To God's Beloved At Cloverdale Baptist Church:
Twas the week before Christmas, when all through the church, creatures are stirring...and that is where my poetic gift for this Christmas dies. There is much going on in our church family over the next few weeks, so please pay attention and keep praying. One of the great benefits of knowing why Jesus came is that we can approach the Throne Of Grace with boldness. So we ask that you would go to Him in our time of need knowing that only as we do things in His strength will we succeed.
Pray for Sunday morning and our VSO event Sunday night.
Pray for our Christmas eve service, and the many that will come to hear about where true joy comes from not only for this season but throughout.
Pray for opportunities you will have to share the Gospel with your friends and family, as you gather with others this Christmas.
Pray that our special offering will be used to further God's Kingdom and effectively love those in need in our community and world...
Our Special Christmas offering this year will be to our Benevolent Fund.Our church has become aware of a significant need that we would like to address, and will require using the Benevolent Fund, to provide the required assistance, as well as other needs that we become aware of from time to time.We would ask that you prayerfully consider making a special gift this year to the Benevolent Fund, to help in addressing this need.
Pray for our Christmas Hampers that they will be a tremendous blessing (Thank you Thomas and Ray), so many have given so much and I pray it would be a physical blessing...even more important, a spiritual blessing!
And so many more things to pray about. It is good to belong to a family that uses opportunities like this to worship and win in God's goal for us of conforming us to His Son, and in reaching out with His Good News Of Great Joy.
As the New Year approaches, take the time to consider where you are, where God wants you to be and set out goals to help you get there. It is always good to use the Calendar to help us to pursue Jesus and realize that he has placed us where we are for His good works, prepared in advance for us to do. Take a pen and piece of paper and the time to reflect, repent, and renew your first love devotion to Jesus and what it takes to live that out.
Sunday Is Coming:
Title: I Am The Good Shepherd
Text: John 10
This is one of the great passages of the Bible on who God is, and how God treats those who follow Him. Read John 10 and Psalm 23, and rejoice in HIs being your good shepherd!
- What do you think it means for Jesus to be the Good Shepherd?
- How does this help you to worship and trust Him?
- What does the sacrificial love of the Shepherd mean for you?
- Why is coming under His protection so important? What does it mean to experience this protection?
Have a great week, and take advantage of every opportunity, for the time is short, and that means not just until Christmas day!
A Fellow Sheep
Pastor Rob