IT’S NOT TOO LATE!

I am thankful it is not too late to do last minute shopping.  I still have a few stocking stuffers I need to pick up.  I am grateful for the opportunity to rest and relax and think about the time and reason for the season.  I really do not mind all the extra hustle and bustle.  After all, we are celebrating the birth of our Lord Jesus.  Think of the effort we put into our family birthdays.  To me it is worth the extra effort.

I also love the fact that at Christmas time more people focus on giving and helping others.  I am convinced that we are doing this all through out the year.  It is just more people getting involved at Christmas time.  I know small groups and Adult Bible Study classes that help feed the poor all year long; help single moms all year long; give to mission efforts all year long; visit the sick all year long.  They are not doing that just at Christmas time.  It just seems that way because additional people get involved.  The more the merrier…literally.  Try to avoid being a hater of Christmas time festivities and celebrations.  It is always the right time to do a good thing.  People who need help all year long particularly need help at this time of the year.  Who knows, some who are plugging in because it is Christmas season may actually like it and become year round celebrators of God’s love.  Now wouldn’t that be wonderful?  You will never hear me say a negative put down about the people who only come to worship on the special occasions.  My goodness, that is what we pray for, work for, train for.  What a wonderful opportunity to show the love of God.

It is also not too late to make a year end giving gift.  If you have not considered a gift to the International Missions Christmas Offering (Lottie Moon Christmas as some know it), then it is not too late.  You really get a lot for your gift.  Every penny of every dollar goes to the missionaries.  Not one cent is kept out for advertising or administration cost.  That almost never happens in fund raising.

You also may have a special area in the church you would like to bless.  If you want to make a difference in reaching young people, consider a gift to the Youth/Children/Preschool ministries.  If you would like to make a difference in recovery ministries consider Celebrate Recovery or the Transition House.  I am humbled to think we now have one of the best run and effective Celebrate Recovery Ministries in the Charleston area.  It really is a model for how to operate a Christ centered 12 Step program.  And of course, you could always make a gift to the church budget.  We will end the year short of our projected need of tithes and offerings.  We did implement a 6% cut in our 2012 budget.  We really do believe the Lord will provide.  He always has.

I hope I will see you at this years Christmas Eve Worship or maybe on Christmas Day.  If not, I look forward, Lord willing, to seeing you in the New Year.

What a great God, what a great church family!

Love you all,

Pastor Tom

Down to the Wire

We have set the date of Monday, January 2 as the opening of the Transition House/180 Ministry.  We are now in the final stage of putting in order all the items that have been donated over the last year.  And it is a lot, thank you Jesus.

Here is the biggest need at the moment.  We need 5 teams with two or three people on each team to “adopt” one of the bed rooms/bathrooms and get it ready to live in.  We think each room has all it needs but really, we do not know.  There is sooooo much stuff that it is a little overwhelming.  If each team of  2 or 3 would go in, arrange, fluff up, make a final inventory of what is needed, that would be fantastic.  Our goal is to have absolutely everything ready by Christmas day.

This could easily be a family project, a Sunday School Class project, a civic group, just about anyone.  You would be working with Marsha Cline, the director of the Transition House.  We will try to have an open house on New Years Day for the Church family and community.  Please keep this in your prayers.  The need for a transition house was identified by Charleston Outreach and other Community services as a number one priority need in our community.  JIBC will be the “experiment model” for how this ministry can be done.  It feels like a God thing to me.  It is far too big, we have no funding to speak of, while the need is great.  If God does not show up, it will not work.  I believe it will work, lives will be changed, and this ministry will bring Him glory.  One of my favorite stories is David and Goliath.  David’s brothers warned him that Goliath was too big to hit.  David assured them that Goliath was too big to miss with God’s help.  He then picked up the stone and killed the giant.  Jesus is our stone, our rock.  The needs of these women are too big not to make some kind of difference.  I don’t know of many other churches I would trust as much as JIBC to be given the assignment of helping hurting people recover.  I love the big ones!

See you Sunday, Pastor Tom