Pastor Chris' Letter January 2017

Dear Trinity Family,
I wanted to begin my letter this month by wishing you all a Happy New Year. This last year has flown by. As I completed my first full year of being your pastor, I am so happy for the things that God has done in our congregation and I look forward to what God will do through this church in 2017.
As the New Year begins it is a great opportunity for us to renew the commitment that we have to our relationship with God. As we have talked about many times this past year, being a disciple is about our relationship with God in Jesus Christ. Beginning this month, we will start a new sermon series called, “New Year: Same Promises”. This series will help us to remember the promises God has made to us and invite us anew to be disciples of Jesus Christ. This new series will offer tangible ways that can help us as we live out those commitments in our daily walk of faith and as we encourage one another to be the disciples God has called us to be. 
As we begin a new year I would also like to remind you of a few things. The first is that with winter weather already upon us, the church office will close when East Noble Schools are closed for bad weather. This means that all activities are cancelled that day (unless I contact you otherwise). When it comes to Sunday morning services we will only cancel if there is a travel advisory called for Noble County. If you would like to sign up for text alerts around Sunday morning closings feel free to contact the church office. I will say that although we may still have service I do not want anyone to try to come to church if they feel unsafe about going out. We will miss you, but I want you to stay safe. The second reminder I have is to ask you to continue to give when you are unable to come to church. It is easy for many of  us to not think to give when we are unable to be at church, however, this is the time your gift is the most needed as we have to pay for parking lots to be cleared and salted for everyone’s safety. Finally, I would like to remind you that we will not be ordering new giving envelopes. The reason we do this is to spare the expense of new envelopes, and also these envelopes bog down the process of processing gifts. There are many options besides these envelopes. There are envelopes available in both worship spaces. We have old boxes of envelopes on the ministry center that you are welcome to take (however the dates are wrong). We also have the ability to process online and credit card gifts (although the credit card deducts a small fee). With all of these options the important thing to remember is that your name needs to appear with your gift so that we can credit you at the end of the year for tax purposes. If you have any questions feel free to contact the church office.

Again it has been a blessing to walk with you on this journey of faith over the last year and I look forward to the challenges and triumphs that 2017 will bring.

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