Dear SSCC Family,
 
As you know, over the last year, we have endured many challenges as the circumstances in our world have unfolded. During every step of this journey, our priority has been you, the congregants of Sandy Springs Christian Church. Whether we met virtually on YouTube, outside in the Whitmire Pavilion or in our sanctuary, first and foremost, we have wanted to do what is best for the well-being of all who are connected to SSCC, especially the most vulnerable among us.
 
There are still many unknowns with the most recent mutation of the virus, the delta variant. As numbers increase in several areas of our country, we want to adapt in a way that errs on the side of precaution. The Welcome Back Team met recently to discuss changes to our current policies. Beginning Sunday, August 22nd, we are recommending everyone, with the exception of children 3 years old and younger, wear a mask when inside the building of Sandy Springs Christian Church. Because our staff interacts most with our congregants, especially those at risk, they will be wearing masks, except when speaking during worship.
 
If you have any symptoms of COVID-19 or are not feeling well, please stay home and tune into our livestream service. We certainly understand that others may not feel comfortable coming to worship in-person at this time. We respect your decision and hope you too will tune into the livestream and resume in-person worship and activities when circumstances have changed for you.
 
Please know that our intention is for the well-being of all who gather at SSCC. None of us want to wear masks. However, we all want to continue moving forward in ministry, doing so as safely as possible, with the guidance of our medical and governmental leaders.
 
We will continue to monitor how circumstances evolve and update you regularly on any changes to our policies. We hope this modification is temporary. In the meantime, please continue to show grace and understanding to one another. We recognize there are many perspectives within the life of our congregation and certainly want to respect one other’s points of view. We thank you for your patience as we continue to navigate this incredibly complex time. Each of you remain in our prayers and we hope that everyone stays safe and well.
 
Peace,
SSCC Welcome Back Team

*A copy of this letter was sent to the congregants of SSCC earlier this week, via US Postal Service.
SERMON SERIES
Back to the Basics
 
The Olympics are back, along with concerts, family reunions and theater productions. We are coming together, again, in person. It’s been too long. As with beginning anything anew, it’s good practice to go back to the basics – to remember the reasons for which we are part of the groups and gatherings we attend. For people of faith, it’s a perfect time to refresh ourselves on the fundamentals of our faith. What are the basics of being church? Perhaps we can gain some insight from many of the “firsts” in scripture. What did Jesus do first after the resurrection? And what does Isaiah say to do first, to the people Israel? As we kickoff in-person programming once again at SSCC, let’s spend a few weeks reflecting on the “firsts” of being a community of faith.
 
August 22, 2021
Staying Power
Luke 24:36-49
Rev. Dr. Nathan C. Brown
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August 29, 2021
Whoever Welcomes a Child
(TDS Sunday)
Mark 9:30-37
Rev. Dr. Nathan C. Brown 
To view the service this Sunday on our YouTube page, click here.
To view the scripture for this Sunday, click here.
HIGHLIGHTS
THANK YOU
"Dear SSCC Family and Scholarship Committee,
Thank y'all so much for the scholarship money and all the hard work put in to collect it. We will definitely use it to help pay for my books/laptop, but also thank you for being a part of my life and helping me grow into the young woman I am today. I would not be anywhere near where I am today if it wasn't for the support and kindness of the community. I will miss coming here on Sundays and being a part of youth group, but will carry/bring a piece of SSCC everywhere I go. I appreciate everyone who has been a part of my journey and hope to see y'all soon. Thank you again for the scholarship and the many years of love and kindness. Sincerely, Megan Kahrs"
MUST MINISTRIES NEEDS
The most pressing hygiene product needs are travel-size shampoo and conditioner bottles. We will have a bin on the Outreach cabinet in our welcome area for you to drop off. The Outreach team will handle getting the items to MUST.
WE NEED YOUR HELP
In August, we began having a worship leader for our service each week. The worship leader leads a call to worship, reads scripture, offers the call to giving and welcomes visitors. All the words are scripted for you, so there is nothing to prepare. We just need individuals willing to serve as worship leaders each week. Having one worship leader each week will help the staff plan worship, give uniformity to the worship experience and give individuals who enjoy leading worship the opportunity to sign up well in advance. If you'd like to sign up to be a worship leader, please click on the link below. You may sign up for a maximum of two Sundays, for now. Those who enjoy leading communion, offering pastoral prayers and preaching will continue to be recruited as they have been. If you have any questions, please reach out to the chair of Worship, Arts and Education, Stuart Michels, or Pastor Nathan.
THERE'S AN APP FOR THAT?
Did you know you can download the Breeze app onto your phone and access SSCC Member Directory information right at your fingertips? You can download the app from the app store (for iphones and ipads) by CLICKING HERE. Please call the church office if you have any questions.
UPCOMING EVENTS
MEMORIAL SERVICE INFORMATION FOR MARLENE RHINE
Please join us in sending condolences to the family of Marlene Rhine, who passed away on August 3, 2021.

Visitation for families and friends will be held on Sunday, August 22nd 2021 from 1:00 PM to 3:00 PM at the Woodstock Funeral Home located at 8855 Main St, Woodstock, GA 30188. A memorial service will be held on Sunday, August 22nd 2021 at 3:00 PM at the same location.

