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!
1st Explorers After-School Program Recap
The First Explorers only met one day last week, but they played and were excited for Thanksgiving!
Mission Moment 12.3.25
Gennady Podgaisky
Field Personnel in Krakow, Poland
He shall judge between the nations and shall arbitrate for many peoples; they shall beat their swords into plowshares and their spears into pruning hooks; nation shall not lift up sword against nation; neither shall they learn war any more. – Isaiah 2:4
As I write these words on May 13, 2025, the 1,185th day of full-scale war in Ukraine carries on. A church we attended while living in Kyiv has prayed daily for the end of the war and for peace to come in Ukraine since the very first day of the war. Prayer warriors faithfully continue to meet every day, bringing “…prayers and petitions, with thanksgiving, presenting their requests to God” (Phil. 4:6). Despite the challenges and hardships, prayers for the end of the war and physical protection, there is also thankfulness and gratefulness. There is also a deep desire to be a blessing and faithful carriers of the Good News and God’s peace to near and far “neighbors.” Below are a few excerpts from my conversations and prayers with two Ukrainian ministers who live, serve and thrive in a war-torn country.
“I am thankful to God for my family, which is still intact and alive. I am grateful for God’s physical protection last night and the nights before. Even though there is some damage in the city from last night’s rockets and drone attacks, it could have been worse. I am grateful for God’s provision for my family. In the last several days, we lived like the Israelites in the desert—God fed them manna from heaven which was provided every day. We live in such a period when God provides our daily needs from different sources, and we have our daily bread.”
“Thank you, Lord, for your mercy and grace, that this day we have the opportunity to live and serve others. Thank you for your mercy that renews us every day, as it is written in scripture, ‘New, fresh mercies greet me with every sunrise. So wonderfully great is your faithfulness!’ (Lamentations 3:23). Thank you for your provision every new day and that we can do what you entrusted us to do every day. Thank you for people who support our lives and our service to you, who encourage us, who are praying for us, who carry us in the hands of prayer.”
“Thank you, Lord, for the special grace which you provide in order for us to serve others so that we, as your church, will be able to be present where there is great need and that we will be able to testify to people about your glory, to sow seeds of your Word in people’s hearts. Thank you, Lord, that we can stand firm and serve people in these hard circumstances for three years already. You lead us and protect us. You have a plan and intention for my life amid many hardships, challenges and war. Thank you for this wonderful opportunity to serve others and to bring your Gospel to the people.”
Let us join these two persons and many other faithful followers of Christ in their prayers for the advancement of God’s Kingdom in people’s hearts in different parts of God’s world. Let us be a blessing to our spouses, children, extended family, neighbors, co-workers and anyone whom God brings into our path. I am a channel and not a well of God’s blessings. I am blessed to be a blessing! Let God’s blessing flow through me. Amen!
Pray. . .Give. . .Go.
Mission Moment 11.26.25
Ashley Gill Harrington
Associate Pastor of Children and Church Communication
Georgetown Baptist Church, Georgetown, Kentucky
“A shoot shall come out from the stump of Jesse, and a branch shall grow out of his roots.” – Isaiah 11:1
Perhaps it is no surprise that in scripture we see God as a gardener, speaking and planting at creation, cultivating and tending the created world, pruning and grafting. In the Gospels, we hear Jesus refer to himself as the vine and God as the one who painstakingly cuts to make a way for a fruitful harvest. Only with care and connection do we flourish and produce fruit.
Not until we find dirt under our fingernails do we understand the patience and discipline in gardening. With spades and trowels, we dare to co-create something new that is beautiful and bountiful just as God did in Genesis.
A Blessing for Co-Creation
Blessed are we who plant seeds in the soil as a tangible act of hope.
We let go and trust that with time, water and care, we will eventually bear witness to the power and mystery that happens where we cannot see it.
Blessed are we who impatiently await the first signs of sprouts to break through the surface. And when they do—what joy!
Our hope was not in vain.
Our faithfulness in watering and waiting has helped to bring new life.
But we know our job is far from over.
We must now cultivate and tend, prune and graft.
Blessed are we whose prayers take the form of watering cans, compost and trellises.
Consistent prayers that keep the soil healthy, weeds and pests removed, diseases managed. A daily rhythm of nurturing that makes the difference between withering and thriving.
Blessed are we who also find unwarranted success with fruit that appears despite our neglect, who find failure in hungry bunnies who nibble away at delicate stalks and who water, protect, nurture, fertilize and simply hope for the best.
Blessed are we who hope that despite the unpredictable weather and the ecosystem of insects and the myriad of factors outside of our control, plants will grow and even flourish. Hope that can be harvested in flowers, fruit and vegetables. Hope that is manifested in a ripe tomato and blooming rose. Hope that is made real only when we dare to dig in the dirt.
Blessed are we who plant and toil when it feels like we labor in vain. May we plant the seeds of God’s New Day with the hope that it too will eventually break through.
Pray. . .Give. . .Go.
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!
