Hope for the Holidays

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[24:02] an amazing childhood. This house was the place to be Savannah on Christmas Eve. My mom, her name was Evelyn and she passed away a few years ago, her and my dad Phil hosted Christmas Eve every year and everybody, all the family members, friends, church members, this was the place to be with myself and my two older brothers Rick and Chris. So we are very blessed to just have so many wonderful memories of Christmas Eve spent with family and friends and loved ones and that to me, other than of course celebrating the birth of Jesus which is the most important part of Christmas, the very second is to be spending it with family and friends. This time of this time this year it's a little bit different but because you're not all physically here does not mean that you are not family.

[25:06] All the listeners, everyone at Pendleton Center United Methodist Church, you are family. I invite you into our home tonight to celebrate Christmas with us this season. Right Savannah? Yep. And you get to hang out with Hollywood. Yep. So that is a little bit about the past Hollywood or Hollywood past Christmas celebrations that we spent here. One of the latest traditions as time does pass we always come up with new traditions. One of our favorite things to do is to watch that silly movie Christmas Vacation with Chevy Chase. And one of our favorite songs Savannah is what?

[25:53] Kalikiyikimaka. Mikimakimaka? No, no, no. Kalikiyikimaka. No, no, no focus. Kalikiyikimaka!

[26:05] Well we are gonna sing that song and do our best and now that Savannah taught you the right way to say Merry Christmas in Hawaii. You can all join me in singing Mickey Mouse Maliki No! Kalikiyikimaka! No! Kalikiyikimaka! Oh, okay. Oh my gosh. Well, however it's said, in any language we wish you a very Merry Christmas. Please join us. Savannah, what time is it?

[26:34] It's time to give you a Merry Christmas! It's time to give you a Merry Christmas! Brother Kilikiyikimaka is the thing to say on a bright, a wide Christmas day. That's the added greetings that we say to you from the land where our country is swayed.

[26:58] Here we know that Christmas will be green and bright. The sun will shine by day and all the stars by night. Kalikiyikimaka is a wise way to say Merry Christmas to you.

[27:15] Now, one more time Savannah, how do we say it? Kalikiyikimaka is a thing to say Kalikiyikimaka is a thing to say Kalikiyikimaka is the thing to say on a bright, a wide Christmas day. That's the added greetings that we say to you from the land where our country is swayed.

[27:43] Here we know that Christmas will be green and bright. The sun will shine by day and all the stars by night. Kalikiyikimaka is a wise way to say Merry Christmas to you.

[28:07] Yee-haw! Yee-haw! Is that how they say Merry Christmas in Tennessee? Yee-haw! Think so? Focus. Oh, I'm sorry.

[28:18] I think I got my, it's eight minutes in and I got my first focus. So hopefully you had fun with us, sang along because that's what we enjoy doing. We enjoy praising, worshiping, singing Christmas carols. We like to have fun too, don't we Savannah?

[28:37] Oh yeah! For those of you who may not know, Savannah and I play every Friday night at seven o'clock. So please tune in to us as well as all the other wonderful musicians that are on tonight. They all play throughout the week and they are amazing.

[28:54] So, and I can't wait to hear all of their Christmas memories, especially Clark the shark. I wonder if he has any Christmas memories of swimming around. Focus. Okay, sorry.

[29:06] So Savannah, what would you like to say about our traditions now? So now, as I said, things change over the years, especially when you're as old as I am.

[29:19] But we now have our own Christmas traditions. Savannah's here myself, Savannah's mom, Becky, my oldest son, Michael, and my son, Matthew, and Kaylee, and of course, the famous Sammy, who is right, he's right here.

[29:37] He does not like wearing his Christmas costume. So he's not dressed tonight. But what, I'll focus, but what do you love about Christmas, Savannah?

[29:48] I have two things I like about Christmas. One, say a prayer every Christmas Eve night and sing amazing grace to my grandma and Jesus.

[30:01] That is what it's all about is praising Jesus, who is our living hope, the reason for the season. Right, Savannah? Yep.

[30:12] That is what it's all about. And we are so grateful that we are able to do that with all of you tonight. And I second that. So we have wonderful Christmas Eve's here, even though they're not as busy as they used to be.

[30:27] And it seems like Christmas morning, Santa still comes, even though Savannah, she's been on the bad list a few years. He still seems to stop by. Oh, sorry. I'm sorry, honey. So this next and last song is one that I wrote a few years ago. It is just an honor to be able to write Christmas songs. It's just such an amazing holiday and so important to all of us. And it's something that I always wanted to do. And it is called Christmas Time is Here.

[31:00] Yep. Yep.

[31:32] Cause it's Christmas and it's time to sing The praises of our coming newborn King So I sing hallelujah, give God the glory You just can't wait until the morning of birth of Jesus Christ is joining here And Christmas time is here Can you feel it this time of year As hope grows strong and worries disappear Cause it's Christmas and it's time to share Our love with one another everywhere

[32:38] So I sing hallelujah, give God the glory You just can't wait until the morning of birth of Jesus Christ is drawing near And Christmas time is here And it's the twinkle in the eye of every child That replaces every tear And it's the hope within the heart of every man That makes everything so clear And Christmas time is here And Christmas time is here So I sing hallelujah, give God the glory

[33:41] You just can't wait until the morning of birth of Jesus Christ is drawing near And Christmas time is here Christmas time is here And Christmas time is here Christ is here Christ is here Shake em, vanna And from our family to all of yours God bless and Merry Christmas Merry Christmas Enjoy everybody. Goodbye.

[34:20] Bye. Twas the night before Christmas and all through my house.

[34:31] For once they're not screaming, not even the mouse. Lincoln, what does Santa Claus bring? Come on, let's go open the presents. What's in here? What's in here? It's my Clarkie.

