Good Intentions
“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.
Good Intentions
Devotional by: Elijah Bell
Visiting a shut in, volunteering at a food pantry, giving to the man on the street corner, sending money to a missionary, building a homeless shelter, donating clothes to needy children, sending a card to the elderly woman who just had surgery, giving a large portion of your paycheck in the collection plate each week. What do all these things have in common? They are good deeds, sometimes performed by decent, spiritually-minded human beings with good intentions. But sometimes, all the good intentions in the world, when not accompanied by knowledge, are not enough.
The King Josiah is often ranked among the best kings in Judah. In 2 Chronicles 34:3, we see that he “began to seek God.” During this time, he purged Judah and Jerusalem from idolatry by tearing down the high places, removing the Asherim, destroying the carved and molten images, and burning the bones of the priests of false gods on their own altars. After all this was done, he even made arrangements for the temple to be repaired after years of being abandoned (34:8). You might say King Josiah’s life was full of good intentions, very commendable.
But in the cleaning out of the temple, he comes across the book of the Law. Notice in 34:19, as he hears the words of the book he “tore his clothes.” He also said, “great is the wrath of the Lord which is poured out on us because our fathers have not observed the word of the Lord, to do according to all that is written in this book.” He understood that good intentions without true knowledge is worthless. God also confirmed this when He said, a few verses later, “Behold, I am bringing evil on this place and on its inhabitants, even all the curses written in the book which they have read in the presence of the king of Judah. Because they have forsaken Me.”
But notice God’s reaction to Josiah’s attitude after finding the book of The Law when God said, “Because your heart was tender and you humbled yourself before God when you heard His words against this place and against its inhabitants, and because you humbled yourself before Me, tore your clothes and wept before Me, I truly have heard you” (34:27). We may have all the good intentions in the world, but when we hear what we’re doing wrong according to the Bible, do we “tear our clothes” (figuratively speaking) and humble ourselves before God, seeking to do only His will? The old saying stands true, “the road to hell is paved with good intentions.” May we understand that good intentions are not enough, and a total devotion to God’s Word is what it will take for God to look at us and say, “I truly have heard you.”
Missions
These are the challenges that the congregation is actively working on this month.
Our Missions For August
Equip — Encourage someone who has not been coming to worship to beginning attending regularly again.
Teach — Share an encouraging Bible thought with someone who is struggling in life right now.
Serve — Encourage a fellow church member by asking how you can serve them.
*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.
Invitation To Matthew Franklin & April Blanton's Wedding - Saturday, October 21st at 5pm
Wedding Invitation to April Blanton and Matthew Franklin’s wedding ceremony at Holly Hill Church of Christ, Saturday, October 21, 2023 at 5:00pm.
The reception will be located at: Chandler Ridge, 9771 Vigo Road, Bagdad, Ky. 40003.
Gift Registry: See invitation on bulletin board.
Please RSVP by August 31, 2023.
By sending email to: aprilb04@icloud.com or let Michele Blanton know at 502-321-0760.
Thanks,
Michele Blanton
Westridge Elementary Backpack Program
The backpack program with Westridge Elementary School starts for Holly Hill in October. Please see below for items needed to pack snack bags for the WES students. If you have any questions please see Carly Gill. Listed below are items that you can donate for the backpack program:
Ramen Noodle Packages
Nutri Grain Bars
Easy Mac
Chef Boyardee Ravioli
Vienna Sausages
Granola Bars
Fruit Cups
Fruit Snacks
Individual Applesauce Cups
Oatmeal Packets
Individual Cookie Packs
Beanie Weenies
Canned Tuna
Canned Soups
Cheese & Cracker Individual Packs
Pudding Cups
Individual Cereal
Action Needed: New Church Directory
Dear Holly Hill Family,
It’s time for a new church directory, but we need your help!
Having been much requested, and being such a need for many of our members, the elders have approved the production of a new photo church directory! We will be producing it entirely in-house (which we believe will allow us to have more control over the quality and features, as well as providing more cost-effectiveness), and we will be able to have it done very quickly as soon as we receive what we need from you all.
We have information on file for most of you, but a lot of it is still fragmented and missing crucial details. Before we can finish compiling the directory, here’s what we need from each family/household:
Please reply to this email with the following information:
The full names and dates of birth of everyone in the household (those under 18 years of age will have their birth year posted along with their birthday, while those over 18 will only have their birthday, not the year).
The phone numbers and email addresses of each adult in the household.
Your current household address.
If you are married, the date of your anniversary.
A current photo of everyone in your household, together (We prefer just one photo of everyone together, but if that is not possible for one reason or another, we can accept individual photos of each person as well).
Please note that if we do not receive an email from you with these details, we will print whatever information we have available, which may be out of date, and we will not be able include a photo of you, which will be counter to the entire point of the directory, which is to allow members to better connect with each other and help people put faces to names. Please help us out by getting the needed information to us so we can get the directory printed soon.
The deadline for getting pictures and information to us is September 12th.
Please be aware that this directory will NOT be made available to the public, and will only be in printed form to be distributed to the church members. However, if you wish to have any information withheld from the directory, please reply to this email stating that.
If you have any further questions, or need any clarification, you may call me (Elijah) directly. My cell number is listed in the announcements.
We love you all,
Elijah Bell
Community Minister
Relay For Life Announcement
Relay For Life is September 9th and will be here before we know it! It will be held outside (weather permitting) at Capital City Christian Church from 5-10pm. If you would like to join our team or donate to the event, please click the link below! Or feel free to reach out to Janis Friend or Sarah Jones. We would love for as many of you that are able to join us this year to support those fighting, to honor our survivors and remember those we have lost to cancer.
