Take Away The Stone
“I am the vine; you are the branches. Whoever abides in me and I in him, he it is that bears much fruit, for apart from me you can do nothing.” (John 15:5, ESV)
Mini Devotional
A mini message to take with you this week to help you in your devotion to God.
Take Away The Stone
Devotional by: Elijah Bell
In John 11:38-44, Jesus raises Lazarus from the dead. He did this so that “the Son of Man might be glorified” (v. 4). But in doing this amazing miracle, Jesus not only proved Himself to be the Son of God, and the One who is able to conquer death, He also wants to give His friends a chance to be involved in the work that He’s doing in the world.
As Jesus is getting ready to perform the miracle of raising Lazarus from the dead, He tells the people there to “take away the stone” (v. 39). If Jesus has the power to raise the dead, He certainly has the power to move the stone Himself, doesn’t He? But He choose to allow His friends to participate in the amazing things He is doing.
But notice their response. “You want us to do WHAT? No, Jesus, you don’t understand, there’s going to be a terrible stink if we do that! It won’t be pretty. It’ll be messy. It’s better to leave well enough alone and take the loss. We’d rather not deal with the messy consequences.”
How many of us, when Jesus invites us to “take away the stone” from the heart tombs of people who need to be raised from the spiritual dead, do we find every excuse in the book to not do it. “Well, Jesus can take away the stone, we don’t need to get involved. We don’t want to get our lives messy dealing with working with sinful people. It stinks. It’s messy. It’s not pretty to get down in the weeds of personal work.”
But notice Jesus response in verse 40: “Don’t you remember what I told you? If you believe, you’ll see the glory of God!” Not only is Jesus willing to do amazing things in the world. Not only is He inviting His friends to participate in the work that He is doing, but He’s reminding us that the power is not in us. It’s all to the glory of God.
So, when Jesus is inviting you to “take away the stone” from the heart tomb of someone in your life, remember, it may be messy. It might be unpleasant. But Jesus is right there with you, and all the power is with Him.
Missions
These are the challenges that the congregation is actively working on this month.
Our Missions For December
Equip — Sign up to host a meal for “Feasting for Fellowship 2023.”
Kids’ Challenge — The next time you sit down to have a meal together with your family, have everyone at the table say something kind about everyone else.
Teach — Share your favorite Bible verse with a non-church member and explain why it’s meaningful to you.
Kids’ Challenge — Ask your parents to help you memorize a new Bible verse for you to be able to say anytime you want.
Serve — Look around the congregation and identify a need and then fill it.
Kids’ Challenge — You are important in the church! Ask your parents what you can do to help the congregation.
*Be on the lookout for weekly training videos on our Facebook and YouTube pages, published each Sunday, to help you complete the challenges.
*As you complete each challenge, drop one of the pom-pom balls into the corresponding jar at the Mission Control Center in the lobby so we can see how many people are completing each challenge. One completion per person, per challenge, per month.
News
This section is for any special announcements that are not upcoming events or prayer requests.
“Feasting for Fellowship” Starts Next Week!
We will have a kickoff dinner Sunday, January 1st at 5:00pm, before mission control. This will be the first day of this event. The first week of January is nearly filled, but WE STILL NEED someone to sign up to be responsible for January 5th and 6th. If you wish to be responsible for one of the two mentioned dates, email me at kurt.montooth@gmail.com and we can mark them off the list.
I wanted to send a short paragraph about why we are doing this and some further instructions about what you are signing up for.
Acts 2:42-47 tells us that the early church met every day. They prayed, thanked God, and ate meals together because of their fellowship and love for God, and love for one another.
I had a simple idea, Holly Hill in faithfulness to scripture should recreate a small part of this where for a month we meet, “as a church,” and share food. The goal is simple. Two non-related Holly Hill family members together every single day in January 2023 and try to start the year off with the Holy Spirit driven unity we see in the first century church of Jerusalem. That goal remains the same.
The purpose of feasting for fellowship is to have two non-family holly hill members meet and eat. This can be done by hosting a family in your home, meeting a church member at the state cafeteria because you work in the same building, or grabbing coffee and doughnuts before work. The goal is simple share food, build relationships, and share your thankfulness to God.
The goal is every day because the scripture paints a picture of a growing and vibrant church that loved one another in community and meet daily. I know that programs can seem cheesy and pointless, but this is an opportunity to be faithful to scripture in a measurable and easily achievable way. It is an opportunity to grow closer as a congregation and establish a new habit in the new year. This month has the power to build the type of community that the Holy Spirit can use to transform our community. I pray that you will consider signing up for one of the dates.
Gift Card For Sarah Engler Walker
Barbara Sudduth will be taking up a gift card for Sarah Engler Walker and her husband Jeremy. If you would like to give, please make sure Barbara has your gift by January 8th.
Cards
If you know someone that needs to receive a card in the mail from the church, please send a note to office@hollyhillcoc.org with “Cards” in the subject line. We will get that information to Sonia to prepare a card for the church to sign.Church Records (12/25/22)
Worship Attendance (Sun AM) — 66
Contribution — $3605.00
Prayers
Here are some individuals that especially need our prayers this week. Please keep them in mind every time you pray.
