CCC Gainesville | Blog
Sunday Advent begins and we will celebrate Holy Communion together. I was inspired by these words:
“When we celebrate God’s grace to us here, we are learning how to celebrate His goodness in every aspect of our lives, and that includes our orientation to festivals like Christmas. In The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe, Father Christmas appears in the book to give gifts and to destroy winter. He distributes his gifts and moves on. We should learn to be much more like him. And who comes next, and what does she say? Correct, the White Witch comes next, and she says, “What is the meaning of all this gluttony, this waste, this self-indulgence?” In the White Witch’s words we hear all the echoes of the pious fussers.
But what do we learn in this meal, set before us? We learn of God’s extravagance. We learn of His prodigality. We learn of His overflow. We learn that He doesn’t know how to stay with respectable limits. Do you call saving us staying within respectable limits? Not a bit of it.”
-Doug Wilson
Almighty God, Father of all mercies,
we thine unworthy servants
do give thee most humble and hearty thanks
for all thy goodness and loving-kindness
to us and to all men.
We bless thee for our creation, preservation,
and all the blessings of this life;
but above all for thine inestimable love
in the redemption of the world by our Lord Jesus Christ,
for the means of grace, and for the hope of glory.
And, we beseech thee,
give us that due sense of all thy mercies,
that our hearts may be unfeignedly thankful;
and that we show forth thy praise,
not only with our lips, but in our lives,
by giving up our selves to thy service,
and by walking before thee
in holiness and righteousness all our days;
through Jesus Christ our Lord,
to whom, with thee and the Holy Ghost,
be all honor and glory, world without end. Amen.
Great wisdom here from Kathleen Nielson:
1. Pray in advance
2. Pray for God to set a guard over my mouth (Psalm 141:3).
3. Care for different stages of life.
4. Infuse my plans with trust in a sovereign God.
5. Make time to read the Bible out loud and pray out loud together.
Thanks to everyone for another great year for Operation Christmas Child!
This year we gathered a total of 174 boxes to be delivered to children all over the world. While we didn’t quite reach our goal, I am still encouraged because our church family gave 20 more boxes than last year. I am excited to see this great ministry growing within our church and I can’t wait to see what happens next year!
Boxes are all loaded up!
Dinah and Esther are ready to drop off some boxes!
Here is the breakdown…
2011
Children’s Ministry – 70
Church Family – 103
2012
Children’s Ministry – 51
Church Family – 123
Stay tuned to the blog for more information on where our boxes ended up. And pray for the child who will receive your box!
And, again, thank you so much! Great job, CCC!
Mon Nov 19 Acts 20:17-38
Tue Nov 20 Acts 21:1-16
Wed Nov 21 Acts 21:17-40
Thur Nov 22 Acts 22:1-29
Fri Nov 23 Acts 22:30-23:11
Sat Nov 24 Catchup