[34:45] Oh, Clarkie. Look at him. What's in this one? What's in this one? What's in this? Santa Claus. Oh, it's Sabrina. Wow, Santa Claus for everything.

[34:59] So kids, one of my favorite memories growing up as a kid around Christmas time. It's raining now, but what was it doing a little bit ago? Snow. Snowing. Well, when I was a kid, this gray house behind me was my grandparents.

[35:14] They were great-grandparents, and this white house right here is my other grandparents. So Thanksgiving and Christmas, I would literally go next door to each other's house.

[35:25] Isn't that cool? I'd open presents and have food, and I'd go next door. Awesome, isn't it? Lincoln, it's snowing in our living room.

[35:39] Born unto this day, a Savior.

[35:57] You're gifted from heaven to a stranger. You're the hope of the world of life for all mankind.

[36:17] All on the earth rejoice, it's Christmas time.

[36:31] So lift up your voice and sing his praise. It's Christmas time.

[36:46] It's Christmas time Make a joyful voice It's Christmas time Let His praise resound It's Christmas time Do-do-do-do, do-do-do-do The rules of all the earth and peace divine Do-do-do-do, do-do-do-do Let me get that kids And all of the earth rejoice It's Christmas time I know it du-do-do, do-do-do-do So lift up your praise and sing It's Christmas time Born as a king to rejoice It's Christmas time

[37:47] Make a joyful noise It's Christmas time Let his grace arrive It's Christmas time Let me hear Merry Christmas everybody Let's go Yeah Wow Yay That's money Oh Hello It is I

[38:48] An elf I am not When did you all get here? Well I'm here to spread some Christmas cheer here on Sunday Funday Christmas style Holy cow Who let these guys in the house?

[39:05] Well I'm glad that you're here because I hope you enjoyed the video with my kids because Santa I may be naughty but I'm adorable Aren't they adorable?

[39:16] They are adorable You know And as I put the decorations on my tree so carefully and diligently I'm reminded of you know certain ornaments that are special to me like this one says faith Family and blessed Aren't we all?

[39:34] You know no matter what 2020 gives us We are blessed The good, the bad, the indifferent We have to thank Jesus for everything that we have Because like this ornament says hope We have to have hope in everything and have our trust in Jesus And you know if I can compare a message today I want to call it like seasons of the soul We are kind of like a tree like the Christmas tree behind me And when trees grow they don't always grow in and out of season And you can tell if you've ever seen a cut tree that's cut down by the rings And you can tell that the wider the rings are the more robust the growth was that year of the tree They had a good year Maybe the smaller the lines are the closer it's together That tree had a tough year Kind of in a way just barely survived just like us So to go through life and think that we're going to have robust growth is kind of silly right Because we're not going to be growing all the time

[40:35] But one thing that I can tell you is that Either you're going to have a good year or a survival year That whatever happens in that year That makes the story of every tree, every person And I want you to know as I look into this camera That the reason why it's important for you to understand That there will be a time where you might feel like you'll grow And then there might be a time where you feel like it's stagnant There might even be a time where you feel like death But here's the beautiful thing If you don't give up and you stay rooted And you dig deeper into the ground And look for that water that is pure That is Jesus That is life That is fulfilling That there is always resurrection that comes after dormancy There's always new beginnings, right?

[41:30] So if you're saying that maybe sometimes you feel like your faith is failing Or things are going wrong I want you to stay rooted and wait for that resurrection Because, you know, after a long winter season What comes after, right?

[41:42] Spring and the leaves and everything becomes out of dormancy And God began a good work in you And he is going to bring that to full completion Because there's kind of a parallel between trees and the human heart Because we've all experienced flourishing Death, dormancy, and resurrection And I want you to know that if there was a cross cut If your tree was cut down and they could look at your lines That are done on your human heart That you will find that time influence places And people play a gigantic part in the growth of your human heart In the growth of your human tree So please, this holiday season I ask that you lift each other up Hold each other close And it's great that we do that here So my memory that I want to share with you Is, you know, I came into Christ a little later in life In my early 20s And, you know, I used my music to kind of help the church out

[42:43] And one of my fondest memories growing up Is being able to do candlelight service And, you know, singing Silent Night And looking out And the whole church is dark Except for all of the candles And the people's faces that you can see lit up And at the end of that song Every year I sing it Even though it's the same song You just get emotional And you get goose pimples singing it And I'm looking forward to it this year too And at the end of the service Everybody would be wishing everybody a Merry Christmas And hugging and kissing And you go out of the church And it was dark out But you'd see the snow coming down I think there was only a couple years Where it really didn't snow that much But, man, it was just one of my fondest memories So...

[43:31] The little Lord Jesus laid down his sweet head The little Lord Jesus laid down where he lay The little Lord Jesus I seek for me The cattle are low in the warm way he wakes The little Lord Jesus no crying he makes I love the Lord Jesus no doubt will remain And stay by my bedside for the morning tonight

[44:37] The first Noel the angels did sing Once a certain poor shepherd in fields where they lay In fields where they we keep Englishy All the cold winds is night and wildest so deep Noel, Noel, Noel, Noel, Noel Born is the King of Israel Noel, Noel, Noel, Noel Born is the King of Israel

[45:38] Merry Christmas! Happy Holidays everybody from Sunday Funday! We love you! Have a Merry Christmas! Three, two, one Hello everybody! My name is Lori Gondek And I am here with my family to wish you a very, very Merry Christmas We're going to sing a couple of songs for you And we're just going to be together as you guys listen And as we are here just to treat you like you're in our living room for Christmas And you know we're here to talk about hope Hope for the holidays Hope for Christmas That Jesus brings hope And we're spreading hope And we're here hopefully to give you some hope this evening They had asked me to talk about Christmas traditions And if I told you every Christmas tradition That we in the Gondek family have I would be naming 722 Because we have so many traditions But I'm going to talk to you about a Christmas memory that I have

