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Announcements Plus Devotional Aids

Let's Learn a Bible Verse!

"Teacher, which is the greatest commandment in the Law?" Jesus replied: "'Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind.' This is the first and greatest commandment. And the second is like it: 'Love your neighbor as yourself.' All the Law and the Prophets hang on these two commandments."
--Matthew 22:36-40 (NIV)

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"For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life."

Happy Valentine's Day

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Announcements

Ash Wednesday Service, 7 PM

On February 18th we will have our annual Ash Wednesday Service at 7:00 p.m. to prepare us for the season of Lent as we spend more time in Bible study, prayer, and praise of our Lord and we confess our sinfulness and need of our Lord's great sacrifice on Good Friday. Traditionally, Christians choose some activity or thing to give up for this 40 day season as they strive for a deeper relationship with the Lord who died to set them free from the tyranny and the consequences of sin in their lives. Visitors are encouraged to attend.

Special Guests February 8th

We will have 2 special guests, Pastor Maurivam Costa and his wife Isabel this coming Sunday, February 8th. They are both good singers and will be singing and Pastor Maurivam will deliver our message for this service. The Pastor and his wife work with Finding Hope ministries in Brazil, which sets up group homes for orphans as they do in Romania. Come and be blessed as they tell us about their mission work in Brazil.

Special Service Jan. 30 at 5 PM

We are worshiping tonight at 5:00 p.m. for those who can get to Ebenezer Church. We hope to also stream the service on Facebook. All activities for Feb. 1 are cancelled because of incoming foul weather. Drive carefully in God's care.

Foul Weather Plans - January 25

Ebenezer Church will be closed on Sunday, January 25. All activities are cancelled. I assume that the Blood Drive on Monday is also candeled and will be rescheduled. We will send out an announcement to our members on our phone tree system on Saturday afternoon if we decide to cancel our in church worship and Sunday school classes. If we do not cancel the services, please do not come to church if you cannot get there safely.

If power and the internet are available, Pastor Simon's sermon will be on our Facebook page or you will be able to access it through your phone with Free Conference Call. More information will be sent in emails to our members.

Red Cross Blood Drive, 1-26-26

Cancelled because of sleet and cold. Rescheduled for March 30th.

Our annual winter Blood Drive is on Monday, January 26 from 2:30-7:00 p.m. Hot soup and toasted cheese bread, plus homemade desserts will be served to donors and workers. Make your appointment online at RedCrossBlood.org and search with EbenezerUMC or zip code 28630 for our drive. We thank you for giving to this vital resource that helps save lives. Walk-ins are welcome, but appointments are honored first. Donors can receive a $20 e-card to the merchant of their choice.

 

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Quote to Ponder

"The time for compromise has passed. The time for clarity has come. We must return to Scripture, not as a relic of the past, but as the living Word of God. We must hold our churches accountable, not with bitterness, but with boldness. We must live lives that reflect the holiness we proclaim. Because in the end, it is not the culture that will judge us, it is the Creator"

https://www.americanthinker.com/blog/

2025/10/the_crisis_of_hypocrisy.html#:

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For Meditation

"Today, we are living through another chapter of this ancient conflict. The issues may look modern, but the underlying battle is the same. We see civic unrest, rising crime, confusion around identity, debates over the value of life, the removal of God from public life, and violence against believers around the world. These are not isolated problems. They are symptoms of a deeper struggle over who defines truth — God or man.
When a culture detaches itself from God, something else always rushes in to fill the vacuum: ideology, emotion, tribalism, and power struggles. The serpent’s whisper echoes again: “Did God really say…?” And once truth becomes negotiable, everything else becomes unstable."

https://www.americanthinker.com/blog/ 2026/02/the_long_war_between_good _and_evil_and_why_believers_must_ stay_awake.html#:

 

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Mini-Bible Lesson #103: Meeting Together

Speak to one another with psalms, hymns and spiritual songs. Sing and make music in your heart to the Lord, always giving thanks to God the Father for everything, in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ. –Ephesians 5:19-20 NIV

And let us consider how we may spur one another on toward love and good deeds. Let us not give up meeting together, as some are in the habit of doing, but let us encourage one another—and all the more as you see the Day approaching. –Hebrews 10: 24-25

There are believers that say that they do not need to go to church to be a follower of Christ; then they point to the man on the cross whom Jesus said would be in paradise with Jesus that very day. But is this a good analogy or comparison? The thief on the cross was saved for believing in Jesus, but he died that day. He would never have to deal with temptation, distractions, sorrows, pains, persecution, or doubts. Most people who become Christians do not immediately die. They are left here to deal with the slings and arrows of fate. They face temptation daily. They face doubts. They face evil daily because they continue to live in a fallen world.

In Hebrews 10:24-25, we are admonished to “not give up meeting together as some are in the habit of doing.” Why are we to meet with one another regularly? In those same verses, we read “let us encourage one another—all the more as you see the Day approaching.” That is one purpose in our meetings. That Day that approaches is the day that each of us meets the Lord face-to-face, and there is one Day coming when the whole world will see Jesus and experience either his wrath or his redemption. So, we need the church for encouragement because life can be difficult and persecution will come to us who profess Jesus and live by his standards and not the world’s.

