I love putting up our Christmas tree and decorations every year. I particularly enjoy turning on the Christmas tree lights first thing in the morning. It becomes a welcome ritual during the month of December. That said, it’s almost as great a joy to take the tree down when December ends and January begins! The living room feels bigger and looks a little neater. It feels like a fresh start.
The New Year is upon us and fresh starts abound. Whether you are a person who makes New Year’s resolutions or not, it’s hard not to feel as if a fresh start is offered. I’ve voiced my intentions to eat better and exercise more. Stay tuned for whether I follow through or not.
As part of the New Year and fresh start, I’m very excited to begin a new sermon series here at Houston Lake Presbyterian (HLPC) entitled Him We Proclaim: Sermons in Mark’s Gospel that we kicked off this past Lord’s Day. You may have noticed that we have transitioned to utilizing SermonAudio to provide access to audio and video copies of the message. This site gives us the capability for unlimited storage and offers other features that include a smart phone app! Check us out at www.sermonaudio.com/houstonlakepca or access it through the link provided on the church web site.
Let me highlight some great opportunities that are before us in 2013:
MidWeek- we kick off our weekly Wednesday night meal next week, January 16th. Meals will be provided at $4/person with a $15 max cost per family. Meals are served from 5:45 to 6:30. Story time is 6:30-7 and choir practices from 7-8. We will continue our “story time” as we read John Bibee’s The Magic Bicycle. This is a real page turner that illustrates some spiritual truths for us.
Marriage Conference- Dr. James Hurley, head of the Marriage & Family Therapy Department at Reformed Theological Seminary in Jackson, MS will be with us Feb. 15th & 16th for a conference designed to strengthen our marriages! Dr. Hurley has credentials to teach in any department at RTS and is a close friend. The conference runs Friday night 7-9PM and Saturday 8AM-noon. Cost is $25/couple and you can register on the church web site www.houstonlakepres.org Please spread the word and invite friends! We will not be offering childcare.
Missions Conference- We are excited to give attention to global and local ministry April 19-21! The Rev. Chip Miller, Senior Pastor at the First Presbyterian Church of Macon, will be our speaker. In addition we will hear from various missionaries we support. This will be a fun, informative, and challenging time for our church!
Mark your calendars for these events and jump right in! I pray regularly on behalf of our church what the Apostle Paul said of the church at Thessalonica. …”your faith is growing abundantly and the love of every one of you for one another is increasing.” (I Thessalonians 1:3b ESV). May God make that true of HLPC!