[46:40] And I have to tell you that as a child As someone that grew up without a lot of family around We were always traveling And for Christmas we really never really had a lot We never celebrated a big Christmas It was just me, my mom, and my stepfather We had a couple of presents And usually the presents that I did get Were presents that were re-gifted Because my mother didn't have a lot of money And so I never really had a big Christmas And it never really I never really pictured what a big Christmas would be With a big huge family Until I met Jim Gondek When I met Jim Gondek My Christmas has changed forever Because of one person His mother, Josephine She, the first Christmas that I went to her house I had stacks of presents Up to my shoulders practically And so many gifts from his family And I can tell you My mother-in-law

[47:41] Every Christmas gift that I had Had a card with it So she bought a card For every present And I hit the Christmas jackpot When I met Jim Because his mother was just such a special lady And she showed me Not about getting gifts But about giving Because whenever we opened our gifts You could look at her face And you could see how happy she was To see us open the gifts And it was just such a joy for her To watch her family celebrate Christmas And so that's a wonderful memory that I have And I just wanted to share it with you this evening If you are in a Polish family You'll understand exactly what I'm talking about And if you're not If you're single And you're looking for a mate Try to find someone Polish Because their families Know how to celebrate the holidays So the first song I'm going to sing this evening is Mary's Boy Child Jesus Christ And it is just a wonderful song

[48:43] To remind you of the hope That Jesus brought to this world Long time ago in Bethlehem So the Holy Bible say Mary's Boy Child Jesus Christ Was born on Christmas Day Hark now hear the angels sing A new king's born today And we will live forevermore Because of Christmas Day While shepherds watched their flocks by night While shepherds watched their flocks by night They saw a bright new shining star And then they heard a choir sing The music came from afar Hark now hear the angels sing A new king born today And we shall live forevermore Because of Christmas Day And we shall live forevermore Because of Christmas Day Then by and by in Bethlehem

[49:47] In a stable all forlorn In a manger cold and dark In a manger cold and dark Mary's little boy child was born In a manger cold and dark Mary's little boy child was born Heart now hear the angels sing A new king born today And we shall live forevermore Because of Christmas Day And we shall live forevermore Because of Christmas Day And we shall live forevermore Because of Christmas Day Amen! Amen!

[50:24] I'm going to welcome someone very, very special this evening To our Christmas of Hope And I'm going to invite my daughter Amy To come and join me for a couple of songs She has very nicely offered to come and sing with me So everybody, I want to introduce you to my daughter Hi everybody!

[50:46] Merry Christmas! Amy Ruth Moran Hi! She's so sweet! Yeah She's so sweet So she's going to join me for a couple of songs She has a beautiful voice So I know you're going to be very, very blessed My daughter, Amy Ruth Moran Hi!

[51:05] My daughter, Amy Ruth Moran Hi! Oh come all ye faithful, joyful and triumphant Oh come ye, oh come ye to Bethlehem Come and behold him, born the King of angels O come and behold him, born the King of angels O come let us adore him, O come and behold him O come let us adore him, O come and behold him, O come and behold behold him, born the King of angels O come let us adore him, O come see Him Come let us adore Him, O come let us adore Him, O come let us adore Him, Christ the Lord.

[52:03] Sing, choirs of angels, sing in exaltation, sing all ye citizens of heaven above.

[52:21] Glory to God, glory in the highest, O come let us adore Him, O come let us adore Him, Christ the Lord.

[52:49] Amen. I have a scripture for you. It is found in the Gospel of Luke, chapter 2, and it starts in verse number 9.

[53:04] An angel of the Lord appeared to them, and the glory of the Lord shone about them, and they were terrified. But the angel said to them, do not be afraid.

[53:16] I bring you good news that will cause you great joy for all the people. Today in the town of David, a Savior was born to you. He is the Messiah, the Lord.

[53:27] This will be a sign. You will find a baby wrapped in cloths, lying in a manger. And as we ponder, and I'm using the word ponder on this, Amy and I have one more song to sing for you this evening.

[53:42] And it's called, Who Would Imagine a King? Who would imagine a king that was born in Bethlehem to be our Messiah?

[53:54] Amen. Who would imagine a king? Mommies and daddies always believe that their little angels are special indeed.

[54:18] And you could grow up to be anything. Who could imagine a king?

[54:32] A shepherd or teacher is what you could be. Or maybe a fisherman out on the sea.

[54:48] Or maybe a carpenter building things. But who would imagine a king?

[55:01] It was so clear when the wise man arrives. That the angels were singing your name.

[55:17] That the world would be different. Cause you were alive. That's why heaven stood still to proclaim.

[55:31] One day an angel said quietly. That soon I would bring something special to me.

[55:46] And of all of the wonderful gifts he could bring. Who would imagine?

[55:57] Who could imagine? Who would imagine a king?

[56:08] Jim, what time is it? Time to say, Merry Christmas! Yes!

[56:19] Done. Yay! I absolutely love this next song by Lauren Daigle. It is called Light of the World. And there are so many scriptures you can look up about Jesus being the light of the world.

[56:35] And I just want to share three very quick ones with you tonight. The first one is from Isaiah chapter 9 verse 2. Where it says, The people walking in darkness have seen a great light.

[56:48] On those living in the land of the shadow of death, a light has dawned. And then from the book of John chapter 1 verse 14.

[57:00] It says, The word became flesh and made his dwelling among us. We have seen his glory, the glory of the one and only who came from the Father, full of grace and truth.

