Loving our city...

SUPPORTING IN MARCH: THE CENTER FOR CREATIVE ARTS EXPRESSION

In an effort to better love our city together, we're going to be picking one specific business/organization each month, talking with the leaders of that organization, and asking for ways that we (SOMA) can be supporting them in their efforts. The Center for Creative Arts Expression (CCAE) is located at 1217 7th Ave in Beaver Falls, and their stated mission is to

promote, teach, develop, and support the visual, performing, and literary arts in Beaver Falls and the neighboring communities for children and adults. Find out more at www.centerforcreativeartsexpression.org.

Ways you can help CCAE throughout the month

1. Visit www.centerforcreativeartsexpression.org/pdf/Volunteer.pdf (ask for Ms. Gerry McCorr when you call).

2. If anyone has basic carpentry skills, Ms. Gerry would love for you to contact her for some minor projects.

3. If anyone has skills in Grant Writing, you can contact CCAE to offer support in that very helpful way.

How SOMA can help CCAE together

We're planning a volunteer work day for Saturday, March 24th, to help CCAE clean, paint, and organize their main street space. Keep an eye out for more details to come...

Community Garden conversation - Feb 19th

On Sunday, Feb 19th, we'll be having a conversation about kicking off a community garden somewhere in the city of Beaver Falls. We'll chat right after the worship gathering. For a great heads up on why this is a great initiative for communities of faith to get involved with, check out this blog

Community Conversation on the 29th

On January 29th, during our regular worship gathering time we'll be talking about where we are as a worshiping community: where God has taken us so far AND what we're hoping to see Him do through us in the days/weeks/months/years ahead! Please try to come be a part of this conversation, as there is enormous value in prayerful, Kingdom-centered input from everyone who is invested in this community. Hope to see you there!

Christmas weekend plans updated...

This year we'll be hosting our very first Christmas Eve worship gathering in Beaver Falls. We'll meet in the Berkshire (same space as always) at 7pm for an evening of Scripture, Song, and Celebration. That's (of course) Saturday, December 24th.

Then, on Christmas Day, instead of asking all of you to come to the Berkshire on Sunday morning for our usual worship gathering, we're going to join our brothers and sisters from the Beaver Falls Christian Assembly (Church) in their annual Community Christmas Dinner. Last year they served about 1,200 people, and we've been given a wonderful opportunity to spend some time in this context with our neighbors - specifically as 'table hosts'.

Here's how you can be a part of the action:

1. Beginning at 11am & going to 1pm, you can come to the cafeteria of the Beaver Falls High School (1701 8th Ave) and tell the volunteers that you are from The SOMA Gathering and are there to volunteer as a table host.

2. You'll be asked to sit at a table with the other folks who are there to have dinner, and you'll:

- make sure the guests feel welcome and comfortable

- be open to conversation: listening, praying with someone if they ask for it, and pointing to the heart of the Christmas story if the opportunity arises (without being overbearing in your approach)

- be there to serve in any way that's requested of you

This is a great chance for us to serve alongside other brothers and sisters in Christ, to spend a couple of hours with neighbors in Beaver Falls, and to live out one of the deep realities of Christmas - that 'the Son of Man came not to be served, but to serve.' (Matthew 20:28).

Hope to see you on Christmas Eve @ 7pm at the Berkshire, and for anyone who is wanting to gather with others for corporate worship on Christmas morning, FPC Beaver (our sending congregation) will be having a worship service at 10am.

Merry Christmas!

Christmas Gatherings

This year we'll be hosting our very first Christmas Eve worship gathering in Beaver Falls. We'll meet in the Berkshire (same space as always) at 7pm for an evening of Scripture, Song, and Celebration. That's (of course) Saturday, December 24th.

Then on Christmas morning (the next day), we'll meet at our regular place and time for a very low-key gathering - unplugged, simple, meaningful.

Hope to see you there!

Blessed are the Un-Cool

Some thoughts by blogger Rachel Held Evans worth thinking about in regards to the Church as the Christ's body on earth:

BLESSED ARE THE UN-COOL

People sometimes assume that because I’m a progressive 30-year-old who enjoys Mumford and Sons and has no children, I must want a super-hip church—you know, the kind that’s called “Thrive” or “Be” and which boasts “an awesome worship experience,” a fair-trade coffee bar, its own iPhone app, and a pastor who looks like a Jonas Brother.

While none of these features are inherently wrong, (and can of course be used by good people to do good things), these days I find myself longing for a church with a cool factor of about 0.

That’s right.

I want a church that includes fussy kids, old liturgy, bad sound, weird congregants, and…brace yourself…painfully amateur “special music” now and then.

Why?

See the full post by clicking here.

Crossroads Emergency Men's Shelter in Beaver Falls

On Sunday, October 30th, the Director of Harbor Point Housing in Beaver County, Laura DiMuzio, will be sharing with us at our worship gathering about the Crossroads Emergency Men's Shelter in Beaver Falls, which is going to be operating every night over the winter in a local church building from November 1-March 31. They're looking for volunteers to help staff it, you can find more info about volunteering/training by contacting:

Laura DiMuzio

Director, Harbor Point Housing, Inc.

501 7th Avenue

Beaver Falls, PA 15010

Phone: 724 847-8807