Dear Church Family,

A good reminder:

God has been greatly dishonored by His people leaning upon human beings. He has not told us to do this. He has told us that He will teach us, He will guide us. We may come to Him and receive help.…
What did Christ promise His disciples if they would believe in Him as their personal Saviour? “Lo, I am with you alway,” He said, “even unto the end of the world” (Matthew 28:20). Again He says, “I am at thy right hand to help thee” (see Psalm 16:8). Think of how many promises He has given us, which we may grasp by the hand of faith. When we go to the Source of power, we know that we shall receive that intelligence and wisdom which comes from a pure source, which is not mixed with anything of humanity. As we pray, it is our privilege to know that God wants us to pray, to ask Him for help. “Ask, and ye shall receive” (John 16:24). It is for you to believe that you will receive. He wants us to become acquainted with Him, to speak to Him, to tell Him of our difficulties, and obtain an experience in asking of One who never misjudges and never makes a mistake.…
We dishonor God by striving to get someone who we think understands our case to help us. Has He not given us His only begotten Son? Is not Christ close beside us, and will He not give us the help we need?…
We forget that the threshold of heaven is flooded with the glory proceeding from the throne of God, that the light may fall directly on those who are seeking the help that Christ alone can give.—Manuscript 144, April 3, 1901, “Early Morning Meeting.”

What a precious Saviour and Friend.

In the news:

1. This Sabbath is Pathfinder Sabbath which means they will be leading out in our worship service this Sabbath.  We also are delighted to have Ruben back with his family for the weekend and we will be celebrating a baby dedication of their little girl Geneva. In addition, we will be celebrating the baptism of his sister Jessica and her husband Michael during the worship hour.  A high Sabbath indeed.
2. There will be a fellowship lunch this Sabbath with the Myers team serving as hosts.
3. This Sabbath AYA will be at 3pm at the church. Note the earlier time slot.  The 11^th Hour choir  from Fletcher will be singing for us.  All are invited to come out and enjoy their beautiful music.
4. The Georgia-Cumberland Board of Education met yesterday and approved our request to offer an 11^th grade at GAA This is the first step in becoming a full 12 year school.  This is exciting news as now 10^th graders have the option of being home another year and benefiting from all that such an experience affords.  In addition, at our last school board meeting we voted to move forward with developing plans for an overseas mission trip for our 9-11^th  It’s exciting to see our school growing and developing in this way.  We are extremely blessed to have such a strong program in a community like this.
5. Speaking of GAA, next week there will be a constituency meeting at 5:30pm at the school. All are invited to attend.
6. There will also be the annual Strawberry Festival / End of Year program at GAA on Thursday evening at 6pm at the school gym. Again, all are invited.
7. GAA is having it’s year end nut sale. Take $1.00 off each bag! Many varieties of nuts are still available. Contact Debbie Christensen at 423-525-5870 for more information.
8. I am excited to share with you information regarding our upcoming Thunder Dinner. On Thursday, May 25, at 6:30pm, we will be hosting a Thunder Dinner behind the church for the community. What is a Thunder Dinner?  Watch for the bulletin insert this Sabbath at church and prayerfully consider who you might invite!
9. Just an update about the prayer initiative launched last Sabbath.  It was an oversight that we didn’t separate the names according to gender.  If you would like to be paired up with someone of the same gender, then please bring the name of the person you drew last week on a small piece of paper and place it in the appropriate box in the foyer this Sabbath. Then draw a name from the box that matches your gender. If you have questions, please contact Sheryl Morrison.
10. Here is an interesting news piece that reminds me of the prophecies of Revelation. It looks as though the president will be meeting with the Pope & Islamic leaders as well this month.  Let us work for the night is coming.
11. Next Sabbath, May 13, we will have a special guest speaker with us named Sebastian Teh.  Originally from Malaysia, Sebastian Teh is a Medical Missionary Evangelist who has over 25 years’ experience in practicing and training Natural Remedies.  He has trained literally 1,000’s of missionaries in and throughout China, Malaysia, Indonesia, the Caribbean and the United States.
    Sebastian received his degree in health education here in the United States, and he and his wife have dedicated their lives to health evangelism.  Over the years, both he and his wife have been imprisoned in China for spreading the Gospel.  Sebastian funds his ministry, The China Mission, by coming to America and training Seventh-day Adventist churches in Medical Missionary Evangelism thru donations.  He will speak next Sabbath for the worship hour and in the afternoon. Then he will offer training at our church on Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday evenings from 5:30-8:30 pm.  Training will include such topics as Massage, Herbs, & Hydrotherapy.  He will be also teaching this coming Thursday at NEWPORT church from 6-8 pm on how to cook healthy Asian food.  PLEASE NOTE that all these presentaitons are targeted for our members as his goal is to train us how to teach these things to the community. 
12. Pastor Alex has a calendar of upcoming events for our families this summer which I have listed below.   Note that some events are still pending board approval but here’s a glimpse at what is being planned.   Any ? Call Pastor Alex 678-707-9465
    • May 9/16 Rec @GAA 3pm
    • May 19 7PM Vespers** (Pre-6^th)
    • May 20 Glow Tracts Outreach
    • May 26 Imitators Vespers 7PM**
    • May 27 Picnic/ Hike @Horse Creek
    • June 6 Ice Cream Fest @ Church
    • June 9 Vespers Imitators 7PM
    • June 24 Bonfire @Murrays
    • June 29 Rec @GAA 6 PM
    • June 30 Vespers (Pre-6^th) Location TBA
    • July 6^th /20^th /27^th Rec 6pm @GAA
    • July 9 Princesses night (Ladies and Girls)*
    • July 9 Wild at Heart (Men and Boys)*
    • July 13 Door to Door Outreach 6PM*
    • July 28 and 30 – Family Camp Retreat*
    • August 3 Rec @GAA 6pm
    • August 13 Fun with Water*
    • August 18 Family Vespers worship 7PM**
    • August 24/31 Rec @GAA 3pm

    *Activities subject to church board meeting approval

** @pastor Alex’s House

This sobering statement was shared with me this week.

“… The fires of the last day will consume many souls who might have been saved if the church had but comprehended her sacred responsibilities. Souls are trifling with their own salvation and are unfitted to cooperate with the Lord Jesus Christ. When will the church become laborers together with God? The laborers have themselves to blame largely for the state of indifference seen. They need to be broken up in heart and in action. Then the Lord will work to strengthen them.” {BTS, September 1, 1908 par. 8}

Let us be about our Father’s business.

Blessings as you prepare for the coming Sabbath!

In His Service,

Pastor Jeremy