The church office will be closed tomorrow in celebration of Martin Luther King Jr. Day. Regular office hours will resume on Tuesday.

After a long fight with cancer, Mike Engle has passed away. Arrangements are pending with Stan Norman at the Cowboy Church.

Eugene Rogers has passed away. Please note that it is Keith Eugene Rogers, the man most of us knew as Eugene, who has passed away. His father Keith H. Rogers, whom most of us know as Keith, was the one who called to tell me about it. There will not be a church service, but Stan Norman will lead a graveside service on Friday, January 15, 2021, at the Abilene Cemetery.

The church office will close on 1 p.m. on Thursday, January 14, 2020 and reopen on 9 a.m. on Friday, January 15. Pam Simpson will be spending some time with her grandkids.

This morning I was notified that Bob Murnahan had passed away after being hospitalized for COVID-19. Please keep his wife, Sondra, and the rest of his family in your prayers.

Happy New Year! I pray 2021 will be an improvement over 2020. But I know that while God sometimes acts alone, more often than not, God sticks to the original plan and chooses to work through or with us, the human beings made in God’s image. I think whether or not 2021 is better than 2020 will depend on what use we make of God’s grace. As Augustine of Hippo reportedly said, “He that made us without ourselves, will not save us without ourselves.” We can’t do it by ourselves, but it is unlikely that God will do it without us. Let’s get to work.

On the third day of Christmas, your pastor’s sharing with you … a virtual christmas choir. The video below was put together by the Discipleship Ministries division of the United Methodist Church. Enjoy!

A friendly reminder that the sanctuary is open for prayer this morning (December 24, 2020). The altar candles are lit and Brenda Holm has put together a great playlist of music.

I did not sleep well last night and instead spent a lot of time thinking about Dr. Brian Holmes and how poorly he’s been treated for his attempts to do the job he was hired to do during this difficult time. I’m sure there are times when he, more than anyone else, wishes he wasn’t the Dickinson County Health Officer. (That may be projection, there are times when, more than anyone else, I wish I wasn’t the one who had to make difficult decisions for the church.)

I woke up exhausted this morning and wrote a cranky, somewhat belligerent post in his defense. I’ve scrapped that post. Instead, I’m going to let actions speak louder than words and simply point out that whenever it has been up to me, I have tried and will continue to try to follow his advice on matters of public health regardless of whether or not that advice is enforceable by law. The preacher in me would encourage you to do the same.

In order for your giving to be credited to your statement for 2020, the church must receive your check in the church office by Monday, December 28, 2020. If you are mailing in a check, please send it as soon as possible for it to be delivered in time. Thank you and Happy New Year!

To be clear about the plans for Christmas Eve.

1. There will be no in-person worship service in the sanctuary.
2. The regular service, including they hymn Silent Night, will be available for streaming (anytime) and on the radio (8 p.m.)
3. We will gather in the parking lot at 7 p.m. and again at 11:55 to light candles and sing silent night while masked and socially distanced.

I watched “The Social Dilemma” on Netflix tonight. I’m going to be off facebook for a while. If you need to reach me email john@revcollins.com or call my cell phone.