Welcome Desk Volunteers Needed
For various reasons, 5 helpers have dropped out in the past few months. We would like to have at least that many or more to volunteer to help out. If you would like to help out please contact me. 502-545-5296 text or call. Thanks!
Holly Hill Library Announcement
The library is needing a lot of work. Please no donations until further notice. Study and reading is still important. Technology has taken those ideals over. But the library will come back to being useful after some consideration & clean up. Thank you.
-Jeannie Lebeau
Operation Re-stock the Food Pantry
The Food Pantry needs to be re-stocked. During the upcoming months we will be asking for specific food donations. There will be a box in the foyer for you to place your food donations. Thank you so much and let’s make Operation re-stock a success!! For the month of August, we need:
Muffin Mix
Brownie Mix
Regarding Church Announcements
Just a friendly reminder to everyone regarding church announcements: If you wish to make an announcement or have a prayer request, please contact Matthew Woodyard via email (office@hollyhillcoc.org). Announcements will be included in our daily email (5pm), our weekly Vine (Thursdays at 10am), and posted to Holly Hill’s Facebook page. If you wish something to be shared, please submit your announcement by 4pm. Emergency prayer requests can be submitted at any time and will be shared as soon as possible. If you’re not receiving our daily emails, weekly Vine Newsletter, or text messages, or if you have any questions about this process, don't hesitate to contact Matthew.
Church Records (August 20th, 2023)
Bible Class (Sun AM) - 71
Worship (Sun AM) - 128
Contribution (Sun AM) — $5,923.00
Prayers
Here are some individuals that especially need our prayers this week. Please keep them in mind every time you pray.
New Prayer Requests:
Kaia Hughes (granddaughter of Steve & Donna White)
Fern Perkins (Matthew Woodyard’s Aunt)
Pat Robertson (Mother of Melissa Trent)
Charlotte & Tanner Henderson (Elijah’s sister and brother-in-law, lost a child)
Ongoing Prayers For: Steve Small, Larry & Renita Clarke, Wilton Hudson, family of Austin Case, family of Claude Tackett, Scarlet Stumbo (aunt of Val Clark), Andrew Ibershoff & family (son of Larry & Robin Ibershoff) Jerry Mayes (brother to Mike Mayes), Mark McPherson, the Stone family, James Robert (Val Clark’s uncle), Monica Hardesty (sister of Brenda Stone’s co-worker), family of Jane Colvin (Joyce Best’s aunt), Steve White, Janis Friend, Pam Smith (foster parent of Robin Mayes niece, Lexi), family of Graham Heustis, Horn family, Butch Elliott (friend of Robin Mayes), Montooth family, Rhoda Jones, Betty Blanton, Bill & Mary Jo Marion (friends of Robin Mayes), Helen Hall, Penny Harland (Katie Bell’s mother), Parnell family, Alyssa Deaton, Robert Lewis (Sharon Lewis’ son), Pete & Jessie Tropoulos, Codie Rich (Michael & Kimberly Mundt’s son-in-law), Emma Collins, Rusty Bell (friend of Robin Mayes), Tanya Phipps (Brenda Stone’s niece), Gail Keith (Michele Blanton’s mother), Nikki Fenney (Johnny & Julie Widener’s niece), Bertha Young’s Family, Dorothy Trent, Polly Deaton, Jane Dempsey, Rita Tackett (Alyson Woodyard’s aunt), Sandra Haden (Tiffany Quarles’ mother), Valentine family, David Fair (prayers for his marriage & family situation), Phil & Suzanne Wilkins, prayers for Mission Control Challenges, Glenda Mitchum, Lisa & Pete Vogel (family of Brenda Stone).
* 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.
Small Groups (Sunday Evening Service) — Sunday Night, August 27th at 6pm
In order to build relationships with our church family, instead of meeting at the church building, we will meet in each other's homes for a short devotional, guided discussion, prayer, and fellowship. More information on locations will be coming soon.
Men’s Bible Study & Breakfast — Saturday Morning, September 2nd at 8am
Join us on the 1st Saturday morning of each month, for the Men’s Bible Study & Breakfast. We will meet downstairs in the Fellowship Hall and be studying from the book of James. See you there!
New Quarter Begins for Holly Hill’s Children’s Bible Classes — Sunday, September 3rd at 10am
Our next quarter will begin September 3rd, 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. Alyson and I our taking a break from teaching, so we’ll need to make sure all of our classes are covered. Anyone wishing to help can contact me via email (matthew.woodyard@yahoo.com) or phone (502-234-8155). We have a wonderful opportunity to teach God’s Word to our children. Let’s make sure they get our very best! Thank you!
Elders, Ministers, & Deacons Meeting — Sunday Afternoon, September 3rd at 4pm
Elders, Ministers, & Deacons will meet on the 1st Sunday of each month, from 4-6pm.
Mission Control (Sunday Evening Service) — Sunday Night, September 3rd at 6pm
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.
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:
Operation Re-stock the Food Pantry
The Food Pantry needs to be re-stocked. During the upcoming months we will be asking for specific food donations. There will be a box in the foyer for you to place your food donations. Thank you so much and let’s make Operation re-stock a success!! For the month of August, we need:
Muffin Mix
Brownie Mix
August Mission Control Challenges
We have 3 new challenges for the month of August 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 next quarter begins in September, 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