Gifts for the King

November 15, 2011

Dear St. Paul’s Family,

What do you give to a king who has everything?

During our summer travels, we visited the Tower of London and made the compulsory tourist stop to see the Crown Jewels. This impressive collection features royal crowns, mantles, scepters, anointing spoons, and other coronation accoutrements from the past 900 years. Many of the pieces were originally given as gifts to the royal family, including the First Star of Africa, mounted atop the Sovereign’s Scepter. It is the largest flawless cut diamond in the world which, along with the Second Star of Africa on the Imperial State Crown, was cut from the Cullinan Diamond, the largest diamond ever found. They were given to King Edward VII by the government of South Africa in 1907.

Kinda puts that wedding toaster in perspective, huh?

Lest you think that royal gifts are all glitz and glamour, here are some other gifts that Queen Elizabeth has been given during her reign. According to the official website of the British Monarchy, Her Majesty has received more mundane presents, including lacrosse sticks, sunglasses, a pair of sandals, pineapples, eggs, a box of snail shells, a grove of maple trees, a dozen tins of tuna, and seven kilograms of giant shrimp.

Now that’s more like it.

I have royal gifts on my mind, given that this weekend is the convergence of several important observances: it is Christ the King Sunday, the culminating day of the Christian liturgical year, in which we celebrate the present and future rule of Jesus Christ. It is also our Commitment Sunday, when we will be bringing forward our pledge cards, giving our best offering to God in support of the ministries of this church. It is also our Thanksgiving Luncheon, when we will give thanks as a congregation for all of God’s blessings to and through us over the past year. Finally – and we might as well acknowledge it – Sunday marks the beginning of a week that will end with the mayhem and madness that is Black Friday, and the start of the holiday shopping season.

So, if you put it all together - gratitude, gift-giving, royalty, and celebration - it leads us back to the original question: What gift do you give to a King?

To put it more broadly, what are the best kinds of gifts to give this Christmas? Not gifts that will break or be outgrown, or fashions whose trends will fade over time. Not another useless trinket or mind-numbing gadget. Instead, how about the gift of love, compassion, and care?

In fact, if you want to make a real difference in your holiday shopping, I invite you to consider these three, brand new ministries offered by the church that we are rolling out even before Black Friday:


1. WINTER OUTERWEAR

As you may know, there is now no charitable agency in Cherokee that will give out clothing to needy persons. This is of particular concern during the upcoming winter months, when coats, hats, mittens, and other outerwear are of an absolute necessity. Thanks to St. Paul’s, that will soon change.

Last Sunday, the Administrative Board approved a new partnership with some of the local consignment shops to allow our basement to be used as a clothing distribution site for cold weather outerwear. Every Saturday from noon to 5pm, starting November 29, volunteers will give clothing out to people of all ages who need to stay warm this winter. You can help out in the following ways:

a) Donate your new or gently used winter outerwear. We are collecting coats, jackets, snowpants, hats, mittens, gloves, and scarves, which you can bring in during the week and place on the table in the hallway outside the office.

b) Volunteer a few hours of your time during the winter to help distribute the clothing. Contact Kara Beasley (thereeohrtman@hotmail.com), the owner of Kid to Kid, one of the stores helping with the project and will coordinate the clothing distribution.


2. SALVATION ARMY BELL RINGING

For the first time, St. Paul’s is sponsoring a red kettle drive for the Salvation Army. We need persons to ring bells for a mere hour or two on Saturdays throughout the holiday season, along with Black Friday. Shifts range from 10am to 2pm on those days, and we will be ringing at K-Mart, Hy-Vee, and Fareway.

If we can fill all of the slots, St. Paul’s will be able to contribute 72 total hours of bell ringing to help people in need. Ninety percent of the money dropped into the red kettles will stay right here in Cherokee to help give out emergency assistance to those who need it the most. Sign-up sheets are available in the narthex.


3. ALTERNATIVE GIFT CATALOG

What do you give for the person who has everything? How about making a donation in their honor to one of four missions agencies that help people in need around the world?

Give the gift of hope this Advent through our Alternative Gift Catalog, sponsored by the Missions Committee. The catalog lists specific gifts you can give through Heifer International, Church World Service, SERV, and Stan Sitzmann’s Needy Children Project of Cherokee. Pick up a catalog this Sunday, fill out the order form, and turn it in with your payment to the office or to a member of the Missions Committee in the narthex. You’ll receive a personalized gift card that you can give to that special someone, along with more information about the agency to which you are giving.

All of the gifts you give are tax-deductible and help contribute to our Rainbow Covenant Missions giving effort this year. Most importantly, you can really make a difference!


I don’t know about you, but I think Christ the King much prefers any of the above gifts to jewels, crowns, and gems any day. It’s just like he told the disciples, in the grand apocalyptic parable in Matthew’s gospel: Truly I tell you, just as you did it to one of the least of these who are members of my family, you did it to me. (Matthew 25:40).

Come this Sunday in the true spirit of Thanksgiving, ready to respond to God’s blessings with gratitude, commitment, and generosity. And let’s make this Advent season one of hope for people who really need it.

See you Sunday!

Magrey

The Rev. Magrey R. deVega
St. Paul's United Methodist Church
531 W. Main St.
Cherokee, IA 51012
Ph: 712-225-3955
Email: mdevega@sp-umc.org




BISHOP WILL WILLIMON AT MORNINGSIDE WEDNESDAY NIGHT
Come here one of the pre-eminent preachers and spiritual leaders in United Methodism on Wednesday night, November 16, 7:30 pm at Grace United Methodist Church in Sioux City. Bishop William H. Willimon of the North Alabama Conference will be speaking as part of Morningside College’s annual Wright Lecture and will present on the topic “The Unexpected Jesus,” based on his book “Why Jesus?” The event is free and open to the public.

Bishop Willimon was a professor and dean of the chapel at Duke University in Durham, N.C., for 20 years. He now leads 157,000 Methodists and 792 pastors as bishop of the North Alabama Conference of the United Methodist Church. A survey conducted by Baylor University listed Willimon as one of the 12 Most Effective Preachers in the English-speaking world. He is the author of 60 books, and over a million copies of his books have been sold. He has written articles for numerous publications, and curriculum materials for young people and adults.


INGATHERING THANK-YOU
Great work, St. Paul’s! Your efforts a few weeks ago produced 268 school kits, health kits, and book bags as part of the Iowa Conference’s Annual Ingathering. Thank you to all those who donated time and items, especially those who helped out with loading the trucks on Saturday morning. You really put God’s love into action. Thanks!