THANK YOU DOES NOT SEEM BIG ENOUGH!

I wish there was an easier way to thank everyone who prayed for, help bring, hunted deer, cleaned coats, bought new coats, donated items, etc. Thank you does not see strong enough or big enough.

This next Monday, October 28 we are planning, good Lord willing, to leave for Greeneville, Tennessee. We will be taking venison and coats. We have received over 160 new coats and probably 50 used coats. It was a requirement to only bring used coats that had been dry-cleaned.

Ron Corry and I are going to deliver these to our former church members, Charles and Judy Dillon. Using online estimates, I believe Charles will be able to make over 2000 meals on 500 lbs of venison. For those new to our church family, Charles and Judy Dillon were members here at JIBC. On one of our relief trips to Katrina victims in New Orleans, Charles and Judy felt God call them to do relief work full time. Since 2005, almost 20 years, they have been serving as volunteer disaster relief missionaries. Ron and I also have another person going with us. A friend of Mr. Hines, felt God calling him to go and help. So we are taking Chip with us. If Charles thinks he will work out, we will leave him and help support him for a month as he volunteers to work with Charles and Judy. Again, thank you does not seem to be big enough, but THANK YOU ALL!

FALL FESTIVAL: ONE WEEK AND COUNTING!

The annual Fall Festival is just a few weeks away, almost just a few days away. Remember, this is the largest numerical event we will have on our church campus all year. The event draws hundreds and hundreds of people. The Riverland Terrace Community has jumped on board to have their “Under the Oaks” event. Smart thinking on their part. That increased our event from BIG to BIGGER! So what can you do? First, pray for safety and for the love of God to be shown in every volunteer, in every game and in every way. Second, please consider volunteering for 1 ½ hours or for the entire 3 hours. The event cannot happen without volunteers. Make it a family event: husbands and wives; parents and child; neighbors and friends; churched and unchurched. We can make this work. Third, if you can, bring candy this Sunday. Let’s make it rain with goodies, every child having a safe, family friendly, fun time sponsored b y people who love Jesus!

Good Lord willing, I will see you Sunday.

Pastor Tom

Opportunities to Serve

JIBC Family, there are three things I want to share with you in today’s article.

First, our annual Fall Festival is just around the corner, Thursday, October 31. We are already asking our church family and friends to do three things: pray, donate candy (lots of candy) and volunteer. We will have the most people of the year on our church campus that night. We throw a great party and the crowds will come. We have about 50 volunteers already and we need about 40 more. You can volunteer for 1½ hours or for the entire evening of 3 hours. There are a variety of games and booths were you can serve. No talent or training needed, just willing, happy hearts. This is a family friendly positive alternative to some of the more harsh traditional Halloween events. Volunteers make it a success. We cannot do it without large number of willing volunteers. Please consider signing up to help. Signup sheets are located by the office and in the worship bulletins.

Second, our next response to Hurricane Helene Relief Efforts will be two-fold. First, I have it in my heart to carry 500 pounds of venison to our friends Charles and Judy Dillon. Former members, they have given their lives over the past 20 years to feeding the masses during devastating disasters. They are currently set up in Greeneville, Tennessee feeding 150 people a day. This is a totally volunteer ministry. I already have 225 pounds of venison donated. I am asking our hunters to donate to this cause and to ask their hunting buddies to donate. I think we can reach a goal of carrying 500lbs of venison if our hunters will feel the call. That 500 lbs, by my calculations, can feed over 2000 meals of stew, chili or spaghetti! My plans are to go to Greeneville, Tennessee to drop off supplies on Monday, October 28 and to return on Tuesday, October 29. Please let me know if you are interested and willing to donate and help collect some donated venison. Come on, let’s go hunting for Jesus!

Third, cold weather is already setting in up in the mountains. I want us to send 100 coats of any and all sizes to Charles and Judy to be distributed. Charles told me last week “If you bring the meat, I’ll cook it and if you bring the coats, we will distribute them”. My response: “Then get your freezers ready and your space cleared out, JIBC is coming”. So, do you have a gently worn coat you no longer wear or that does not fit? Bring it to the church and drop it off by the office. Please make sure to include something with your name and the size of the coat. Right now, we are only accepting coats from our members and friends. If we do not reach the goal of 100, then I will release the Krackens (our best and most serious Goodwill shoppers) to go to every Goodwill store in our region to buy coats. Let’s give our JIBC family a chance to meet the need. If you wanted to buy a new coat to donate, that would be great. Just make sure you leave the tags on it. There is a reason for doing that.

I love you all. That is the kind of church I pastor!

Pastor Tom