“On your mark…..get set…..GO!”

Those are the familiar words at thebeginning of a race or some kind of competition. Well, let it be knownthat we have begun our race towards seeing the fulfillment of God’spromises to us. We are actively pursuing begin ready for REVIVAL tocome our way. Sunday morning the presence of the Lord filled thesanctuary and the Holy Ghost said, “Receive Me, and I will receive you,saith the Lord. Ask what you will and it will be done!” WOW! I canhardly wait for what God is going to do.

IN PREPARATION

for God’s move upon us, we have determined to doour part. On Sunday mornings we are hearing about “THE WORD”…and the impact the Word of God has in our lives. Sunday night we startedour study on “FASTING” and learned what fasting is not and what itis/does for us as believers. Wednesday night we will begin our study on“PRAYER.” I’m so excited about what God is going to do as we, Hispeople, pursue Him in every area of our lives.

LAST WEDNESDAY NIGHT,

I talked about “Moving Forward.” I usedthe Scripture Phil. 3 where Paul told them he was focusing on one thing……. Forgetting the things behind him and moving toward what liesahead. Our focus can’t be on living in the past, nor wasting our present,but moving towards what lies ahead. Part of that involves our focus onthe Word of God, Prayer, Revival, and Fasting. There is one other thing Iwould like for us to really focus on….GIVING! In Matt. 6 Jesus wasteaching and there are 3 things He particularly mentions. He says, “Whenyou PRAY…,” “When you FAST…,” and “When you GIVE…” Inoticed that He didn’t say “IF you pray, fast, give,” but WHEN you pray,fast, give. It appears that those 3 things are tied together as importantthings in a believers life. Now before you think I’m begging, I’M NOT! I just know the blessings of God that come when we learn and practice theprinciples of His Word. GOD IS FAITHFUL! For the month of December we broke our all time “4 week” tithe record! Can somebodysay, “Praise the Lord?” The only way we keep moving forward in whatGod has said to us is by the faithful and consistent giving of God’s people.The more we give, the more God gives back. The more God gives back,the more we can do to get into that harvest field. The more we give, thecloser we get to relocating to our new property. I even spoke a word thatmost people won’t believe. I believe God can move us out to our newplace with LITTLE OR NO DEBT! Is there anyone that can believe thatwith me? Would you be willing to pray for it? Fast for it? Give for it?Some things only come about by prayer and fasting! I’m looking forwardto our congregation joining together to see God move!

MORE GOOD NEWS!!!!

Our church received an acknowledgement thatwe are in the top 100 Sunday Schools in the Church of god. We are 39

largest Sunday School! Thank God for that, but we should be farther upthanthat! It can happen if you will make every effort to be in your classon a regular basis. What a wonderful opportunity for fellowship and asystematic, in depth study of God’s Word. I’ll look forward to seeing youin Sunday School THIS WEEK!

THE ANNUAL MINISTRY TRAINING CONFERENCE (Normally called T.O.O.L.’s Conference)

is being held Saturday, January 16

, at theInternational House of Praise, Elgin, SC. There will be tracks for 1)Pastors, staff, church leaders, 2)Women’s Ministries, 3)Youth Ministries,4)Children’s Ministries, 5)Christian Education, 6)Girls’ Club Ministries,7)Boys’ Ministries, 8) Family Ministries, 9) Music Ministries, and 10)World Missions. If you would like to attend, please call the church office(between 9 AM & 2 PM) and give your name and the track you wish toattend. You may also give your information to Jonathan Atkins (476-2977, ext. 105).

FOR YOUR CALENDAR:

January 21

- Greeters’ Meeting on Thursdayevening, at 6 PM in the CLC. Dessert and coffee will be served.January 25

-40 Day Fast begins, and January 28

is the J.O.Y. ClubMeeting.

IF THERE IS INCLEMENT WEATHER ON SUNDAY,

it is the policyof the church to have only one service at 2:00 PM. Every attempt will bemade to remind everyone on that day of our service schedule by using thePhone Tree, radio announcements, TV announcements, and website.

CHURCH & PASTOR’S COUNCIL WILL MEET

Tuesday, January12

, at 6:00 P.M. All members of this board need to be present.

PRAYER LIST:

Clyde Taylor, Teresa Johnson, Pat Brown, LindaJohnson, Larry Laster, Dianne Arnold, Larry Lee Tammy Morrow, RexDuncan, Scott Dominquez, Riley Dominquez, Martha Jennings, JohnnySimmons, Neil Vinson, Gail Wood, Carolyn Godfrey, James Bennett,Susan West, Glen Patterson, Kim Roberson, Shut Ins. Those in NursingHomes, and Those sick with colds and flu.

Christian Sympathy

to Ray Mathis on the death of an uncle, to Betty Balland Annette Richards on the death of a sister Wynelle Wooten, and toAnn Knight on the death of an aunt Estelle Duncan. May God bless andcomfort you all.

CONGRATULATIONS

to Justin and Krystal Nelson on the birth of ason, Jayden Luke, born December 30

. Proud grandparents are Ritchieand Tammy Nelson. God bless you!

F.R.E.E.D.

12-Step Addiction Group will meet at 6:30 PM January 12

KIDFEST PLANNING SESSION

is scheduled for Monday, January11

, at 7:00 P.M.

Children will be going to

the Monster Truck Show again this year. SeeJonathan Atkins for cost and other information.

ADULT PRAISE & WORSHIP PRACTICE

is Sunday, January 10

, at4:00 P.M. All members of these teams need to be in attendance.

* Greeters - John and Jeanne Nemitz* Sunday School Greeter - Robert Sloan* CLC Greeter - Paul Lundberg* Head Ushers - Charles O’Shields and Bobby Brown* Usher Team # 1 - Robert Sloan, Larry Young, Michael Brown,Dennis Crocker, Rick Priester, and Brian Arnold* Finance Committee - Ryan Ballard, Bobby Brown, andSam Garrett* Nursery - Wednesday - Betty BallSunday A.M.- Ann Knight and Sharon RoszkowskiP.M. - Marilynn Sykes* Kiddie Church - Clint and Ramona Letourneau* Spotlights:In Honor of Alonzo Atkins on his 17

birthday,Love, Dad, Mom, Jessica, and J. T.* Music - Wednesday - Kathy ArellanoSunday A.M. - Jonathan & Jessica MurphyP.M. - Amy Arnold** Maroon Praise Team