10218 SE 12 St., Whitewater, Ks 67154
The angel of the Lord appeared to them
and glory of the Lord shone around them
Luke 2:9a
Every Sunday at Grace Hill following the collection of the morning’s offering we sing the Doxology – “Praise God From Whom”. Doxology in Greek literally means “glory-words.”
Another much loved “glory” song is, “Worthy is the Lamb” from Handel’s Messiah. The song repeatedly declares, “Blessings, and honor, and power, and glory be unto to him.” These majestic words of praise come directly from Revelation 5:12-13,
“Worthy is the Lamb that was slaughtered to receive
power and wealth and wisdom and might and honor and glory and blessing!”
Friends, join God’s choir in heaven and on earth and give all praise to God the Father and the Lamb Jesus Christ…Forever and ever! Amen.
Messiah – Original Score
(British Library, London)
And they feared a great fear.
Luke 2:9b
The appearance of the angel brings great fear. Today, angels are like Glinda, the good witch in the Wizard of Oz – always gentle and kind. In today’s verse the angel is not like Glinda or the beautiful, porcelain angel available on Amazon that costs a fearful $2,200. (But fear not! Shipping is only $4.49. J)
Angels in the Bible are always frightening. That is why the angel says, “Fear not!” God is breaking into the world with power from another sphere. This should make anyone afraid.
Chapel of the Shepherds Field
Bethlehem
Requested…During the Sundays of Advent please bring to church canned,
non-perishable food items for the children to collect. Thank You!
Mennonite Mission Network: Prayer Vine
Connected to the true vine: Together, sharing all of
Christ with all of creation
Pray for Soul Space, a Mission Network partner in Northern Ireland, which offers accompaniment to peacebuilders in Belfast, as they try to rebuild neighborhoods fractured by partisan conflict.
On December 21
1807 Death of John Newton (b. 1725). He began his life involved in the slave trade. He was miraculously turn toward God during a storm at sea in March 1748. He abandoned the slave trade, studied for the ministry, and was ordained in 1764, at the age of 39. He wrote 282 songs, including “Amazing Grace.”
December 21-22, 1955 A special meeting was called by GC (Grace Hill heritage) and MC leaders over where a new cooperative seminary would be located. The question of location always arose. GCs were leaving Chicago. MCs wanted to continue their site on the Goshen College (Goshen, IN) campus but GCs were fearful of locating in a place of many MCs with few GCs. One concerned GC leader fearful of being swallowed up by the Goshen Seminary likened it “living with the in-laws.” Elkhart, Indiana ten miles down the road from Goshen was eventually agreed upon.
1958 All married couples interested in caroling meeting at the Merril Harms home after Christmas practice (about 8:30). Contact Mrs. Merril Harms about refreshments. (The carolers appreciate the hospitality of being invited into the homes, but this evening they ask not to be invited into the homes in order to conserve time to get to more places.)
1958 The Young People wish to thank Mr. & Mrs. Henry Janzen, Mr. & Mrs. Melvin Klaassen, Mr. & Mrs. Merril Harms for helping sponsor their Christmas service in the homes of the older people last Sunday afternoon.
1983 The temperature in Wichita dropped to zero around midnight. It remained at or below zero for a record of 4.5 days, 110 hours to be exact. The at or below zero streak ended at noon on the 25th. In 1989, an Arctic Outbreak of historic proportions further tightened its grip on the Northern Plains, as 40 cities set record lows for the date. One such location was Havre, Montana, where the low was a phenomenal 44 below zero. Dickinson, ND had a low of 33 below, with wind chills around an incredible 85 BELOW. After recording a low of 25 below, Sioux Falls, SD only climbed to 16 below that afternoon. This resulted in a calendar day average of 20.5 below, a record lowest calendar day average for December.
1997
- Brian Balzer graduated December 13 with a major in electrical engineering from Kansas State University. He will continue his studies at KSU for a Masters in Agricultural Economics.
- Tim Harms graduated this week from Wichita State University with a Masters in Business Administration.
On December 22
1582 This date became January 1, 1583 in Belgium when that nation officially adopted the new Gregorian calendar. The old Julian Calendar had been designed by Julius Caesar in 46BC, and had been the standard calendar for 16 centuries, but had lost 16 days. The new Gregorian calendar spaces leap years to make its average year 365.2425 days long, approximating the 365.2422-day tropical year that is determined by the Earth’s revolution around the Sun.
Many Protestant countries initially objected to adopting a Catholic innovation; some Protestants feared the new calendar was part of a plot to return them to the Catholic fold. By 1950 the Gregorian calendar had been adopted world-wide.
1921 The first radio station license for a religious broadcaster in the U.S. was granted to the National Presbyterian Church of Washington, D.C. Within 5 years there were more than 60 licensed religious stations.
1956 Remembering…Ken & Marie Wiebe’s wedding anniversary.
1957 This evening all married couples who wish to go caroling are asked to meet at the Melvin Klaassen home at 8 o’clock.
1963 Thank you Judy Janzen for typing the annual church report. Take one home and read it.
1963 A letter from Bethel College President Neufeld expressing sincere appreciation for the church, particularly the men from Grace Hill church, who gave of their time and effort in assisting in the construction of the Fine Arts Center.
1974 E.J. and Christine Miller, instead of sending cards to the church gave the SS and library a General Conference “Show’n Tell” Phone-Viewer which included a 4-speed record player and a 10-inch screen. Old and New Testament and Life-related programs are synchronized with records.
1989 An Arctic airmass spread southeast across the Central Plains and Eastern U.S. as a staggering 137 cities set record lows for the date, 35 of which were record lows for December. One such location accomplishing both feats was Wichita, which chilled out with a low of 16 below zero. Morning lows of 23 degrees below zero in Kansas City and 27 below in Goodland, Kansas were all-time record lows for both locations.
1991 MCC calls for financial assistance for Kinshasa, Zaire which is experiencing severe food shortage.
1991 Donations are welcome for an ad in the Newton Kansan sponsored by the Harvey County Chapter of Kansans for Life.
2022 A blast of arctic air raced south across the area during the overnight hours on Dec 22nd bringing very cold air and dangerous wind chills to the region. A band of moderate to heavy snow also developed during the early morning hours across south central and southeast Kansas bringing a quick 1-3 inches of snow to much of the area.