May you each open your hearts to truly receive the Christ child this year and bring Him with you into 2026.

Pastor Gerry

Monthly Men’s Breakfast…Please join us for our monthly men’s breakfast the second Wednesday of each month at 9:00 am at Eat-N-Park.  All are welcome!

As we come to the close of another year, I want to take a moment to express my heartfelt gratitude to each and every one of you.  Your unwavering support, dedication, and prayers have been the cornerstone of our success this year.  Together we have kept our church moving in the right direction, strengthening our faith, and fostering a loving, welcoming community for all.  It has been truly inspiring to witness the way our congregation has come together—whether through volunteering, attending services, or supporting our ministry and outreach efforts.  Your commitment has made a real difference and has set us on a steady path toward continued growth and success.  I am deeply thankful for your contributions and the spirit of unity that defines our church.  As we celebrate this blessed Christmas season, let us remember the gift of Christ’s love and the joy it brings to our lives.  May your days be filled with peace, hope, and happiness, and may God’s blessings be upon you and your loved ones.  Thank you again for your faithfulness and support.  Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year!

Christmas Party Potluck…Our Christmas Party Potluck will be held on Saturday, December 6, from 3:30 to 6:30 pm.  This will be a potluck dinner with the church providing chicken and potatoes.  Please bring a side dish to share.  We will have a gift exchange with a gift limit of $10.  We will sing Christmas carols with May Love on piano.  We will have additional games during the party.  Please sign up on the bulletin board what you are bringing and how many are coming so we can plan accordingly.  Looking forward to seeing everyone there!

Church Information…Please remember that you can obtain church information from the monthly Lamplighter Newsletter, the Constant Contact emails you receive, on the church website (www.lllc.org), on Facebook (https://www.facebook.com/Living-Lord-Lutheran-Church-493806727349110/), and postings on the church bulletin board.  Church Council Meeting minutes are posted on the bulletin board and sent out via Constant Contact.  We would like to see a better “open rate” when we send information to you via Constant Contact so that we know you are being informed of the activities that are occurring at the church.  If you have any other suggestions on how best to reach out to our parishioners, please see a Council member.

Thanks to everyone who has contributed to the Paw Pantry this year.  In addition to the many donations, $60.00 was also given to the Paw Pantry.  Our next collection will be in January and February of 2026.  We will be collecting clothing items.  Watch for further details.  If you would like to join our Committee, please let a current member know.  Current members are:  Rose Baringer, Bonnie Sanzenbacher, Drena Smith, Denise Scheiner, and Barb Wright.

Our annual pie fellowship was a big hit.  I hope everyone enjoyed their pieces of pie!  December Fellowship will be the Christmas Party Potluck on Saturday, December 6, at 3:30 pm.  Please sign up to come and bring a potluck dish to share.  We will have chicken and potatoes provided.  This is our last Fellowship of 2025 so let’s make it a good one!  It has been my pleasure to be your Fellowship Chairperson these past 3 years.  I will be taking some time off in 2026 for personal reasons.  Thank you!

Monthly Women’s Breakfast…Please join us at our monthly breakfast at Vasilio’s in Cortland on the second Thursday of every month (Dec. 11) at 10:00 am.  All are welcome!

Thank you to everyone who contributed to the Thanksgiving Food Baskets.  We were able to provide food to 15 families.

November!  The month of Thanksgiving.  While we should always be giving thanks and praise to our Lord, this month allows us to better focus on expressing our gratefulness for the many blessings we each have received.

One of the blessings that I am most grateful for is this church!  While it is true that the building is a wonderful place to worship and share in fellowship, it really isn’t the structure itself that I am so grateful for.  No, what I am most grateful for is the people who spend time in our building.  A team of wonderful volunteers who do so much for our church community and our community at large.  We are truly blessed to have some folks that are willing to go above and beyond for us and I am so very thankful for them and all that they do!  I am pleased that our attendance has been up the past few weeks and that we are sharing the Good News of the Gospel with more and more folks.  But what makes it even more thrilling is that we have people willing to support the church by giving of their time and talents.  Unfortunately, there is more to do than we currently have volunteers for.  It is my hope that more people will come and join our team!  We have many chairperson seats available, and we always can use more help with our various programs.  If you haven’t considered joining the team, please do so.  If you have considered it, but feel you can’t contribute, please reconsider that decision.  It is only by keeping our existing programs viable and perhaps adding new ones that we will grow the Gospel in our community.  I know we are all busy, we all have health issues, we all think that somebody else can do it.  (Just imagine if Jesus thought that way!  He asked His Father three times to let His impending torture and death to pass by Him, but in the end, He knew what needed to be done and did it.  In doing so, He gave us the greatest blessing of all time!)

