Happy New Year!

As you enter into this new year I hope that you will consider reading through the Bible with us.  This will start the third year of a three year program suggested by Alan Stibbs in Search the Scriptures.  The advantage of this program is that the book includes study questions for each day, and the daily readings are shorter since they are spread out over three years.  If you don’t want to purchase the book, the weekly schedule for the Bible reading is included in each Sunday’s bulletin.

If you would like to try to read through the Bible in a year, my favorite solution is still the Daily Walk Bible.  Each daily Bible reading is roughly three chapters, but the additional material for each day is what will help you to better understand the overall flow and interpretation of the Bible. It even includes a daily application section!

Starting in January I’ll be leading a Bible class on Sunday morning called Christian History Made Easy.  Christian History Made Easy explains early church history, the Church Councils, the Great Schism, the Crusades, Francis of Assisi, John Wycliffe, Martin Luther, the Protestant Reformation, and more. It will consist of a 30 minute video, additional explanation, and class discussion.  This Sunday we’ll be studying “The First Christians” and discussing Hebrews 11.  This entire study should take about three months.

Finally, although many of you are Packer backers (as I am), you probably aren’t entering this postseason with as much excitement as in earlier years.  However, I’m still looking forward to the Superbowl!  It’s been fun to get together as a church to watch, but I must admit that I have been a little disappointed because I view our parties as a possible outreach, rather than simply a fellowship activity.  So this year, even though we may still have a party at church, I want to provide DVD’s for you to use at home.  This year’s Power to Win DVD will feature Carolina Panther’s linebacker Thomas Davis.  I’d like to encourage you to invite some neighbors over to watch the game, and then see if they’d be interested in hearing a special message of encouragement from the 2014 Walter Payton man of the year – the only NFL player in history to return after tearing his ACL three times!

“So teach us to number our days that we may get a heart of wisdom” (Psalm 90:12).