[57:12] And the third one I wanted to share with you tonight comes from James. The book of James chapter 1 verse 17. Let me find it.

[57:23] And it says, Every good and perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of the heavenly lights, who does not change like shifting shadows.

[57:37] Amen. So those are just a few scriptures about Jesus being the light of the world. And this song by Lauren Daigle speaks about Jesus being the light of the world.

[57:50] And Jesus left his throne in heaven. He became human. He became a baby born in a simple and dirty manger in a tiny and obscure town of Bethlehem.

[58:02] God chose to announce his coming to save us, not to kings and the wealthy, but to poor shepherds in the country. And who were tending to their flocks at night in the countryside.

[58:16] He is the light of the world. He is Emmanuel, God with us. He's fully God and fully man. He is the sinless, spotless lamb of God. Amen.

[58:27] So this is called Light of the World by Lauren Daigle. The world waits for a miracle.

[58:45] A heart longs for a little bit of hope. Oh come, oh come, Emmanuel. A child prays for peace on earth and she's calling out from a sea of hurt.

[59:04] Oh come, oh come, Emmanuel. And can you hear the angels singing?

[59:20] Glory to the light of the world. Glory to the light of the world.

[59:33] Glory to the light of the world is here. The trap breaks with the tears of mother.

[59:44] A baby's cry is the sound of love. Come down, come down, Emmanuel.

[59:55] He is the song for the suffering. He is Messiah, the Prince of Peace has come. He has come, Emmanuel.

[60:11] O glory to the light of the world. Glory to the light of the world.

[60:28] Glory to the light of the earth For all the weight For all the hunger For all the pain For all the hunger Behold your King Behold my Savior Emmanuel Emmanuel Glory to the light of the earth Glory to the light of the earth

[61:32] Glory to the light of the earth Behold your King Behold my Savior Emmanuel Emmanuel The world waits for a miracle The heart longs for a little bit of hope O come Emmanuel Emmanuel Emmanuel The world waits for a miracle

[62:34] The world waits for a miracle The world waits for a miracle In the hav The Lord waits for a miracle Why Was your heavenly The world waits for a miracle Mary steamed your baby boy would save our sons and daughters? Did you know that your baby boy has come to make you new?

[63:11] This child that you delivered will soon deliver you. Mary, did you know that your baby boy will give sight to a blind man? Mary, did you know that your baby boy will calm a storm with his hand?

[63:38] Did you know that your baby boy has walked where angels trod? When you've kissed your little baby, you've kissed the face of God?

[64:03] Who, Mary, did you know? Who, the blind will see, the deaf will hear, the deaf will live again. The lame will leap, the dumb will speak the praises of the Lamb.

[64:32] Oh, Mary, did you know that your baby boy is Lord of all creation? Mary, did you know that your baby boy will one day rule the nations?

[64:50] Did you know that your baby boy is heaven's perfect Lamb? And the sleeping child you're holding is the great I Am.

[65:16] Sherry Ho? You know that you are?

[65:40] song for you tonight. It is one of my very, very favorite Christmas songs. I know I say that all the time, but this one truly, truly is, and it's near and dear to my heart. This song is called Breath of Heaven, and it was written by Chris Eaton and Amy Grant, and Amy recorded it on her second Christmas album, and it's a beautiful song from Mary's point of view. Being a young teenager who said yes to God to carry God's son and all that that meant, I'm sure she had moments of being unsure and afraid, because back in biblical times, if a young woman was pregnant and unmarried, it was punishable by stoning to death. So I can't even imagine the full gamut of feelings that she must have been feeling from the point that she said yes to God, I am your willing servant to carry your son, Lord, to all the doubts and fears that she must have had in those nine months until she bore the son of God. So this is an amazing song, and it really is a prayer from Mary's heart as she's talking to her heavenly father, and it's called Breath of Heaven.

[67:02] I have traveled many moonless nights, cold and weary, with a babe inside, and I wonder what I've done.

[67:32] Holy Father, you have come and chosen me now to carry your son.

[67:48] I am waiting in a silent prayer. I am frightened by the load I bear in a world as cold as the strong. I am strong. I must have all clueless, path unknown, be with me now. Be with me now. Be with me now.

[68:40] Breath of Heaven, Breath of Heaven, Breath of Heaven, Light in my darkness, Breath of Heaven.

[69:03] Breath of Heaven, Breath of Heaven, nothing more poz Algeriai Breath of Heaven, flesh of Heaven, known as the earth has been contained in righteous As you watch my face If a wiser one Should have had my place But I offer all I am For the mercy of your plan Help me be strong Help me be Help me

[70:08] Breath of heaven Hold me together Be forever Bear me Breath of heaven Breath of heaven Lighten my darkness O'er over me your holiness For you are holy Breath of heaven Breath of heaven Wind stream Breath of heaven Breath of heaven Love me together Pray forever Hear me Breath of heaven Wake up heaven ignite Vision者 Contrae me Breath of heaven Delete me Surve me Breath of heaven offices Wilder me Print me your holiness for you are holy

[71:17] Breath of heaven Breath of heaven Hi, Lori Jagow asked us to share some Christmas memories with everybody tonight and boy when I got thinking about all our Christmas memories in our family it was hard to choose just one or two. There are five of us in our family as you know my dad was a pastor he's 86 years young now but it was wonderful growing up in a pastor's family and Christmas was just amazing. I remember going to church for either 11 o'clock or midnight candlelight service for

