MIDWEEK MESSAGE #134
Hello and welcome to Midweek Message #134. Thanksgiving Day is history. Black Friday is (thankfully) a bad memory. Now we start gearing up for Christmas. Hard to believe isn’t it? It seems like not too long ago we were taking the Christmas tree and lights down, and here we are, putting them back up. Gives some credibility to just leaving them up all year ‘round I am thinking. ☺ Time flies when you are having fun…so they say. Anyway, thanks for joining me for this issue of the MM.
Please let me remind you right off the bat to pray for Kim Floyd, our Educator of the Week. Kim is a nurse at SES.
I bet you are just chomping at the bit to hear about our Thanksgiving meal!!
- First, let me say again a huge thanks to the five ladies who organized the whole event: Lizz Bixler, Nannette Edwards, Janet Jones, Karen White, and Stacy Wood. You ladies did a phenomenal job of putting this together and in spite of concerns (which is normal), the day went off without a hitch.
- Second, thanks to everyone who volunteered-from cooking, to serving the meal, to putting together all the take-out meals, to working in the kitchen, to talking to those who came in to eat, to the delivery people (who were so efficient we were able to finish about 12:15), and last, but certainly not least, to the young people who stood out by the street and “advertised” our meal. Rumor has it that Charli Wood was dancing and Eli Wood (no relation) was encouraging people to come in. Thanks to Eli, Kayden, Tanner, Cooper, Julian, and Charli for being our outside advertisement. As a side note, it was so good to see sons and daughters helping with deliveries. What better way can there be for young people to learn about caring for others than to see their parents model it?
- Now for the stats: I try my best to be as accurate as possible but I know some slip through the cracks due to setting up the deliveries, so please keep that in mind. Meals delivered= 90. Walk-ins= about 20. Meals picked up and taken= 10. Leftover food was also taken to the Owen County EMS and some were delivered to Cunot and Cloverdale Senior Apartments (these latter two were part of the 90 meals delivered). All told there were close to 125 meals shared with others. While we had less come into the Lions Club to eat, we had far more deliveries than we ever had. It was so exciting to see new faces mixed with the old faces to make it all run like clockwork.
- Special thanks to the Lions Club for the use (again) of their building. They have been so generous in allowing us to use their facility. It is a great location.
Moving on from Thanksgiving, this is a reminder that this coming Sunday, December 4th, is the day we would like to have all the food for Backpack Buddies. The plan is to deliver it to the Middle School during the week. Looking at all you have brought makes me know why God has chosen to bless us in so many ways. Your generosity and concern for the young people of Owen County is a sight to behold. Thank you!!
I know some folks are always looking for Christmas gift ideas. May I suggest a copy of the ESV Bible? This past year I took a break from the ESV and used the NASB2020. Beginning with the first sermon on Revelation (January 8), I will be using the ESV for 2023.
Now for something a bit more serious that I think is important for you to know. As you can probably imagine, during Christmas we seem to be inundated with requests for help. It is hard to say no to people, so several years ago the elders set a policy for Diana, Pastor Ryan and me to follow. Unfortunately, it was needed, since people took advantage of us. To avoid that and to stop being part of the endless cycle of people calling every church and organization in town for help, we asked for help. Here is the policy we follow:
- When someone calls and asks for help- whether bills, gas, rent, travel, or food- we first ask them if someone from OVCF has recommended that they call. If they say no, then we politely tell them we are unable to help and try to direct them to several options. If they say yes (and give your name), we try our very best to listen and help. We will not give money to anyone. We might offer to help pay/pay on an electric bill or buy a gas card, etc. but they must be recommended by you. Some just hang up when we say that or when we say we will not give them cash. We are not trying to be cold-hearted, but we are trying to be good stewards of God’s money, money you have given and entrusted to be used wisely. If you have any questions about this approach, please feel free to ask Diana, Pastor Ryan or me about it.
This coming Sunday is the last of the series of Feasts with a Purpose. It will serve as a great lead-in to the series which will run through January 1: Expect the Unexpected. As I mentioned Sunday, the pamphlets I ordered-Feasts of the Bible- have trickled in. I will put them on the back table for you to take. Developing the series has been a real treat for me, so I do hope I have been able to give you a bit better picture of the OT roots and how the NT age of grace is so much more meaningful. January 8th starts my series on Revelation. Yikes!
Speaking of Christmas (that was a couple paragraphs ago), please keep in mind the plan for that weekend. We will have a Christmas Eve service at 6:00 and a service Christmas morning at 10:00 only. Both will be somewhat different from normal fare, but identical, except for the music. {Editor’s note: did you get that last statement? ☺ } I know. I know. Sometimes I make absolutely no sense. I’ll tell you more in future MMs.
Thanks again for taking the time to read this, even though I know you have a busy schedule. I look forward to seeing you Sunday, if not sooner. May you experience the peace, love and joy that we talk so much about at Christmas. You have to know love (John 3:16) because that is why we celebrate this season in the first place. And never forget that I love you all (but definitely not as much as He did!).
Pastor Bill
