It is our hope to meet for friendship and worship each of the Sundays of winter. However, if our local weather presents concern, please stay safe even if it requires you to stay home. We hope to have a decision regarding Sunday morning activities prepared in a timely way. Tune to WLOS and follow the ticker at the bottom of the screen. If our church name isn't there, either we've deemed it too early to make a decision, or they've not yet updated the ticker, or we are still planning to gather. Should we still plan to worship but you don’t feel comfortable driving, please know that you can still worship with us online.
Giving the Jesus Way
United Christian Ministries is in need of cereal.
To donate items, please drop them off at UCM’s building at 191 Skyland Drive. Thank you!
Midweek Meals
Our winter mid-week meals will resume on Wednesday, January 21
at 5:30 p.m. in the MFC. Dinner that evening will be fried chicken,
fried okra, salad, roll & dessert. We look forward to seeing you there!
Mission Moment 1.7.26
Mina Podgaisky
Field Personnel in Krakow, Poland
“A friend loves at all times,
and a brother is born for adversity.”
– Proverbs 17:17 (AMP)
Friendship Blessing
Friendships do not know country boundaries, do not know distances.
Even if distance separates us,
Even if it hurts to think of the distance between us,
There is always a place in my heart for you.
In each memory of you, in each trip,
Our friendship continues to bloom.
I know that even if you are far, you are always there,
When it is night, you are a lighthouse, a secure guide.
With your prayers and support, my road opens up,
In your friendship, I find beauty and peace.
Thank you for your love.
Thank you for being my compass and my lighthouse during the hard times.
In each word, in each call, in each message,
in each prayer, you plant seeds of hope.
I am thankful, grateful and blessed.
My soul sings with gratitude,
and your friendship brings me peace.
“The Lord bless you
and keep you;
the Lord make his face shine on you
and be gracious to you;
the Lord turn his face toward you and give you peace.”
— Numbers 6:24-26 (NIV)
After serving in Ukraine for 23 years, the war has forced us to move to Kraków, Poland. We have gone through a tumultuous time with grief, loss, pain, death and uncertainty. However, the friendships of our CBF churches, friends and family have made this transition bearable. We have hope that the Lord will continue to use us to minister to Ukrainians and Ukrainian refugees. He has already opened doors to start ministering to some Ukrainian foster families in Poland and doing premarital counseling to a Polish-Bolivian couple from our church. We feel your friendship. We feel blessed! We experience God’s protection. We are blessed!
Psalm 121
“I look up to the mountains—
does my help come from there?
My help comes from the Lord,
who made heaven and earth!
He will not let you stumble;
the one who watches over you will not slumber.
Indeed, he who watches over Israel
never slumbers or sleeps.
The Lord himself watches over you!
The Lord stands beside you as your protective shade.
The sun will not harm you by day,
nor the moon at night.
The Lord keeps you from all harm
and watches over your life.
The Lord keeps watch over you as you come and go,
both now and forever.
Amen!”
Pray. . .Give. . .Go.
1st Explorers After-School Program Recap
First Explorers had a fun week before Christmas break. They participated in Chapel and Missions, and as always they greatly enjoyed their free time playing outside and creating with craft materials. First Explorers staff and children would like to give a big special thank you to the Ladies Mission Circle for preparing individualized treat bags for each child. The children were sent off to Christmas break with sweet goodies and smiles on their faces.
Mission Moment 12.31.25
Caroline LeGrand
CBF Missions Communications Specialist
"I am confident of this, that the one who began a good work in you will continue to complete it until the day of Jesus Christ."
– Philippians 1:6
I’ve been thinking a lot about the unspoken grief that comes with life’s in-betweens. The precipice between one thing and another is a difficult place in which to exist. There are all kinds of transitions—those you knew were coming, those you didn’t expect, those you planned and those you wish never happened.
For many people I know, the past several years have been a tumultuous time—constant political and economic upheaval, a global pandemic that reshaped the course of their lives, the death of loved ones, babies born and families that grew or shrunk, relationships that began and ended, identities reconsidered, homes left by choice or by force and careers and livelihoods left by choice or by force. Personally, I’ve experienced more beginnings and endings in the past several years than I can count. And with this comes a peculiar, liminal grief that is hard to describe.
This blessing is dedicated to all those at a crossroads, whether mourning what they lost, looking hopefully to whatever is next or stuck somewhere in-between. But it is especially dedicated to my family, who have and continue to experience many transitions over the past several years.
A Blessing for the In-betweens
Blessed are you who mourn life’s transitions.
Blessed are you who yearn for the things that used to be.
Blessed are you who feel torn between relief and sorrow at a moment of leaving.
Blessed are you when the person you thought you’d become, the things you thought you’d do, are no longer possible.
Blessed are you who are waiting for closure.
Blessed are you when you feel neither here nor there, when you’re not sure if you fit in anywhere at all.
Blessed are you when you are too tired to embrace change and process what you’ve lost.
Blessed are you when you feel unequipped to start something new.
Blessed are you when the path is no longer clear, and you feel you’ve lost your way.
Blessed are you when you feel like the world is moving against you.
Blessed are you when life keeps rolling along, with people leaving or moving on or dying, but you’re still here, wondering why. Why am I still here when so many others don’t get to be? What is my purpose?
To all those experiencing life’s in-betweens, know that the One who began a good work in you will continue to complete it until the day of Christ Jesus.
Within the grief of these liminal spaces, God is there.
In the stillness of the in-between, neither here nor there, the One who has brought light in the darkness and joy in the morning whispers to you, saying:
The One who created you has not abandoned you.
You are not finished.
There is still work to be done.
There is still more beauty to behold,
more joy and grief to experience,
more love to give and receive.
You are still unfolding, ever-creating,
ever-becoming the person
God made you to be.
You are not alone.
You are still here.
Giving the Jesus Way
United Christian Ministries is in need of cereal.
To donate items, please drop them off at UCM’s building at 191 Skyland Drive. Thank you!
Christmas Eve Service
Wednesday, December 24 at 5:00 p.m.
Begin your family’s Christmas celebration with the story of Christ’s birth! Join us on December 24 for our Christmas Eve Candlelight Service. Come early at 5:00 p.m. to light a candle in the windows in memory of a loved one and to hear Christmas music before the service. Then, beginning at 5:30 p.m., our family-friendly service will capture the wonder of Christmas with familiar carols, the retelling of the Christmas story, and the glow of candlelight. Afterward, gather your family in front of our beautifully decorated Christmas tree for a classic holiday photo. Don’t miss this opportunity to create lifelong memories with your entire family!
Our Service Will Be Livestreamed!
Our Christmas Eve service will be live-streamed! If you or someone you know is unable to attend in person, join us online by clicking here as we celebrate the coming of Christ together.
1st Explorers After-School Program Recap
This has been a very busy week in after school. The students have been preparing all week for the Christmas program. They have been putting on costumes and going over lines and singing the Christmas songs so they will be ready for the program. The students have also been able to create some beautiful snowflakes this week. Also, the kids have enjoyed in their downtime, playing outside and working on activities inside. The students also got an opportunity to hear the Christmas story this week and got to do some angels.
Giving the Jesus Way
United Christian Ministries is in need of cereal.
To donate items, please drop them off at UCM’s building at 191 Skyland Drive. Thank you!