[72:24] Christmas Eve and it was just an amazing amazing night. I think my favorite part besides singing all the Christmas carols was singing Silent Night together with the church full of lit candles. It was just an amazing beautiful holy moment and I will always and forever remember that and love that Christmas memory and then when we got home it was way past midnight and all five of us kids were all rambunctious and excited for Santa to come and mom and dad got us all to bed and I remember probably not sleeping past 4 or 5 a.m. before all five of us would jump on mom and dad's bed and wake them up and say it's Christmas day Santa's been here and we all flew down the stairs and uh and the the craziness of Christmas morning commenced with all five of us opening presents with our parents so those are very um special memories to me um I wouldn't change them for anything and then a memory with my family now with my boys who are now 31 and 33 I can't believe I've got kids that old but I do um one memory I have of them growing up um every Christmas morning they would run down the stairs like I did when

[73:48] I was a child and look and see what Santa left them but before they touched a present or their stocking we sat down as a family and we read the Christmas story from the scripture because I wanted to make sure they knew that Christmas wasn't about Santa it was about Jesus being our gift our greatest gift to us so we did that their whole life growing up um read the Christmas story to them before we opened one gift um and then the other tradition that we started with my boys um was every Christmas day for Christmas dinner we would make Jesus a birthday cake and we'd put candles in it and we'd decorate it and we would sing happy birthday to Jesus and we still do that um when we are together for Christmas day even as all adults now we still do that so those are just a couple Christmas memories that I wanted to share with everybody tonight and I cannot end this um segment this without telling you that this is the last Christmas countdown from me you're doing every Saturday on Nanday Saturday for I don't know past hundred and something days well just a second I have a couple friends here that are going to help me do the final countdown for Christmas and Rudolph and Clarice would like to say that there are only six more days till Christmas yay six more days so with that I want to wish all of you a very Merry Christmas to you and your families I just wish you all the joy all the blessings of Christmas with your families and just blessings in this new year let's go into this new year with hope and our eyes fixed on Jesus I love you all Merry Christmas

[75:54] Merry Christmas of my God Are waar Persia is Oonic have there world passed a Dempation began with a baby in Bethlehem.

[76:31] All of the angels lifted up their voices and filled the night. Hallelujah, God is with us now.

[76:46] Everyone come and join the heavenly chorus. Our Savior King is here before us.

[76:58] Lord, to hear the sound, this song creation sang when hope came down.

[77:10] So this was truly God, wrapped up in a tattered blanket.

[77:25] God was finally here, sleeping while the world awakened. And redemption began with a baby in Bethlehem.

[77:44] All of the angels lifted up their voices and filled the night. And with hallelujah, God is with us now.

[77:59] Everyone come and join the heavenly chorus. And Savior King is here before us.

[78:11] Those who hear the sound, We saw creation sang when hope came down.

[78:25] Let us sing redemption songs. Let us worship Christ, the Holy One.

[78:36] We were lost, Lord, we were found when hope came down. When hope came down.

[78:48] All of the angels lifted up their voices and filled the night.

[78:59] With hallelujah, God is with us now. Everyone come and join the heavenly chorus.

[79:11] Our Savior King is here before us. Our Savior King is here before us. Lord, to hear the sound, The song creation sang when hope came down.

[79:29] When hope came down. Oh, when hope came down.

[79:41] Oh, when hope came down. I'm gonna make a wish this Christmas I'm gonna say a little prayer I'm gonna stop here for a moment Before the moment disappears Worlds in a hurry this December City streets and shopping malls Wish we could slow down and remember The meaning of it all Wherever you are, no matter how far Go back to the heart, the heart of Christmas

[80:47] Live while you can, cherish the moment And the ones that you love Make sure you're an angel This is the heart of Christmas Let's make it feel the way it used to Let's find the wonder of a child You can see the magic of the brown deer Falling open up your eyes You can find it in the warm embrace of your family Filling up with all the lost wind You can even find it in the eyes of a stranger

[81:48] When you reach out to help me Wherever you are, no matter how far Come back to the heart, the heart of Christmas Just live while you can Just live while you can Just live while you can Cherish the moment And the ones that you love Make sure you're an angel Don't miss it The heart of Christmas In the shadow of the steeple In the star that lights away You will find it in the manger The heart of the snow As the name Gonna make a wish this Christmas Gonna sing a little prayer

[82:50] Wherever you are No matter how far Come back to the heart The heart of Christmas Live while you can Cherish the moment The ones that you love Make sure there's no again Wherever you are No matter what God You will find it in the heart The heart of Christmas Give while you can Cherish the moment And the ones that you love Make sure there's no again Don't miss it The heart of Christmas Merry Christmas

[83:51] Romans 5 1-5 Therefore, since we have been justified Through faith, we have peace with God Through our Lord Jesus Christ Through whom we have gained access by faith Into this grace in which we now stand And we boast in the hope Of the glory of God Not only so But we also glory in our sufferings Because we know that suffering Produces perseverance Perseverance, character And character, hope And hope does not put us to shame Because God's love Has been poured out into our hearts Through the Holy Spirit Who has been given to us Amen Good news of great joy

[84:58] Amen Every one and every man This will be a sign of you A baby born in Bethlehem Oh, come and we worship Do not be afraid A company of angels No, no, my soul My soul, my soul magnifies the Lord He has done great things for me

[86:00] Great things for me Until the child is born How to us the Son is given That every heart and hand is strong And every nation of the heaven Oh come before us here Do not be afraid My soul, my soul magnifies the Lord He has done great things for me Great things for me My soul, my soul magnifies the Lord He has done great things for me

[87:07] Great things for me He has done great things for me And we know it Through the sky we see Where there's righteousness And He shall be And He shall be And He shall be Coming this day on Wonderful counselor Everlasting Father Wonderful counselor Wonderful counselor And He shall be Everlasting Father Father Oh yeah Oh yeah Oh yeah Oh yeah Oh yeah My soul, my soul magnifies the Lord

[88:21] Lord My soul, my soul magnifies the Lord My soul, my soul magnifies the Lord He has done great things for us He has done great things for us He has done great things for us He has done great things for us He has done great things for us He has done great things for us He has done great things for us He has done great things for us My soul, my soul, magnifies the Lord.

