Happy New Year! Yes, 2016 is here and it promises to be a great year for the people of God, building the Kingdom of God. I want to say THANK YOU for your tremendous support and participation in the changes in worship that began last Sunday. Thanks be to God you showed up and gave of yourselves and your resources, just like you always do. I have such a great appreciation for you as a church, and my appreciation and gratitude continue to grow as I experience your gracious generosity in word and in service.
We had two great worship services at both 8:00 a.m. and 11:15 a.m. As expected, the 8:00 a.m. service was filled to capacity. I loved it! I also want to express my appreciation to the New Advent Choir and other ministry groups who were in place to serve and kick off the new year. I especially want to thank those who used the off-site parking and allowed our shuttles to transport you back and forth. There is something to be said for your flexibility and willingness to make the extra effort necessary to worship at YOUR church: Cascade UMC. I promise you, we are going to meet our parking challenge; but, in the meantime, we want to remain good neighbors to the residents next door and across the street. Our 11:15 a.m. worship service was an awesome blessing, too. Not only did we have a full house on the lower level, but we were also abundantly blessed by the melodious voices of our Chancel Choir. Wow! What a marvelous sharing of God's gifts to us through the Word in song.
It was also amazing to see ALL of our adult Sunday school classes grow in attendance. Thank God for those who were present especially for the first time. I hope that you were blessed and will continue to be faithful participants. Of course, as we progress and make the recommended adjustments, you still have the privilege to visit other classes before you decide where to land and stick. Thank you in advance for your commitment to helping us grow our Sunday school. I was concerned that the number of children and youth went down in attendance. Though I am not quite sure why, we will certainly determine what we need to do to restore and increase their attendance.
Overall, Sunday was a blessed time for Cascade UMC. Your presence and "joyful obedience" indicated that God is doing a new thing and we can expect great things for our future! Thank You. Thank You. Thank You.
