 | Volume 1, Number 4, December 2004 HOLIDAY GATHERING |
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| Volume 1, Number 4, December 2004 HOLIDAY GATHERING |
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FOCUS
The focus this month is to recognize the holiday season and what it means to the Cub Scout and his family.
Some of the purposes of Cub Scouting developed through this month’s theme are:
ü Spiritual Growth, living up to one’s beliefs can sometimes be s challenge and a blessing. Realizing that others have different beliefs, which are valuable to them, is a good lesson.
ü Faith, boys can investigate the beliefs of their families and how they can practice them in their everyday lives.
CUBMASTER’S CORNER
Colonial U.S. In Colonial America, Christmas was essentially a day of Spiritual
observance. Carols were sung and
church bells rang out to celebrate the commemoration of Christ's birth. Early
Americans decorated evergreen trees with things from nature and homemade items.
Christmas was a warm, family experience for Colonial America. It blended the
experience of a new land with the customs from a European Heritage. America:
The word 'Hanukkah' means dedication. Many years ago, (165 B.C.) enemies of the
Jewish people had taken over their temple at Jerusalem. Finally, a small, brave
group of Jews known as the Maccabees battled the enemy and won back the
building. Then the Jews held a dedication service to their God. They wanted to
keep a large Menorah * burning, but they only had enough oil to last one day.
By some great miracle the lamp kept burning for eight days. Hanukkah still
lasts eight days. Each night the families get together in their homes to light
the Menorah, One candle is lit the first night, with an additional candle lit
each additional night. "Rock of Ages" (Maoz Tzur in Hebrew), a hymn
of praise to God, is sung after each night's lighting of the candles
Merry Christmas and Happy New Year!
Cubmaster Bob G
What a very special day that first
Christmas -- the day when God left the glory of Heaven to come to His world, to
His people, to grant them forgiveness and eternal life! If you know Jesus
Christ then you know the God of glory, the Creator of all things! And Christmas
is a yearly reminder, not just of Christ's birth in a manger, but of your birth
into the family of God. He was born a human babe in a manger so that you could
be reborn a child of God. My prayer for you is that this Christmas can be for
you the beginning of Christmas in a whole new perspective. Viewed through the
lens of the Apostle John who saw God in the flesh full of grace and truth for
you!
Still, the real message of Christmas is not the gifts that we give to each
other. Rather, it is a reminder of the gift that God has given to each of us.
It is the only gift that truly keeps on giving, so I want to point out four
things about it.
First, it is surprising. When Christmas rolls around,
you often try to figure out if certain people have bought that gift you really
wanted. Maybe you already know what they bought, because they didn't hide it
very well. Or, maybe you uncovered it by accident—or maybe not. But when the
day comes and you open the present, you have to pretend you're surprised. Yet
all along, you knew what it was. God's gift to us, however, was a complete
surprise. It was not expected, and as you examine it more carefully, you
realize how great a gift it actually was.
Second, God's gift came to us in
the humblest of wrappings. What would you think if you saw a gift under your Christmas tree
that was wrapped in newspaper and tied up with string? At first, you would
probably assume that a guy wrapped it. But think about God's gift to us. Jesus
was not born in a palace of gold; He was born in a stable. He was clothed with
rags. He was laid in a feeding trough. Yet these things do not, in any way,
diminish the story of Christ's birth. If anything, they help us realize the
great sacrifice God made for us. God's gift to humanity, the ultimate gift of
eternal life through His Son, Jesus Christ, came in the simplest and humblest
of wrappings.
Third, we don't deserve this gift. At Christmas, we give gifts to
those whom we care about, who have been kind to us over the past year, or who
have given us a gift first. We don't give gifts to the person who has been
slandering our name or to the angry neighbor who never has a kind word to say.
Yet God gave us His gift when we were His enemies. He didn't give this gift to
us because we deserved it. In fact, it was just the opposite. The Bible tells
us, "But God demonstrates His own love toward us, in that while we were
still sinners, Christ died for us" (Romans 5:8 NKJV).
Fourth, the gift tells us
something about the giver. When you want to give someone a gift, you start thinking about
it ahead of time. Hopefully you try to find what that person wants or needs.
When God decided to give us the gift of eternal life, it wasn't something that
He just thought of on the fly. Long before there was a town called Bethlehem, a
garden called Eden, and a planet called Earth, a decision was made in eternity
that God would send forth His Son, born of a woman, made under the law, to
redeem those that are under the law. The Bible says that He was slain from the
foundation of the world (Rev. 13:8). Make no mistake about it: this gift that
God has given to us was the most sacrificial thing He possibly could have
offered.
So Christmas isn't about those gifts that you have your tree right now. All of
those things will be gone one day. All that will be left after this life is the
human soul, and that will live forever. We will put so much stock in what we
have, but this is all going to pass away. Life is about what happens beyond the
grave. Life is about knowing the God who made you and who gave you the greatest
gift you will ever receive.
The Pack fundraiser is completed and we had 36 scouts participate and sell a total of $5034 worth of merchandise. The Pack received a profit of $750.96. A big thank you to Mrs. Raven Gregg, Fundraiser Chairperson.
