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Greetings in the wonderful name of Jesus!
As February draws to a close, I am thankful as I see what all God has done in the past few weeks. We officially launched our Thrive Fellowship Group. This is a group that harbors fellowship and ministry to those who are unmarried. The first meeting was a great success, and this ministry is available to anyone 18 or older who is unmarried. Our youth and hyphen also attended the SC District Youth Convention. This was and always is a very powerful event that empowers those who attend with fresh vision and purpose. We are thankful to all our parents who made this possible for their youth to attend as well as all our chaperones who facilitated it.
I want to give honor to all of those who work so faithfully on our many outreach ministries. Our Restoration Outreach serves our homeless community. The Shepherd’s Pantry provides extra help to those in need, and our Nursing Home Ministry reaches many who are unable to leave their facilities to come to church. Each of these ministries require hours of preparation in setting up equipment and product as well as the distribution of goods and ministering to those in attendance. Thank you all for the sacrifice that you make of your time and effort. As well, thank you to all of those who give financially to these endeavors.
Recently, we have seen an increase in individual Bible studies as well as Bible study groups specific to men and women, respectively. These groups have helped us develop new relationships. Many are growing in their faith, being baptized in Jesus name and enjoying the networking and fellowship opportunities. It is such a blessing to see all these wonderful things taking place as the Lord is adding to the church daily! We also began our new Discipleship Class, and it has been a huge success.
As we move into March, we are excited to be hosting a Spanish Rally in our main sanctuary on Saturday, March 1st at 2pm. There will also be a Goodtimer’s fellowship for ages 50 and up at Master’s Wok at 3pm. We will also be having a spaghetti fundraiser on Sunday, March 2nd after service. Spaghetti plates will be sold with all proceeds supporting the efforts of the Shepherd’s Pantry.
To transition from talking about food, I want to remind us that we will be entering into 3 days of prayer and fasting from Sunday evening at 8pm on March 2nd to after service on Wednesday, March 5th. This will be a special time of sacrifice as we deny ourselves, bind the strong man, loose the bands of wickedness, to undo the heavy burdens, and to let the oppressed go free, and that ye break every yoke (Isaiah 58:6)!
For all leaders in any capacity and for all of those who participate in ministry at SOP or who desire to participate in ministry, we will be having a leadership training session on Sunday, March 16th at 2pm. This session will last no longer than 45 minutes. After the training session, all department heads will stay for a meeting as we discuss upcoming events. There will be a very important all church workday as we prepare for Easter on Saturday, March 22nd. We will announce more information on this workday very soon. IOTN Conference will take place March 27-29 at True Life Church in Greer, SC. SOP is a sponsor for the conference, and many are involved, so we encourage as many to attend as is possible. However, this is also a Shepherd’s Pantry weekend, so we will need to be sure we have enough people on hand to facilitate our distribution that weekend as well.
Last but not least, the 5th Sunday fellowship for the churches of Section 1 will take place on Sunday, March 30th at 6:30pm. The Sanctuary of Easley will be the host of this rally. I will be preaching that night, and we will be paying special honor to Bro. Charles Foster on his retirement. Bro. Foster spent many years as pastor at Living Water UPC in Seneca, SC. I want to encourage as many as possible to attend this special service. Thank you for all that you do to support this assembly and keep the work of the Lord moving forward!
Many Blessings,
Pastor Russell Drake
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