Friday, November 22, 2019

Dear Church Family,

Words to remember:

God does not require us to give up anything that it is for our best interest to retain. In all that He does, He has the well-being of His children in view. Would that all who have not chosen Christ might realize that He has something vastly better to offer them than they are seeking for themselves. Man is doing the greatest injury and injustice to his own soul when he thinks and acts contrary to the will of God. No real joy can be found in the path forbidden by Him who knows what is best and who plans for the good of His creatures. The path of transgression is the path of misery and destruction. SC 46

In the news:

I will be sharing the sermon this Sabbath with a message entitled, “The Cross & The Sword.” You may in preparation for tomorrow’s message like to read this helpful article by Dr. Frank Hasel from the Adventist Biblical Research Institute and watch the following video.

We will also be celebrating Abigail Wetmore’s baptism this Sabbath during the worship hour.
This Sabbath, we will have fellow lunch with the Myers team hosting.
AYA will be this Sabbath at 5:00 p.m. with worship/bonfire at the Kretschmars. Should the weather be inclement, everything will be moved indoors. Chili, hotdogs, buns, chips is the menu. You are asked to bring hotdogs, buns, chips, etc. You can RSVP Esther Murray at 281-352-4867 if you’re attending and what you’re bringing.
A sign-up sheet is on the table in the foyer for anyone wishing to help with the community Thanksgiving meal. Our church goal is 10 pans each of the following: we need additional pans of 8-mashed potatoes (10 lb), 7-green beans (9-10 store cans), 8-corn (9-10 store cans) – well-drained and hot ready to serve, 8-sheet cakes unsliced and no icing, 7-12/pack of soda. They anticipate serving 3700 meals this year. Remember the food has to be here Thanksgiving morning, November 28 at 7 a.m. hot and ready to serve. Pans are provided for your use in the office. This is a collaborative effort with other churches in the community.
Last Sunday evening at the GAA talent show, there was a fundraiser called “Brave the Shave” for Robert Hastings who is battling cancer. Several from the school as well as adults stepped forward to show support and raise money for Robert’s medical expenses.
I joined the students at Morning Point on Monday for Assist. They made Pizza Buns, salad, and dessert with the seniors there and again I was impressed with the fellowship shared by old and young alike. This is an awesome program.
Tuesday evening Tina and I enjoyed participating in the Hope Center annual banquet and fundraiser. A lady who used to work for Planned Parenthood spoke about the atrocities she witnessed while working there. It was quite upsetting to hear her first-hand account of what she saw. She shared how God worked in her life and brought her out of this hideous work and how now she works to advocate for the unborn. It was a moving evening.
There were roughly 40 individuals who came out for Dinner with the Doctor this past Tuesday evening at the church. Rhonda Malina spoke and the evening proved to be a real success.
I joined the faculty on Thursday in playing volleyball with the students at GAA.
Today I had lunch with grandparents and students alike for the annual grandparents/Thanksgiving dinner celebration at the school. Randy shared the astounding test results of our students in relation to the national average. GAA is setting the bar high!
As many know, Allen Conner also known as Buck has been in ICU with major complications resulting from an infection. When I was visiting him yesterday, he communicated with me by nodding his head and with his eyes. I got word this morning from the family that he is continuing to improve and doing better. Your continued prayers are much appreciated.
We had another great prayer meeting this week with discussion and fellowship. A great dynamic exists in our weekly gathering and we want to invite you to join in. We will have no meeting this coming week due to the Thanksgiving holiday.
I want to encourage you to continue in your journey through the Testimonies. In our home, we sit at the dining room table for our reading so that we each can highlight and mark in his or her own book. After one of our readings the other morning, Jordan stated how this was fun which thrilled my soul. I encourage you to please invite your kids to read through the Testimonies with you. It is so valuable to one’s spiritual walk. Here is a picture of the boys highlighting some of the counsel given to the young.