[89:16] My soul, my soul, magnifies the Lord. Here we go.

[89:32] My soul, my soul, magnifies the Lord. My soul, magnifies the Lord.

[89:44] He has done great things for me, great things for me. My soul, my soul, magnifies the Lord.

[89:55] My soul, magnifies the Lord. He has done great things for me, great things for me.

[90:13] He has done great things. He has done great things. He has done great things. He has done great things.

[90:25] He has done great things. I'm Becky Heidemann.

[90:37] I'm Becky Heideman.

[90:49] I have had the privilege of directing the Pendleton Center United Methodist Church Advent Play for many years. Yes, COVID has changed how we are celebrating Advent and Christmas.

[91:05] One play that stands out like a beacon of light in my mind is the one written by Laurie McGinn, The Grinch Who Tried to Steal Christmas.

[91:19] It was just plain awesome. Children dressed as munchkins, a dog named Max. There was a great feast, and the Grinch carved the great roast beef, thanks to Rich Joseph.

[91:33] Let's talk for you all. It's a quote from the story written by Dr. Seuss. The Grinch and his Grinch feet, ice cold in the snow, stood puzzling and puzzling.

[91:51] How could this be so? It came without ribbons. It came without bows. It came without tags. It came without packages or bags.

[92:01] It came without abusers. It came without abusers. It came without abusers. And he puzzled and puzzled till his puzzler was sore. Then the Grinch thought of something he hadn't thought of before.

[92:13] What if Christmas doesn't come from a store? What if Christmas means something a bit more?

[92:25] What if the mother started? I want to come to a visit. Hi, it's Kelly Putney, and I'm here to introduce a song from a cantata of years past.

[92:35] I would like to share with you a short story to show you about the cantata and the orchestra. this a little while ago but I thought it was something that you might enjoy hearing. So we've done the cantata at Pendleton Center for 16 years under my direction and then for probably dozens of years before that under Pastor Bob Frank and many others. But after I did the first few years of cantata we sang to an accompaniment CD. We had a large choir of about 60 people and the accompanist, the pianist that was working with us and worked with us for a while, Sue Mayer, said, why don't we get an orchestra together and not use this recorded CD but have live musicians from the area play in an orchestra? And as soon as she said it, kind of my heart started beating faster and I said, okay.

[93:32] But as I was thinking about it I thought, oh my gosh, how am I gonna direct a choir and an orchestra? I've never really directed instrumental groups before. I knew how to direct but I was very, very nervous about the instrumental piece of it even though I had played saxophone and been in ensembles. But I said, okay, we'll give it our best shot and I'm thinking, where am I gonna get these instrumentalists from? Well as it turned out, I put out a call to the church, put it in the bulletin, advertised it, and lo and behold, we had about a 30-person orchestra come together, which was amazing.

[94:10] And God did amazing things and he gave me strength and ability that I really didn't even have. So I directed the choir with this hand and the orchestra with this hand and we practiced and we learned together and we got better and better over the years and we've just continued to have a live orchestra.

[94:29] So I'm so glad that Sue Mayer nudged me and that God gave us all the strength in the world. I remember saying to Pastor Bill Edmister, you know, why wouldn't we think that God could help us with a tiny little orchestra in Pendleton, New York? He created the universe. God can do anything.

[94:50] So why did I doubt him? And he brings us together all the time. Fast forward to the fall of 2018 and Sue Mayer, our pianist, who again, I adore, had had a really big loss in her life of a dear loved one. And I just didn't know that it was fair to ask her to invest so much time and energy and if she was going to really feel up to it. And so she and I talked and she said, you know, it really would be great if I could take a year off from the piano. I'm hoping you can still do the live orchestra.

[95:25] And I, of course, said, that's fine. No problem. But again, in my heart, beating fast, I thought, how am I going to replace her? I have no idea what's going to happen. And that very next Sunday, I was at church and Louie and Mary Bobsene told me that their daughter, Kate Bobsene, who was now a senior in college, she was coming back to the area from October to December because she was training to be a music teacher and she needed to do her student teaching and she was going to do it in our area, live at home with her mom and dad. And October to December just happens to be the time that I needed somebody to play the piano for the cantata. And as a matter of fact, Kate was a pianist for us a few years back. And so I just knew that it was God's will that he had sent Kate to be with us and to give Sue a break and to show us that no matter what God does provide, he truly does, whatever the need is, as we are walking in his will, he will provide a solution with his strength. So the song that I want to show tonight from the cantata is from the fall of 2018, that Christmas cantata, the title of it is

[96:44] Hope Has Hands. And that was the reason that I chose it because our theme tonight with everyone singing is hope, hope to get through this pandemic and spread hope faster than the virus. The first song of that is called The World Has Joy, which we just heard about in church today, that joy is our theme for the third week of Advent. And Dee Mann told me that she looked in her Bible a couple of days ago and it wrote in there something she had said that she was going to sing in the cantata in 2018, Hope Has Hands. So God has really amazing ways of drawing all these things together, of giving us his messages for us, maybe not through a voice we hear from the clouds, but through other people, through gifts and talents that they have to share, and just through the hope that he provides in the midst of everything. So I hope that you enjoy this song, The World Has Joy, from the cantata Hope Has Hands.

[97:52] The World Has Hands. Freedom Has Peace.

