Dear Church Family,

This was a  passage from Christ Object Lesson’s that we looked at this week in prayer meeting.  Certainly, these are words to live by:

When perplexities arise, and difficulties confront you, look not for help to humanity. Trust all with God. The practice of telling our difficulties to others only makes us weak, and brings no strength to them. It lays upon them the burden of our spiritual infirmities, which they cannot relieve. We seek the strength of erring, finite man, when we might have the strength of the unerring, infinite God. . .
Take the word of Christ as your assurance. Has He not invited you to come unto Him? Never allow yourself to talk in a hopeless, discouraged way. If you do you will lose much. By looking at appearances and complaining when difficulties and pressure come, you give evidence of a sickly, enfeebled faith. Talk and act as if your faith was invincible. The Lord is rich in resources; He owns the world. Look heavenward in faith. Look to Him who has light and power and efficiency.  COL 146-147

In the news:

1. This Sabbath we will share in communion together. I will be sharing the message.
2. There will be no fellowship meal this Sabbath due to communion.
3. Aubrey Shoemaker will be leading out in the AYA service this week with hymn singing and scripture readings. Bring your favorite to enjoy. AYA will be at 8pm.
4. Just a reminder that we have campmeeting next week. Carolina Campmeeting will be this Sunday evening through next Sabbath and Georgia-Cumberland Campmeeting will be Wednesday evening through Sabbath.
5. We will have our final Parables class this coming Wednesday at 10:30am and 6:30pm with Milton Siepman leading out. The class will look at chapter 13 in Christ Object Lessons.
6. Pastor Alex & I will be leaving to serve at the Georgia Cumberland Campmeeting this Tuesday.
7. Tina and I will be leaving the Sunday following GCC Campmeeting and will head straight for the Indiana Campmeeting where I will be speaking for the first four evening sessions up there. Then we leave on Friday from there to head to Nashville where I will officiate at the wedding of Kelli Knecht and her fiancé, Joshua Dysinger.  We will return on Monday for a church board meeting on the 11^th and then will leave for Indonesia on the 12^th.  We will spend some vacation time in Indonesia and then participate with It Is Written in a major evangelistic effort in the Philippines in July.  Tina and I will each speak at a site.  We will then return on July 30 and head straight for Ministers meetings and then will finally return home on the 1^st of August.  Indeed it will be a busy but exciting summer for us.
8. Here are some highlights of the activities for the summer as well.
   1. June 6 – Weekly small group at Nancy Adams home and led by Pastor Alex.
   2. June 12 @ 6:30pm – Dinner with the Doctor
   3. June 23 – The Junior class will be having their prayer outreach on June 23 at Wal-Mart.
   4. July 7 – Eric Flickinger with us. Remember to invite those who came to the meetings! This will be a special reunion celebration Sabbath with a fellowship dinner.
   5. July 1-13 –Colporteur Ministry in Greene County by the youth! Contact Pastor Alex if you are interested for your young person to participate.
   6. July 16-20 – Sports camp for children and youth @ GAA (we need volunteers) Please contact pastor Alex (678) 707- 9465
   7. July 23-28 – Vacation Bible School – Contact Marta Wetmore for more information.
   8. July 27-29 – Church Camp Out at Cades Cove. Reserve your spot now.
9. Here is a report from Pastor Alex on the recent young men’s retreat he hosted last weekend at his home:

The mens retreat was refreshing and Inspiring to me. Some parents came to me and said “I’m so glad you did this!” and “when will we do it again?” “we need to do this more often!”

 Does this world have good examples of real men?

What does it mean to be a Man?  These are the questions we explored last weekend at the young mens retreat. 

 We started with dinner… Pizza with vegan options. Then we transitioned to and outdoor game of capture the flag with water balloons. We had forts made of pallets so we could try avoid getting soaked and splashed. 

 Afterward, we had a moment of prayer, we lit the fire pit  sat in a circle and began a devotional time where we talked about Jesus the greatest example of what a real man is. He is the perfect balance of compassion and Power. In the world we don’t find too many examples of this balance. 

 The Chaperones then had their opportunity to share their powerful testimonies of how God has been leading their lives and leading them to step up to the plate and live as true men of integrity, compassion, and self control. It was a sobering and inspiring moment where we laughed and shed tears together. 

 We then talked about the mans 3 greatest temptations: Materialism, Lust, and Absolute Power. We created a time of vulnerability where we mentioned that everyman struggles with these and how we could over come. The only way is to surrender to our maker and to have accountability. Only the Holy Spirit could give us this strength. 

 Next, we had a moment to pray conversationally with the Lord. Everyone had the opportunity. It was powerful to hear the prayers of these young men dedicating their lives to the Lord. 

 Together we burned our regrets of the past in the fire and committed to a life of purity in Christ. 

 The young men then had the opportunity to share anonymously some questions they had and the chaperones and I had the opportunity to answer them during breakfast the next day. 

 I’m looking forward to the next time we can meet again as men to seek how we can be more like Him… The greatest man that ever lived. 

11. Last night we met with those interested in participating in a church mission trip in the summer of 2019. It was voted by the group that we plan a trip to Asia in June of next year.  We will now work with Quiet Hour to determine some of the top areas of need in which we might serve. Then we will seek input from the team as to which of those areas, if a choice is available, we should go to.  Here are some fast facts regarding the trip proposed trip:
    1. Based on the vote of the group, we are planning to go somewhere in Asia.
    2. Goal of at least 15 adults or older youth to participate in trip.
    3. Here is a document explaining some of the details of the trip:  Info Sheet
    4. We plan to go in June of 2019.
    5. Families with children welcome.
    6. More details to come. If you are thinking about going, email me and ask to be put on the email list. As I receive more information from Quiet Hour, I will be sending it to the mission team.   
       

       
12. The Dietrichs have secured everything that they needed but have one last need still:

We are in need of one carseat to borrow while they are here. The car seat
can be returned the beginning of November after Jonathan and Melody
return to Chad.
Gideon is 40″ and 33 pounds.  He will be 5 in June.
Liliana is 34″ and 25 pounds.  She will be 3 in September.

This will likely be my last Grapevine for a while though we will see.  We will miss our church family over the next couple months.

In His service,

Pastor Jeremy