New Prayer Requests:
Penny Harland, Katie Bell’s mother, and her continued battle with cancer
Phil Wilkins has been hospitalized with difficulty breathing
Pete Tropoulos’ continued battle with prostate cancer
Gail Keith and her most recent medical issues
Ongoing Prayers For: Nikki Fenney (Johnny and Julie Widener’s niece), Bertha Young’s family, Pete and Lisa Vogel (Brenda Stone’s brother-in-law and sister), Dorothy Trent, Polly Deaton, Jane Dempsey, Larry Clarke and family, The Horn and Bell family, The Stone family, Penny Harland, The Minturn and Montooth family (mourning the loss of Kurt’s grandmother, Ginny), The Catron family (mourning the loss of Paige’s cousin), The Mundt family (as they mourn the loss of Kim’s uncle), Rita Tackett (Alyson Woodyard’s aunt), Inez Ramsey, Sandra Haden (Tiffany Quarles’ mother), Gayle Walker (Anna Marston’s son-in-law), The Allen family (mourning the loss of 7-year-old Andrew Allen), Tammy Dotson Riddle’s mother, The Valentine Family, Family of Bob Tankersley, David Fair (Asks for prayers for marriage and family situation), Steve Small, Phil and Suzanne Wilkins, Janis Friend, Jim Clark (Continued Prayers), God’s will for the Tom Roach family and Hudson, Prayers for Mission Control Challenges, Glenda Mitchum, Lisa & Pete Vogel, Robin Mayes’ mother, Corinne Dossett (Hip replacement surgery).
* Please submit your prayer requests for inclusion at office@hollyhillcoc.org
Upcoming Events
Here are some events that are coming up that you need to make space on your calendar for.
January 1st, Sunday Afternoon at 4pm — Elders/Ministers/Deacons Meeting
There will be an Elders/Ministers/Deacons meeting January 1st, Sunday afternoon at 4pm, downstairs in the fellowship hall. Furthermore, the Elders/Ministers/Deacon’s monthly meeting will be held the first Sunday of each month, going forward. Please make note of this in your calendar’s.
January 1st, Sunday Evening at 6pm — Mission Control
Everyone meets in small groups in the fellowship hall. Material is provided for group discussion of each question. Responses on how to better meet the month's challenges are shared with all groups. Attendance at the previous mission control meetings is not required.
January 8th, Sunday Evening at 6pm — Study Groups
On this Sunday night, the men will meet in the auditorium for a group session, and the women will meet in room 12 downstairs. Some of the men will teach the children in a separate classroom downstairs in order to allow the mothers to participate in the women's study group. All are welcome! Please bring your family!
January 15th, Sunday Afternoon at 4pm — VBS 2023 Launch Meeting
Sick of the cold already? Join us on January 15th as we warm ourselves with thoughts of summertime fun and officially launch the planning for Holly Hill's VBS 2023. The meeting will begin at 4pm, downstairs in the fellowship hall. Last year's VBS was a hit and this year’s will be even better! Hope to see you there.
How You Can Serve
There are a lot of ways you can get involved and do the work of God in our community!
For more information or for help signing up for any of these ministries, please call the church office at: (502) 227-7796.
Limited-Time Opportunities:
Backpack Program
We will continue to work with Westridge Elementary School and provide food for 50 students through the weekend Backpack Program. We need your help to keep this program going for the months of December, February and April (see list of needed items below).
During these months please write (print) a card to encourage them or write your favorite Bible verse to share with them. We can invite them and their families to worship with us.If you have any questions please reach out to Tom and Sonia Roach. If you make a monetary donation please write Backpack Program in the memo line.
Items needed are:
Vienna sausage
Pull top ravioli cups
Shelf stable yogurt
Beef jerky
Oatmeal
Individual cereal
Cheese and crackers
Mac and cheese cups
Mashed potato cups
Beanie weenies
Popcorn
Raisins, pudding cups
Jell-O cups
Protein bars
Granola bars
Pop tarts
Cheese dippers
Pull top soup cups
Easy open green beans and corn.
December Mission Control Challenges
We have 3 new challenges for the month of December that we need your help on. Please see the section above entitled “Missions” for more information.
Long-Term Opportunities:
Mission Launch Team
We are needing individuals to sign up for the Mission Launch Team. People on this team commit to working on the Mission Control challenges each month, and they also commit to encouraging at least one other person to work on the missions as well. We need you to sign up for this ministry so we can grow the Mission Control program organically from person to person. Sign up for the Mission Launch Team at the Mission Control Center in the lobby.
Tech Team Support — The Holly Hill Tech Team needs help. We would love to have a few more people trained and available to set up the livestreams and audio equipment. It’s a fairly simple task and you’ll be well trained before being thrown into the seat alone. If you’re interested, see Nick, David, or Brad.
Greeter Ministry — We’re looking for people who are friendly and outgoing to welcome our guests and members each Sunday morning. If you are interested, contact Tom Owens.
Card Ministry — Every Sunday there are cards spread out on a table in the lobby that will be sent out to various church members and guests who need encouragement. You can help serve and encourage by making sure to sign these cards each week.
Casey Blessing Box — The Casey’s are collecting items to give away to those in need in their Blessing Box. Currently, they are accepting donations of: Can goods of fruit and vegetables. Crackers, or cereal.
Shriners Children’s Hospital — Donna White is collecting soda can tabs to donate to the children’s hospital. Please leave your donations in the lobby.
Children’s Bible Class Teachers/Helpers — Our new quarter is just beginning (Dec-Feb), so we will be needing to staff our Children’s Bible Classes. If you’d be willing to teach, sub, or help, please see Matthew Woodyard. We have a wonderful opportunity to teach God’s Word to our children. Let’s make sure they get our very best! Thank you!
Holly Hill Church of Christ
1020 Holly Hill Drive
Frankfort, KY 40601
Web: www.hollyhillcoc.org
Phone: (502) 227-7796
Email: office@hollyhillcoc.org
Service Times:
Sunday Bible Class: 10am
Sunday Morning Worship, 11am
Sunday Evening Worship, 6pm
Wednesday Evening Bible class: 6:30pm