1st Explorers After-School Program Recap
1st Explorers had a busy week full of visitors and activities. 4H visited Monday with an interactive activity, Kaitlyn provided chapel for the children on Tuesday, and Sandi Allen shared all about Maine with RAs and GAs on Wednesday. On Thursday, Cheryl Beck visited with special guest Peter Koch, associate director of the Mountain Heritage Center at WCU. Peter brought some Cherokee playthings, shared some old photos of people at play years ago, read a couple of ghost stories, and led the children in making cornshuck dolls. Mrs. Cheryl brought her famous chocolate chip pumpkin muffins, and a great time was had by all. Friday we wrapped up the week with show practice with Mrs. Marina and lots of outside time.
Mission Moment 11.19.25
Kirk
Field Personnel in Southeast Asia
As one who has been involved in two Bible translations for people groups where believers comprise less than one percent of the population, I have had the opportunity to see people reading and understanding the Word for the first time. It is fascinating to hear their reactions and listen to how they feel what they have read would apply in their cultural setting. By contrast, so many of us in the United States are used to having dozens of translations on our bookshelves or smartphones—perhaps this wealth of scripture causes us to forget the incredible significance of the Word. I struggle to remind myself to approach the Word with humility—and give it my full attention despite mountains of internal and external distractions. Below is a blessing to use before you read scripture.
A Blessing for the Reading of the Word
As you open this book
May your mind be calmed
Your ears sharpened
Your heart quieted
May your reading inspire you
Challenge you
Break your heart
Heal you
May you be mindful of the wonder of scripture
Always there
Always waiting
A book longing to be read
May you remember those who have never known
The miracle of these words
In the language of their hearts
In a place of freedom
May you listen as God speaks
Silent in His presence
Still as a weaned child
The rushing world far away
And may you emerge from this time
A mustard seed sprouting
A light learning to shine
A blessing
Pray...Give...Go.
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!
1st Explorers After-School Program Recap
It was a short week at First Explorers with schools being closed Monday and Tuesday. Explorers had a great time with Missions on Wednesday, an active visit from Generation Kids on Thursday, and they made strong progress Friday on their Christmas play with Mrs. Marina! In between the activities, they enjoyed lots of outside time due to the decent weather. This coming week will be full of gratitude lessons and activities.
Mission Moment 11.12.25
David Brooks
Pastor, First Baptist Church, Rome, Georgia
"You’re blessed when you can show people how to cooperate instead of compete or fight. That’s when you discover who you really are, and your place in God’s family." – Matthew 5:9 (The Message)
The Bible is full of blessings. We cannot read very far in any book of the Bible without encountering a blessing from God or a blessing that one person shares with another. But some blessings stand out from all the others—blessings such as those that we find in the Beatitudes of Jesus in Matthew 5. These nine blessings from Jesus at the start of his most famous sermon set the tone for life with him. They are gifts from Jesus to us, reminding us that even when we hurt, when we are frustrated, when we mourn and when we are weary, we are blessed because we do not face life alone and our lives are held lovingly in the hands of God.
In my attempts to follow Jesus faithfully, I come back to these beloved blessings of Jesus time and again. I draw strength and my spirit is renewed when I carry just one of these blessings with me in my heart and mind throughout a given day or week. Reciting a blessing from Jesus brings me back to him and puts my day in the right perspective.
Even as Jesus blesses me, I wonder how I can be a blessing by reflecting his meekness, his hunger and thirst for righteousness, his mercy, his peace. And the blessing that he gives to all who strive to make peace might be the most relevant and timely blessing for our world today that is rife with division and distrust: “Blessed are the peacemakers, for they will be called children of God” (Mt 5:9, NRSV). Or, in the always practical language of The Message: “You’re blessed when you can show people how to cooperate instead of compete or fight. That’s when you discover who you really are, and your place in God’s family.”
God blesses every effort that we make to resist the temptations of competing and fighting with one another. Cooperating and making peace in our relationships, even and especially with our opponents and enemies, is a true source of God blessing us all. And when we choose to make peace, when we attempt to understand someone else, when we show people how to cooperate, we live into our authentic identity as children of God—children who are beloved, blessed and befriended by Jesus.
May the peace and blessing of Christ be with you.
You’re Blessed
Matthew 5:3-12, The Message
You’re blessed when you’re at the end of your rope. With less of you there is more of God and his rule.
You’re blessed when you feel you’ve lost what is most dear to you. Only then can you be embraced by the One most dear to you.
You’re blessed when you’re content with just who you are—no more, no less. That’s the moment you find yourselves proud owners of everything that can’t be bought.
You’re blessed when you’ve worked up a good appetite for God. He’s food and drink in the best meal you’ll ever eat.
You’re blessed when you care. At the moment of being ‘care-full,’ you find yourselves cared for.
You’re blessed when you get your inside world—your mind and heart—put right. Then you can see God in the outside world.
You’re blessed when you can show people how to cooperate instead of compete or fight. That’s when you discover who you really are, and your place in God’s family.
You’re blessed when your commitment to God provokes persecution. The persecution drives you even deeper into God’s kingdom.
Not only that—count yourselves blessed every time people put you down or throw you out or speak lies about you to discredit me. What it means is that the truth is too close for comfort and they are uncomfortable. You can be glad when that happens—give a cheer, even—for though they don’t like it, I do! And all heaven applauds. And know that you are in good company. My prophets and witnesses have always gotten into this kind of trouble.
Pray...Give...Go.