There are other reasons to not forsake church attendance. We can “spur one another on toward love and good deeds” (see Hebrews 10:24a). When Christians pray together, great things can happen. It happened at Pentecost (Acts 2) and in Acts 4, after Peter and John were persecuted by the Sanhedrin, they returned to their fellow believers and prayed and “the place where they were meeting was shaken. And they were all filled with the Holy Spirit and spoke the word of God boldly” (Acts 4:31). We can share reports about what God has done. “On arriving there, they gathered the church together and reported all that God had done through them and how he had opened the door of faith to the Gentiles" (Acts 14:27). We can avoid being “carried away by all kinds of strange teachings" (Hebrews 13:9). As the Apostle Paul says in Romans 15:32, “so that by God’s will I may come to you with joy and together with you be refreshed.” Our faith is renewed and we are refreshed by being with our fellow believers in a worship service and in a Bible study group.

When we come together to “[s]peak to one another with psalms, hymns and spiritual songs. Sing and make music in your heart to the Lord, always giving thanks to God the Father for everything, in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ” (Ephesians 5:19-20), we reaffirm our faith and our commitment to the Lord and to one another. We are reminded of how much we have received from God and Jesus, creating gratitude in our hearts that gives us peace even when all is chaos around us.

And though we no longer have “everything in common” (see Acts 2:44-45), we can “bear with each other and forgive whatever grievances you may have against one another. Forgive as the Lord forgave you” (Colossians 3:13). In a world filled more and more with lonely people, being an active member of a local church helps you to avoid loneliness and gives you opportunities to relieve the loneliness of fellow believers and others who need to know about Jesus.

Read these descriptions of the Body of Christ, the Church. Reflect on them until you understand what church is really all about—it is not a social club, though you can find and make friends there; it is not just a fall back when something goes wrong, though it can help you through hard times; it is not for entertainment, though you can be entertained there. The church is here to help us to grow into the people God has always wanted us to be and to help grow the kingdom of God. Be a church goer and doer not just a member.

Ephesians 4:12-16 (emphasis added):

It was he who gave some to be apostles, some to be prophets, some to be evangelists, and some to be pastors and teachers, to prepare God’s people for works of service, so that the body of Christ may be built up until we all reach unity in the faith and in the knowledge f the Son of God and become mature, attaining to the whole measure of the fullness of Christ. Then we will no longer be infants, tossed back and forth by the waves, and blown here and there by every wind of teaching and by the cunning and craftiness of men in their deceitful scheming. Instead, speaking the truth in love, we will in all things grow up into him who is the Head, that is, Christ. From him the whole body, joined and held together by every supporting ligament, grows and builds itself up in love, as each part does its work.

Colossians 3:12-17(emphasis added):

Therefore, as God’s chosen people, holy and dearly loved, clothe yourselves with compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness and patience. Bear with each other and forgive whatever grievances you may have against one another. Forgive as the Lord forgave you. And over all these virtues put on love, which binds them all together in perfect unity. Let the peace of Christ rule in your hearts, since as members of the one body you were called to peace. And be thankful. Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly as you teach and admonish one another with all wisdom, and as you sing psalms, hymns and spiritual songs with gratitude in your hearts to God. And whatever you do, whether in word or deed, do it all in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through him.

 

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Special Resources

The picture below is our new Resource Room with books, dvds, videos, and a TV screen (not shown in photo). Individuals are encouraged to take resources home for Bible study or reading; and classes can use the room to show videos related to their studies. We would appreciate donations of books or dvds, especially for young children for this collection.

 

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Ongoing Collections - Updated - 8/5/2025

CCC & TI Food Pantry Collection - Yearly in April

Throughout the month of April, we will be collecting single serve, microwaveable or ready-to-eat items for students at Caldwell Community College and Technical Institute. Suggested items: single serve Ramen Noodles, macaroni and cheese, crackers with cheese or peanut butter, cookies, single serve canned meats, etc.

Oakhill Backpack Ministry

We are beginning to collect single serve, easy to microwave or use food items to send home with needy children, such as, fruit cups, mac and cheese, snacks, noodles, etc. The children will receive a backpack of these items to take home on the weekends, and use for themselves and their families. Put the items in the old fellowship hall. We thank you for helping.

Local Schools Supply Closet

We continue to collect items for our local teachers.This ministry provides items for teachers and their students that they cannot obtain through the regular budget.

They include the following: Clorox wipes, hand sanitizer, hand soap, paper towels, facial tissues, sharpies, dry board markers highlighters, black/blue/red ink pens, colored pencils, glue sticks, composition books and notebook paper (wide and college ruled), crayons, scissors (children's type), index cards, construction paper, pencil sharpeners, sheet protectors, file folders, large and small legal pads, white out, paper clips, staples, pencil pouches, markers, rulers, ring binders, card stock white/assorted, 3 ring note books, large and small pencil top erasers, and post it notes.

South Caldwell Christian Ministries

August is our month to help resupply the SCCM Food Pantry. Canned meats and vegetables, rice and cereral, canned beans, soups, canned fruits, Instant Variety Packs of oatmeal or grits, peanut butter, crackers, and other non-perishable items.

We are collecting non-perishable food and clean used clothing in good condition that will be taken to South Caldwell Christian Ministries. You may leave the items at the church on Sundays or during normal office hours (8:30 to 1:00 p.m., Monday-Friday).

We thank you for helping us to minister to the needs of our community.

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Contact Information: 828-396-2214 or emcdudleyshoals@yahoo.com;
4948 Burns Rd., Granite Falls NC 28630