If you would like to send a card to her daughter, Linda Parrott, her address is 251 Bennett Farms Trail, Acworth, GA 30102. In lieu of flowers, please feel free to make a donation in Marlene's memory to SSCC.
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TDS SUNDAY, AUGUST 29th
On Sunday, August 29th we are going to have our first annual TDS Sunday in order to bless the families, teachers and staff connected to The Day School, as they begin a new school year. Several TDS folks will be involved in worship that day, including our Director, Kathy Gregory. There will be a cookie and punch reception in the gathering area following worship for us to welcome TDS families and get to know them. We hope you will make special plans to be in worship for TDS Sunday!
COURAGEOUS CONVERSATIONS
If you haven't already, make sure to block your calendars on September 11-12, 2021 for this year's Courageous Conversation weekend. The purpose of this event is to help promote healthy and productive conversation about some of the difficult issues facing our community, nation and world today.

We are excited to welcome Allen Hilton back to lead the event. If you missed the event with Allen last year, you can access both the sermon he preached during worship and the first session of the event he led on our YouTube page. Just go to the archive and look to worship on November 15, 2020 and the video posted December 3, 2020.

Below is a short video that was played during worship from Leslie Lady about the event. We hope you will make plans to join us!
OUTREACH OPPORTUNITIES
HELPING THE CAC
CAC Pantry/Thrift Shop Expands to 5 Days,
The Community Assistance Center’s food pantry and thrift shop, Upscale Thrift, will once again be open 5 days a week. Contact Nolan at volunteer@ourcac.org for volunteering at the food pantry and Debbie at Debbie.Olson@ourcac.org to volunteer at the Thrift Store. Visit CAC’s website for more details.
MUST MINISTRIES: MUST is always in need of food, clothing and hygiene products. If you would like to donate and drop off items at MUST Ministries please CLICK HERE to access a flyer that outlines the most needed food items. The Marietta Donation Center address is 1280 Field Parkway, Marietta, 30066.  Or, you can purchase much-needed food items from their Amazon.com wish list and they will be shipped straight to the Donation Center.

Their most pressing hygiene product needs are travel-size shampoo and conditioner bottles. SSCC will have a bin in our welcome area for you to drop off. Our Outreach team will handle getting the items to MUST.

Finally, please start purchasing new toys for their upcoming Christmas Toy Drive. SSCC will be collecting toys (ages 0 to 18) during the month of November. More information will be forthcoming.

If you have questions please contact Cathy Cortright at cortright13@gmail.com.
SUNDAY SCHOOL CLASSES
PATHFINDERS CLASS
Whether you have questions, answers, both, or neither you can expect wide-ranging information, discussion, and support in the Path Finders’ class. Your ideas, experiences, and knowledge are all welcome. And, if you feel that you don’t have any ideas, experiences, or knowledge you’ll find more than you can imagine as part of this community. Check out our topic each week in the newsletter and plan to join us. 

Join John Mills and the Pathfinders in person every Sunday morning in Common Ground at 9:00 am. You can also join via Zoom by CLICKING HERE or to join by phone just dial 929-205-6099 and enter Meeting ID: 985 6868. The passcode is 831869. For more information please contact John Mills.
MODERN DISCIPLES
Our name, Modern Disciples, accurately reflects our mission to strive to live Christ-centered lives in this ever-changing modern world. We welcome you to visit our class no matter your age, your marital status or family make-up. If you are seeking to grow in your walk with Christ in a fun, casual setting, please consider joining us.

We meet in the Conference Room each Sunday at 9:00 AM and use video series, book discussions and service projects to grow spiritually, connect with one another and to serve others. 

On August 8th, we started a new study called, "The Difficult Words of Jesus," based on the new book by Dr. Amy Jill Levine. You can learn more about the study by clicking the button below.
KID'S SUNDAY SCHOOL CLASSES
Every Sunday at 9:00 am, kids age Preschool - 2nd grade will meet in the Leslie Classroom upstairs. Kids ages 3rd through 5th grade will meet downstairs in room 120.

They follow a new "Whirl" curriculum which includes games, lessons, arts and crafts and Bible study. The kids will have fun and learn all at the same time.
PRAYER REQUESTS
PRAYER REQUESTS
Please pray for Mary Robeck's coworker, Shan, whose wife passed away on August 14.

Prayers for Amy Frost's brother-in-law, Elton Border, who is back in the hospital but hopefully coming home soon.

Please pray for our members and their families who serve as first responders and health care workers: Katie Gibson, Tracey McCluskey, Dr. Vijay Rathinam, Robyn Hicks and Pete French. Also those serving in the military: Michelle Brown (Navy), daughter of Cindy and Pete Brown. Tyler Brown (Army), son of Tami and Stephen Brown. Jared Mills (Army), son/stepson of John and Floy Mills. Rachel Robeck (Navy), daughter of John and Mary Robeck. Jamie Price Smith (Air Force), Dalton Brown (Army) and Caleb (Marines), granddaughter, grandson and great grandson of Barb Duren. Chaplain Kevin Mooney (Navy), Linda Whitmire's grand-daughter, Hayleigh Whitmire (Army) and Kathy Woodworth's step grandson Parker Mansel (Marines). If we are missing someone, please let us know so that we can include their name in our weekly prayers.

If you have any prayer requests or would like to reach out to Teddy Ivey, our Director of Congregational Care, please email him at Teddy@sandyspringscc.org.

JOIN SSCC! 
You can join SSCC by a simple affirmation of faith! If you are attending virtually, just let us know you would like to join!
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Jim Bickelhaupt August 19
Walt Michels August 19
Andy Torbert August 19
Kimberly French August 23
Suzanne Ruehman August 23
Brooks Torbert August 24
Lisa Berger-Gilmore August 25
Barbara Duren August 25
Maggie Driemeyer August 26
Sheri Mason August 27
Courtney Strickland August 28
Jay Donnelly August 30