Advent

On a special day in 2018, I heard a significant sound. It was a still, small voice sharing one phrase repeatedly: “They are resilient!” Holy Spirit communicated the message, and the phrase referred to you, the Christian Church in North Carolina. We are the resilient Body of Christ, bound together by an unapologetic belief in Christ as Lord and Savior of the world, and in the Lord’s Table as a unifying experience where things in common are celebrated and diversity is respected. This is also true of your faithful support to the Region. This special Christmas offering is another chance for your gifts to keep the sound of resilience repeating as your Regional staff seeks to empower our congregations by providing the right gifts and resources. Gifts that inspire bravery and facilitate the change of their new realities. Resources that enlarge our capacity to recover quickly from difficulties and adapt well to adversity and stress. Isaac Watts’s famous Christmas hymn, “Joy to the World” reminds us that amid life’s various challenges, there is still a sound of joy ringing in the hearts of Christians everywhere. This hymn invites us to join Heaven and earth, fields and floods, hills and plains in celebrating the wonders of God’s love. Similarly, your support of the Christmas offering produces a joyful reverberation throughout the year. As we fully engage the Advent season, anticipating our Lord coming once again in new and marvelous ways, we are assured that your faithful support to your Region will joyfully resound: through camping, conferences, and retreats for our youth and young adults through all persons seeking affirmation for ministry through congregations welcoming a new pastor or neighbor through bold efforts to resolve conflict and build bridges across racial divides through new relationships far and wide through our trust in a God who makes all things possible! Thank you for remembering that you are the lifeline of your Region. Checks should be made payable to the Christian Church in NC with a memo: Christmas offering and mailed to P. O. BOX 1568, Wilson, NC  27894, or you may donate online. May joy resound within us all! Bishop Valerie J. Melvin Regional Minister…