Dear Church Family,

God tests and proves us by the common occurrences of life. It is the little things which reveal the chapters of the heart. It is the little attentions, the numerous small incidents and simple courtesies of life, that make up the sum of life’s happiness; and it is the neglect of kindly, encouraging, affectionate words, and the little courtesies of life, which helps compose the sum of life’s wretchedness. It will be found at last that the denial of self for the good and happiness of those around us constitutes a large share of the life record in heaven. And the fact will also be revealed that the care of self, irrespective of the good and happiness of others, is not beneath the notice of our heavenly Father.

White, E. G. (1952). The Adventist Home (pp. 108–109). Review and Herald Publishing Association.

In the news:

1. This Sabbath we will continue in our series on John and we will also celebrate the Lord’s supper together. Let us prepare our hearts in anticipation of this service. COVID precautions will remain in place for communion.

2. Our online mid-week service will not meet for the next two weeks due to the holidays but will resume on Wednesday, January 5th at 7 p.m. via ZOOM.

3. Our annual Christmas offering this year will go towards updating our church lighting. The sanctuary lights and the foyer lights will all be replaced with much more efficient and brighter lighting which will make for a better video stream as well as make it easier to read and see in the Sanctuary. The board also voted to have the stained glass lit so that at night the windows will be illuminated with light. Please mark your tithe envelope “Christmas Offering” as you plan your gift and as together, we care for the church sanctuary.

4. A prayer request has been made for God to watch over the container of printing equipment for Desert Tree Ministry.  The container was packed Wednesday (Dec. 15) here in Greeneville is in route. Pray for safety as this container travels to Doula, Cameroon, and on to Chad.

5. Evan Fox is getting married this Sunday, December 19, 2021 in Utah. It’s been exciting to watch Evan grow in the faith and now he’s studying for the ministry and is to be married. We are happy for him and please check their website for more details and pictures. Blessings Evan! Click here to learn more.

6. Liberty Magazine, the official church magazine on Religious Liberty, had an editorial recently that I felt was worthy of sharing with you. The article is entitled, “This Editorial Is Not About Abortion or Vaccine Mandates.”

In His Service,

Pastor Jeremy