[98:22] All heating and outי� All the world has joy Through a baby boy Hope has been born In Christ the Lord The Savior, the King All the people can sing All the world has joy Through a baby boy All the world has joy Through a baby boy

[99:23] Hope has been born In Christ the Lord The Savior holds on King All the people can sing All the world has joy Through a baby boy When heaven and nature sing When heaven and nature sing When the hell and hell We can't do this And heaven and nature sing And heaven and nature sing When heaven and nature sing All the world has joy Through a baby boy Hope has been born In Christ the Lord The Savior holds on King All the people can sing

[100:23] All the world has joy Through a baby boy All the world has joy Through a baby boy All the world has joy Through a baby boy All the world has joy P道具 and heaven and every tom Joy to the earth The Lord has joy Now the Lord has joy moving Pf donc 2 in Christ the Lordiblyひ из- And how the perfect nature's need He who's opened into that place And gave some great truth

[101:28] The Lord is always righteous and And wonders of His love And the heart is lost, the heart is lost And the heart is lost, the heart is lost He who's opened into that place And the Lord is always righteous And the Lord is always righteous And the Lord is always righteous And the Lord is always righteous

[102:39] And that my brothers had And that all my relatives had In this house on Chestnut Ridge So I hope that you enjoy the song And I hope that you all Have a song within your hearts For your family this Christmas season And I'll make you...

[102:55] And I'll make you... And I'll make you... And I'll make you... Of food and prayer For your people, please join us while visiting the Ksell's니ps Discord channel!

[103:26] Thing am Jenny in this channel The place of Playing hockey on the ring my daddy made In the front yard you know I'd skate for days Did not matter if my hands and feet were froze With the wind upon my face I was shill paroled With my cousins and my friends Those memories will never end In the house on the ridge

[104:27] I learned of life and love and what family really is Growing up as kids in the house on the ridge Swimming in the pool with that Eva and Uncle Bob He kept it so pristine it was like a work of art Laying in the summer sun in those old black inner tubes Not a care in the world and nothing else to do With my cousins and my friends

[105:28] We were doing cannonballs into the deep end In the house on the ridge I learned of life and love and what family really is Growing up as kids in the house on the ridge I learned of life and what family really is

[106:29] In the house on the ridge In the house on the ridge I learned of life and love and what family really is Growing up as kids in the house on the ridge In the house on the ridge In the house on the ridge In the house on the ridge Oh, in the house on the ridge In the house on the ridge In the house on the ridge In the house on the rich

[107:30] In the house on the rich As you can see, I have an owl-themed Christmas tree, sort of woodsy Christmas.

[107:46] Now, this little guy was added to my collection, and his name is Rockefeller. How did he get his name, you may ask? Well, around Thanksgiving, you may have heard of a tiny little saw-wet owl who was found in the Christmas tree at Rockefeller Center.

[108:03] Now, this little guy was found by a worker, and he is now named Rockefeller. Rockefeller was found dehydrated and hadn't eaten in days.

[108:13] He was taken to a wildlife refuge, and there he was taken care of. And I found myself very interested in his progress, and I followed the news very closely to see what was happening with him.

[108:27] And I found myself becoming very curious as to why I was so interested. I mean, yeah, obviously I love owls. I have an owl Christmas tree. But there was something more.

[108:37] Why was I so interested in this little fellow's recovery? And the more I thought about it, the more I realized that this little guy represents hope.

[108:48] Hope in a broken world. Hope when all seems lost. And his recovery and his fatigue, in a way, represented the fatigue that we all have been having due to what they call COVID fatigue.

[109:03] And after a few days, it was such a joy to see that Rockefeller was actually rehabbed and released into the wilderness. And so this little guy reminds me that if we're looking, God does still send us signs, even in the smallest of creatures.

[109:23] Hello everyone and Merry Christmas. My name is Jade King, and I will be playing a couple songs for you tonight.

[109:35] I hope you're enjoying all of this wonderful music that everybody has been putting together for you. It really means a lot for us to be able to play and worship together, especially during Christmas.

[109:45] So I have a couple songs. I'm going to start out with a version of God Resty, Merry Gentlemen. And this was actually on a really fun album that my family could listen to when we were decorating or on Christmas Day when we make our homemade ravioli.

[110:03] And this version is a little more jazzy, but I absolutely love it. I think you will too. Here we go. Remember Christ our Savior was born upon this day to save us all from Satan's power when we were gone astray.

[110:31] We're tidings of comfort and joy, comfort and joy. We're tidings of comfort and joy.

[110:44] We're God our Heavenly Father, this blessed angel came. We're to certain shepherds, bright tidings of the same.

[110:56] And how that in Bethlehem was born, the Son of God by name. Oh, tidings of comfort and joy, comfort and joy.

[111:09] Oh, tidings of comfort and joy. Oh, star of wonder, star of night, star of light.

[111:23] Star with royal beauty playing. Westward leading, still proceeding.

[111:36] Guide us to the perfect light. Born a king on Bethlehem's plain.

[111:50] Gold I bring to crown Him again. King forever. King forever. Ceasing the effort over us all to reign.

[112:09] Oh, star of wonder, star of night. Star with royal beauty playing.

[112:23] Westward leading, still proceeding. Guide us to the perfect light. Guide us to the perfect light.

[112:42] Yes. Yes. Yes. So that is God Resty Merry Gentlemen. And I want to share with you guys one of my favorite memories from Christmas.

[112:55] I have it captured in a picture. So this is me and my whole family. Blue hair jade. My brother, his fiance, their puppy.

[113:05] My mommy, her mommy, and my dad. And me and my Adrian and us are all wearing our fancy light up Christmas festive necklaces.

[113:16] And this was right before we went to our Christmas Eve service. Which I miss so much. My favorite part of that is when everybody's singing. And everybody's up front. And the music just surfaces all around the room.

[113:30] And when it echoes. And when we light the candles for Silent Night. I'm definitely going to miss that. But my next song is very, very, very on point for this season.

