We will collect our quarterly Five Cents a Meal offering this Sunday, August 14, at both services and online. To give this offering remotely, go to our website, fpcbristol.org, and click on GIVE in the top right corner of our homepage. On the new page, click on the arrow on the Fund line, then scroll down and click on Five Cents a Meal. The suggested offering is $13.65 per person, or about a nickel for each meal in a three-month period. Feel free to round up! The monies we collect will go to Holston Presbytery Hunger Ministries.

Please be generous in these difficult times. According to the minutes of the March Presbytery meeting, 35 local and international Hunger Grant applications (for $2,000 each) requested a total of $70,000 in 2021. Yet in that same year, only $32,025.41 was received in Five Cents a Meal contributions. Therefore, all 2021 Hunger Grant requests were funded at only 45.75 percent. This shortfall emphasizes the ongoing need for more support of this ministry.

Next Sunday, August 21, the Reverend Dr. Bud Branscomb will begin teaching an inductive Bible study on the Gospel of John. The class will meet for eight to ten weeks in room 167, across from the Boy Scout Hall. Bud has a wealth of teaching and pastoral experience from having served ministries in Kingsport, Hawkins County, and Greene County. With his wife Marg, who also worships with us, Bud cofounded Alpha/Omega Ministries, which works with 15 Tri-Cities congregations. Since retiring as the CFO of the Appalachian Educational Communication Corp. (a group of six Christian radio stations), Bud has shared his pastoral gifts with several local churches. He is now the Executive Director of CrossBridge Ministries, which prepares persons to serve as tomorrow’s church leaders. There he teaches with Dr. Charles Stoner.

These are our current Sunday morning adult classes and Bible studies:

Student Fellowship will kick off for all 6th–12th graders this Sunday, August 14. Come to the church for dinner, worship, cotton candy, snow cones, and giant games! Invite your friends, and let’s kick this year off! If you have any questions or are interested in serving in the student ministry, email Katie Arnold.

Hey, sixth through twelfth graders! Invite your friends and come for a Labor Day weekend of fun and fellowship at Look Up Lodge in Travelers Rest, SC! Our Fall Retreat will include wild fun, adventure, the great outdoors, worship, and bonding with your church family. We will leave Saturday morning and return Monday afternoon.

If you register by August 15, the cost of the trip is $175, which includes transportation, lodging in nice cabins, meals, camp activities, rafting, and programs. After August 15, the cost increases to $200. A $50 nonrefundable deposit is required with registration. Scholarships are available. For more information, contact Katie Arnold. Register here.

Our annual Doe River Gorge outing was a beautiful afternoon of fun and fellowship. We began with worship by the lake and celebrated the baptism of Ivan Fielitz. Then Kat Borsch, Victoria Keith, and Lilly and Primrose Rollins rededicated their lives in Christ through a remembrance of their baptism, professing their faith together with their church family. The rest of the afternoon was spent in socializing, relaxing, climbing on lake obstacle courses, shooting each other into the air on the blob, ziplining, and breaking bread together. We cannot wait for next year!

The session strongly encourages masks for those not fully vaccinated, or at higher risk of complications from COVID-19. The session encourages everyone to consult their medical professional about vaccinations and boosters.

Deadline & Subscriptions

Monday is the deadline for contributions to Windows. Subscribe to our free e-newsletter by sending your name and preferred email address to the editor.

701 Florida Avenue | Bristol, TN 37620 | 423-764-7176 | fpcbristol.org