Pack 163 Supports Our Troops
Pack 163 is sponsoring a unit of 21 men stationed in
Iraq. We are looking for supplies to
send the troops.
The Pack also has a list of seven servicemen and women
who are deployed in Iraq.
Remember our servicemen who are serving and who are
home recovering from their wounds.
In the season of happy days,
I'd like you to keep in mind
the recipe for a wonderful
day — it works all year 'round.
Recipe for a Wonderful Day
1 cup friendly words
2 heaping cups understanding
2 cups milk of human kindness
2 heaping tablespoons of time and patience
1 dash gentle humor
1 pinch spice of life
1 drop warm personality
Measure words carefully; add cups of understanding to milk of human kindness.
Sift together three times to make a smooth paste, cook with gas on the front
burner.
Keep temperature low so it never boils over, Season with gentle humor, warm
personality and spice of life. Serve in individual molds. Works best with a good
mixer.
Love is:
Doing something for
others even when you don’t have time.
Making others happy
when you would rather be alone.
Not being irritable
when others get in your way or interrupt you.
Being kind and patient
regardless of the circumstances.
Looking for ways to
make others happy no matter whom they are.
Honest and just, but
also tender, understanding, and compassionate.
More than a greeting
card or a sentimental love note.
Operative all the time
and last for a lifetime.
Not getting upset or
angry on the spur of the moment.
Choosing to be
consistent through hard experiences
And finds joy in
God--Not circumstances.
Happy 2005
Merry Christmas!
The ABC's of Christmas
A is for Angels with
halos so bright, whose carols were heard on that first Christmas night.
B is for Bells so merrily ringing, joy to the world is the message
they're bringing.
C is for Candles that so brightly shine to give a warm welcome, to your
friends and mine.
D is for Doorway with garlands of green, to make Christmas merry as far
as they're seen.
E is for Evergreens, with fragrance so rare, so plentiful at Christmas,
their scent fills the air.
F is for Fun the whole season long, from trimming the tree to singing a
song.
G is for Greetings - a merry "hello" - with a heart full of
love for people we know.
H is for Holly, with berries so red, to make into wreaths to hang
overhead,
I is for Ice on snow covered hills, where sledding is fun along with the
spills.
J is for Jesus, the Christ child so dear. We honor his birth on
Christmas each year.
K is for Kris Kringle - so merrily he stands. He is who they call Santa
in so many lands.
L is for Lanterns. I am sure that their light helped Mary and Joseph
that first Christmas night.
M is for Mary, her heart full of love, for her little son Jesus, who
came from above.
N is for Noel, the angels did sing, to herald the birth of Jesus, our
King.
O is for Ornaments, so shining and bright, with lights on the tree to
sparkle at night.
P is for Packages with ribbons so gay, all 'round the tree for our
Christmas Day.
Q is for Quiet, Christmas Eve night, with snow-covered hills glistening
so bright.
R is for Reindeer who pull Santa's sleigh, to your house, to my house,
they know the way.
S is for Shepherds who first saw the star over Bethlehem's manger and
followed it far.
T is for Trees we decorate so gay; then wait for ole Santa to hurry our
way.
U is for Universe, where Christmas brings joy to all in the world - to
each girl and each boy.
V is for Visiting friends near and far. We travel by plane or by bus or
by car.
W is for Wise Men, who brought gifts so rare, and knelt down and
worshiped the child they found there.
X is for Xmas, or Christmas by full name. No matter the language, it all
means the same.
Y is for Yule Logs, whose bright sparks fly high, to give a warm welcome
to friends passing by.
Z is for Zeal we show at this time, in giving to others and loving
mankind.
As of December 6, 2004 Pack 163 has 9 Dens totaling
60 scouts. We are re-chartered for the
2005 year.
We have a new charter sponsor. After many years the Chester Lions Club has transferred the charter to Fellowship Bible Church.
FBC is located in Chester and has many ties to the
community. Pastor Richard Francis is the
charter representative and feels that
the Pack and Fellowship is a good match and both
organizations can help each other.
Look for exciting events planned in the upcoming
months.
PACK 163 DEN
ASSIGNMENTS
Den 1 Leaders Mr.
Ciccarillo, Mr. Gosselin
Den 8 Leaders Mrs. Hadik,
Mrs. Weider
Den 11 Leaders Mr. Grass,
Mrs. Sprague
Den 12 Leaders Mrs. Gregg,
Mrs. Schaffer
Den 2 Leaders Mrs. Murray
Den 3 Leaders Mr. Hanlon,
Mrs. Leone
Den 4 Leaders Mr. White,
Mrs. Ciccarillo
Den 5 Leaders: Mr. Krueger,
Mrs. Watson
Tiger Den
Den 6 Leaders: Mr. Hoitt and
Mr. Albano
Visit websites for more information
January 28th
February 25th
Meetings Start at 7PM
Other Meeting Reminders
Held 2nd Thursday of Month 7PM
Chester Academy
Media Center
2nd Wednesday of Month
6:45 PM at Naval Recruit Center
(by Stoneyfield Yogurt)
STICK TO IT
It matters not if you try and fail,
And fail, and try again,
But it matters much if you try and fail,
And fail to try again.
DISTRICT NEWS
Leadership Training
Look for a date in January in Chester for new leaders!