[113:42] And I hope we can all relate to it a little bit. But one of the important things to do is just to wish everybody you know, everyone you care about, that they have a very, very Merry Little Christmas.

[113:54] Have yourself a Merry Little Christmas. Let your heart be light.

[114:08] Next year all our troubles will be out of sight. Have yourself a Merry Little Christmas.

[114:21] Merry Little Christmas.

[114:51] Someday soon we all will be together. If the fates allow. Until then we'll muddle through somehow.

[115:06] So have yourself a Merry Little Christmas now. So have yourself a Merry Little Christmas now.

[115:23] Yes. And hopefully someday soon we all will be together on Christmas Eve and celebrating that Jesus Christ was born our Savior.

[115:35] How wonderful and amazing is that? The most special part about Christmas is that it is all in the spirit of Christmas, in the spirit of cheer, in the Christmas happiness that everybody can bring to each other.

[115:48] And so this is the most beautiful thing. Which is the most beautiful thing. Because it can be spread far and wide from miles and miles away. And so this time, this last song. Because even though we might feel like we're kind of far away from each other.

[116:02] It might feel different and it might feel strange. But the most wonderful thing is that even though we might wonder where Christmas is. We can always find it together.

[116:15] And that's why I'm so thankful and I'm so blessed to have this online ministry. And I'm thankful for everybody who shared their talents with us tonight. So thank you all. You guys did amazing.

[116:25] I know you did. I've been doing my warm little drink. I hope you're all having a nice little fire. And you're all cuddled up with a Christmas tree and some Christmas decorations around you.

[116:37] All right. Here we go. Where are you Christmas? Why can't I find you?

[116:51] Why have you gone away? Where is the laughter you used to bring me?

[117:06] Why can't I hear music played? Why can't I hear music played? Why can't I hear music played? Why can't I hear music played? My world is changing.

[117:17] I'm rearranging. Does that mean Christmas changes too?

[117:30] Why can't I hear music played? Why can't I hear music played? Christmas is here, everywhere. Oh, Christmas is here if you care Oh, if there is love in your heart and in your mind You will feel like Christmas all the time That's right, everyone. Christmas is in our hearts and our minds. The amazing faith that we have in our Lord God who gave us this beautiful, amazing person, Jesus Christ, to watch over us and be there for us.

[118:26] And I hope you all have a very, very Merry Christmas for my family, including my mom, my dad, my brother, little pumpkin spice, and my grandma, to all of your families at home. I hope you have the most Merry Christmas. And thank you all for watching. Thank you. Good night. Merry Christmas.

[118:45] With many of my family members recovering from COVID-19 this year, I'd like to reflect upon the past few Christmases when we would all gather downstairs at my sister's house in the basement, which is a music room, and we would just have a good old-fashioned jam session.

[119:03] My sister Becky on the keys, my brother-in-law Chris on the drums, and my son Jim on the guitar. And all of us cousins and relatives would just gather around and sing and just have a lot of fun. And as for me, what do I play? Well, I play the role of the videographer.

[119:21] After all the packages have been opened, we go downstairs. So come with me, as I recall, a few years ago, a jam session, nothing rehearsed, nothing practiced. Matter of fact, it's just very, very impromptu. It was not meant to be a performance piece.

[119:41] So just consider it that you are going back in time with me to a couple years ago when we just had an impromptu jam session, kind of a rock concert style. And so here it is, What Child Is This in the Style of TSO?

[120:11] What Child Is This in the Style of TSO?

[120:41] What Child Is This in the Style of TSO?

[121:11] What Child Is This in the Style of TSO?

[121:41] Thank you.

[122:11] Thank you.

[122:41] Thank you.

[123:11] Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you.

[123:23] Thank you. Thank you. Take what God has to offer, the hardships and the peace and the special star that's going to appear in the sky to remind us of God's Son, Jesus Christ.

[123:40] I would like to thank everyone who made this Christmas special possible, all the staff and volunteers, so many people behind the scenes that nobody ever sees and notices.

[123:50] And so I just want to give a big thank you to everyone. It's been an incredible year and you have made it that way. I would like to leave you with the lyrics of a song in closing.

[124:05] It's not a Christian hymn, but I think if you pay attention, particularly this year, it is very, very spiritually relevant. It was sung by Judy Garland in the movie Meet Me in St. Louis to cheer her little sister.

[124:22] You all know this, but just listen to the words. Have yourself a merry little Christmas. Let your heart be light.

[124:33] From now on, our troubles will be out of sight. Through the years, we all will be together, if the fates allow.

[124:44] Hang a shining star upon the highest bow. And have yourself a merry little Christmas now. God bless you and good night, everyone.

[124:57] God bless you and good night. I'm going to be at your heart. And have yourself a merry little Christmas. Come do you want to know? Good night. I'll be back.

[125:08] I'll be back. I'll be back. I'm going to be back. I'll be back. I'll be back. I'll be back. I'll be back. I'll be back. I'll be back. I'll be back.

[125:19] He's the Prince of Peace, Mighty God, Holy One Emmanuel, Emmanuel Emmanuel, Emmanuel I will come to love, Lord of life, Lord of all He's the Prince of Peace, Mighty God, Holy One Emmanuel, Emmanuel Emmanuel Emmanuel Emmanuel, Emmanuel Emmanuel Lord of life, Lord of all

[126:23] He is the Prince of Peace, Mighty God, Holy One Emmanuel, Emmanuel Emmanuel Emmanuel Emmanuel Emmanuel Emmanuel Emmanuel Emmanuel, Emmanuel Lord of God, Lord of God, Lord of all He is the Prince of Peace, mighty God, holy God Emmanuel, Emmanuel, Emmanuel

[127:24] Emmanuel, Emmanuel, Emmanuel, Emmanuel