In giving thanks, I also want to thank you for your concern and support during the recovery of Marian from her mishap.  Your thoughts, prayers, texts, cards, phone calls, and of course food have meant so much to both of us.  You people are just remarkable!  I cannot adequately put into words how much you mean to us or express how thankful we are to have you in our lives.

In closing, I ask that each of you take a moment each day and reflect on the things that you are thankful for.  Then, take the time to prayerfully give God thanks for all that He has done and continues to do within our lives.  And please know that when I, myself, do this, your name will be on that list of blessings that I am thankful for.

Pastor Gerry

Monthly Men’s Breakfast…Please join us for our monthly men’s breakfast the second Wednesday of each month at 9:00 am at Eat-N-Park.  All are welcome!

From the President, Bob McKinney…Someone tell me where this year has gone!  I cannot believe we are closing in on November.  I think in general this has been a good year so far here at Living Lord Lutheran Church.  We have completed several larger projects this year around the church through the Fuchs Fund.  We have updated many sections of our Constitution and By-laws to be more in line with where we are today as an independent Lutheran Church.  Our Pastor has been with us for one year already and I know we made the right decision in bringing him on board.  He has been very instrumental in smoothing our start as an independent church.  I was incredibly pleased with the Senior Valley Choir concert.  We had over 50 people attend and it was an enjoyable night.  I am looking forward to our next concert, the Hamilton Road Gospel Trio, on November 8, at 6:00 pm.  We will be collecting items for the Animal Welfare League at this concert.  I am hoping everyone is comfortable with the new time of our worship service at 10:00 on Sunday mornings.  Our Adult Forum is being well attended at 9:00 am.  I want to thank the congregation for supporting myself and the Council with all the changes we have requested this year so far.  I will say we are working on other items to help our church grow and we will be talking to you about that in the near future.  I am also hoping we will be able to fill a few more Council positions this year when the Nominating Committee starts its process.  In closing, let me say that I feel we have a solid membership base here at Living Lord and you are letting us continue to be a viable church and make a difference in our community.  Thank you and may God bless each and every one of you!

Church Information…Please remember that you can obtain church information from the monthly Lamplighter Newsletter, the Constant Contact emails you receive, on the church website (www.lllc.org), on Facebook (https://www.facebook.com/Living-Lord-Lutheran-Church-493806727349110/), and postings on the church bulletin board.  Church Council Meeting minutes are posted on the bulletin board and sent out via Constant Contact.  We would like to see a better “open rate” when we send information to you via Constant Contact so that we know you are being informed of the activities that are occurring at the church.  If you have any other suggestions on how best to reach out to our parishioners, please see a Council member.

The Evangelism/Membership Committee members will meet on November 11, 2025.  Members are Rose Baringer, Bonnie Sanzenbacher, Drena Smith, Denise Scheiner, and Barb Wright.  We continue to take communion to our homebound members on Thursdays and Pastor Gammon will accompany us if possible.  Thanks to everyone who has contributed to the Paw Pantry this year.  You are greatly appreciated for your generosity and we will certainly continue these collections.  Go Tigers!  If you have suggestions for other areas of service in which our church could participate, please let one of our committee members know.  Thank you for your loving care and generosity.  We are blessed!

As the temperatures are falling and the days are getting shorter, we thank God for the beautiful summer and fall we all enjoyed this year.  For November, we are having our annual pie Fellowship on November 16.  This has been a big hit in the past, so we are making it an annual event.  Please plan on joining us for a slice of pie and some good fellowship.  Saturday, December 6, is our Christmas Party, so mark your calendars.  Times will be coming with a sign-up sheet for the potluck.

Monthly Women’s Breakfast…Please join us for our monthly women’s breakfast at Vasilio’s in Cortland on the second Thursday of every month (Nov. 13) at 10:00 am.  All are welcome!

Thanksgiving Food Baskets…Our Thanksgiving Food Baskets ministry has begun.  Sign-up sheets for food donations are posted on the tripod in the narthex.  The last day for donations will be on Sunday, November 16.  If you are interested in reserving a food basket, please contact Pam Boothe.  Thanks in advance for your generosity and assistance with this program.  God bless!