"And this I pray, that your love may abound yet more and more in knowledge and in all judgment; that ye may approve things that are excellent; that ye may be sincere and without offence till the day of Christ; being filled with the fruits of righteousness, which are by Jesus Christ, unto the glory and praise of God."
Philippians 1:9-11
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Fr. Scott's sermon expanded on the first chapter of St. Paul's letter to Philippians. He started by pointing out that as Christians we live in the 'Age of the Church' - between the first and second comings of Christ. What do we do in this time? St. Paul believed God would continue His good work in the Philippians until Christ's return (Philippians 1:6). Also, every Christian's life is a journey - sometimes in sync with God and sometimes not. While our day to day progress may not seem like a lot to us, from God's perspective we are growing. So in this 'Age of the Church', we and the Church are to continue growing and keep conforming our lives to Jesus Christ.
Please find the complete sermon and service at the following link:
Thank you Fr. Scott for the thoughtful sermon!
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Due to the continuing heat pump related construction in the basement, Christian Education and after services fellowship were cancelled. We will resume both these activities on Sunday, December 4. Thank you for your understanding and patience!
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I received this beautiful note from Mike & Claudia:
Our dear Church Family,
Mike and I are so thankful for your continual prayers during Mike’s illness and surgery. We have felt them every step of the way! And we have seen and felt the Lord’s hand in leading us to the care and Doctors who have ministered to him.
We especially thank you for your generous gift card. It came in handy for lodging and meals during our recent trip to Chattanooga for surgery.
We are so blessed to be part of such a caring congregation! We look forward to being with you in person as soon as Mike is fully recovered.
With love, Mike and Claudia
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Construction Update!
The installation of the first floor heat pump is complete! This includes the heat pump and an all new vent system in the attic. We have vents for heat and air conditioning in ceiling of the sanctuary and all the other rooms on this level. The sanctuary was toasty warm this Sunday morning - and unlike all previous cold days, Earl did not need to come over Saturday to turn on the heat and plug in all the small space heaters!
The work in the basement has started but will take another week or so to complete.
The old, broken down furnace has been removed!
A work in progress picture!
The room with the old furnace removed! Earl has started painting the walls.
Thank you Earl for your continued supervision and coordination of this major project!
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Sue continues to lead our weekly online prayer group on Discord. Thank you so much Sue for taking the time each week to lead our prayers! If you have a special prayer request but cannot join us, please send your request to Sue. Please contact me if you would like to join us on Discord.
Please note the online prayer group is cancelled on Thursday, Nov 17 (Sue is out of town) and on Thursday, Nov 24 (Thanksgiving Day). Sue will resume hosting the online prayer group on Thursday, Dec. 1.
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We are starting a short 6 week Women's Bible Study for Advent using the pictured study guide. The first meeting will be on Wed., Nov 16 at noon at my house. I will serve a light salad for lunch and Rose Marie is bringing homemade cookies for dessert! At that first meeting we can plan the rest of the meetings! The book is $13 and may be purchased at the following link:
Please remember to bring the book and your bible!
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The Symphony of the Mountains is having their 'By The Fireside' Christmas Concert on Saturday, December 3 at 3 pm at the Toy F. Reid Eastman Employee Center in Kingsport. Rose Marie has made before the concert lunch reservations at The Chop House in Kingsport @ 1:00 pm. Please let Rose Marie know if you are coming to The Chop House so she can update the reservations. If you are interested in attending the concert, please let Scott know as he will obtain group tickets for us - tickets are $20 each (checks payable to The Symphony of the Mountains).
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Lynn and Daryl sent these beautiful pictures of the new addition to their household - Gypsy Lee. She is a miniature Schnauzer and is four months old!
