A Wonderful Season

This Friday night at Celebrate Recovery we will experience something unprecedented in the 173 year history of our church. We will baptize three ladies and in the process witness something never before accomplished in the long history of our church. Our church has never seen this number of people (46) profess faith in Christ and follow in believer’s baptism in one year. The wonderful part is that we still have more to baptize this year. Oh, What A Savior!!

We will begin decorating our sanctuary for Christmas with our “Hanging of the Green” service this Wednesday night at 6:00 PM. This Sunday, we will begin our “The Joy of Christmas” message series that leads up to our two Christmas Eve services (4:00 at our south campus and 5:30 at our north campus). What a time to praise His name!

The Christmas holidays also provide us with some wonderful opportunities for ministry that you will not want to miss. Here are just a few:

Lottie Moon Christmas Offering – Our Christmas offering (above and beyond our regular tithes) will go to support over 5000 missionaries around the world. We are off to a great start as we collected over $4000.00 during our “Christmas in August” offering. I want to encourage you to prayerfully make a generous gift this year. Paul said to the Corinthian believers: “Each one must give as he has made up his mind, not reluctantly or under compulsion, for God loves a cheerful giver” (2 Cor. 9:7). As pastor, I want to say “thank you” for your cheerful faithfulness to give and to go!

The Coat Project – Our partnership with Grace Baptist Church in Ogdensburg, NY is off to a fast start. The Coat Project is designed to help pastor Don and Grace Baptist Church impact their community in a real point of need. Ogdensburg, right on the St. Lawrence River, gets about 300+ inches of snow each year. Did you hear that! 300 inches! It will get as cold as -40 degrees F in the dead of winter.

Over the next 3 weeks, we will be collecting new or in really good condition coats, gloves, and sock hats for children, teens, and adults. Then, Don Henderson and Marty Boyles have volunteered to transport our gifts to Ogdensburg and Grace Baptist Church for their congregation to minister to the needs of their community. You might think these guys are crazy. I would agree with you that crazy fits, but not the way you think. I call it “Crazy Love”!

PRAYER

As we begin this Christmas season I beseech (now there’s a good King James word) you to experience these days with your “eyes wide open.” Look for opportunities to share the love of Christ. We are in a “season of self” when we make our wants list and hope for the best. Will you be selfless in these days by the love you display to others? Will you look for the needs and opportunities around you: (down the street, across the room, in the office, around the corner, across the shopping aisle)? Let’s make the most of our time by shouting out with our lives the Amazing Love of God!