We have different bulletins available to download and/or print this week:

You can find this week's playlist by clicking here.

If you are unable to join us in person for either morning or evening worship we hope you will join us on the livestream on either YouTube and or our website at christcovenant.org/live.

We hope you will take time to submit your confidential prayer requests either online at ChristCovenant.org/members/prayer or by email at prayer@christcovenant.org. Your pastors and staff are continually praying for you!

We have new prayer guides for your use that can be found at christcovenant.org/prayer. Each prayer guide is printable after downloading and can be found below.

Join us for this special night of worship as we celebrate Christ's birth on Saturday, December 24, at 5:00 pm on Christmas Eve! Children's programs are available for ages 4 months through 35 months.

All are invited to join us for morning worship on Sunday, December 25, at 10:45 am. There will not be any children’s programs on Christmas Day, so that we might all enjoy worship together as a family! Even our littlest ones are created to worship and we love having them in our worship services, delightful sounds, wiggles and all! The service will be streamed on the screens in all of the lobbies should you choose to sit out there and listen! We look forward to celebrating Christmas morning with you! There will not be an evening service on Christmas Day.

To begin our New Year, Sunday, January 1, 2023, we will have morning worship at 10:45 am and evening worship at 6:00 pm with all the regular children’s programs.

Thank you to everyone who helped make our sanctuary beautiful this Christmas season with your purchased poinsettia either in honor or in memory of someone. Thank you also to our hard-working Operations Department for making our entire worship center beautiful with all of the Christmas decorations! Poinsettias may be picked up immediately following the Christmas Day morning worship service.

To see the print version of the courier, click here.

Once again this year our Christmas Eve worship service will include a special offering designated for the help of PCA pastors, pastors’ widows, church employees and their families who need assistance with financial, spiritual, and emotional needs. The work of Ministerial Relief is 100% funded through the generosity of individuals and churches.

Established in 1973, the PCA Retirement and Benefits Ministerial Relief fund uses offerings from congregations like ours to assist pastors and their families. These ministry workers often find themselves in seasons of hardship in addition to the emotional and financial constraints of pastoral work. The relief fund can partner with pastors and churches to support ministry employees and their families in need by extending both help and prayer.

Those eligible for assistance from the fund include pastors, widows, retired or disabled pastors, missionaries, pastors’ wives, RUF campus pastors, and church employees. Their need for ministry services grows from year to year. Every month the wife of a PCA pastor becomes a widow who may need ongoing assistance. In addition, the number of PCA pastors retiring without sufficient savings will double in the next five years, and 80% of pastors’ wives would access Christian counseling if offered.

The fund provides financial assistance to PCA church servants and their families to help with basic expenses like food, housing, medical costs, and more. This help can be for a brief period or as needed for the care of widows or the disabled. The fund also provides access to affordable and confidential Christian counseling services to pastors and pastors’ wives through ministry partners. Ministerial Relief is known as a trusted ministry of compassion to PCA church servants.

To read the stories of individuals who have been helped or to learn more visit https://genevabenefits.org/relief-fund/lookafter/.

Please place all special communion offering gifts in an envelope (found in pews) and label it ‘Special Offering’ and include the name of the ministry before placing your gift in one of the tithe boxes located inside the sanctuary at our main doors in the north, south and toward the main lobby. You can also give online by clicking here. Thank you for your gift!

Gifts to the church in December are a significant part of our annual income and help support more than 50 ministries. Generally, gifts to the church in the form of checks or cash that are mailed (and postmarked) by December 31 or delivered in person to the church office by 3:45 pm on Friday, December 30, should be deductible for tax purposes. You may also take advantage of our secure online giving by clicking here. God blesses Christ Covenant through your gifts, and they are greatly appreciated. Call the Church Finance Office at 704-847-3505 with any questions or for more information, including details on handling stock/fund or IRA transfers.

If you are 70 ½ or older, you may be eligible for a significant tax savings when making gifts to the church. Here’s how that works. Required Minimum Distributions (RMDs) from an IRA account are typically subject to income taxes; however, payments made directly from an IRA to the church (trustee to trustee transfer) will not be subject to income taxes for many qualifying seniors. If you are interested in making a financial gift to the church, this may be an opportunity for you to give and save taxes at the same time. This is a great idea for 2022 December giving as well as good planning for next year. Be sure to check with your tax advisor to see if this is right for you, and please be mindful of year-end deadlines (see Year-End Giving).

The New Member Class is for adults and students 9th grade and above who wish to join Christ Covenant Church. Our pastors teach this class, which reviews Christ Covenant’s philosophy of ministry, the reformed faith, the Presbyterian form of government, the vows of church membership, and other topics pertinent to church membership. This class is required for those seeking to join Christ Covenant Church. Our next New Member Class will be held during Sunday School beginning January 8. The class will meet from 9:00 am – 10:20 am. If you are interested in attending, please contact Michelle Gustavson to register by January 3.

Beginning January 2, 2023 and for the entire month of January, the Session of our church will receive and consider nominations for the offices of elder and deacon. Through these offices Christ rules and shepherds his church. Would you prayerfully consider who you believe could serve our church well as an elder or deacon? All nominees must be male and a member of our church for at least two years by his election (June 2023).

Our speaker is Matthew Kirk, from Belfast, Northern Ireland and the IPC. Matthew serves as a pastoral intern at Christ Covenant and is a student at Reformed Theological Seminary (RTS). Come for food and fellowship with your brothers in Christ. The only cost is your breakfast. Sign up today by clicking here.

Sunday School is currently on a break and will resume with new classes beginning Sunday, January 8, 2023. This is a new rhythm for us as a church, which allows a rest for our teachers and volunteers, especially in the children’s area.

Our Winter 2023 Sunday School booklet is now available and can be found on Sunday in the worship center on the tables as you enter the sanctuary. You can also read about the various class offerings online by clicking here. We hope you will find a class that will benefit your relationship with Christ and connect you with others.

Covenant Day School is hiring for various positions. Details can be found at https://www.covenantday.org/about-us/employment

Thank you for your tithes and gifts to all of the ministries of Christ Covenant.

You can give online by clicking here.

Please continue to pray for God’s provision throughout 2022.