Hi Newport Church Family,
We want to wish you all a very happy and blessed Christmas!
As we gather with family and friends we pray that this will be a special time for you all as we celebrate the birth of Jesus together.
“All Creation Sings”, Christmas Special
We hope to see you at our Christmas Special tomorrow at 11am. Our team have put together a presentation of the birth of Jesus called “All Creation Sings”, which will be both inspiring and faith building.
We have an LED wall outside, great food and coffee, before and after the service and tables and chairs where we can connect and encourage each other. It’s going to be an awesome morning!
Christmas Eve Service online at 6pm
We would also love for you to join us for our Christmas Eve service at 6pm on Thursday 24th December.
This will be a 45 minute online service that we can watch in our homes with our families as we take time in the midst of our Christmas preparations to consider the Mystery, Wonder and Glory of Christmas and worship Jesus together.
Sabbath Sunday on Sunday 27th December
On the Sunday after Christmas we are having a Sunday Sabbath! This means that there will be no service and we encourage you to take time at home to rest and reflect on the birth of Jesus and His faithfulness in our lives in this year filled with so many challenges.
In our next email, we will be sharing some thoughts to reflect on as we prepare for the New Year.
Christ entered our World to set all things Right
I love the message translation of Paul’s letter to the Romans where he says:
“God didn’t deal with our problem as something remote and unimportant, but in his Son, Jesus, he personally took on the human condition and entered the disordered mess of struggling humanity in order to set it right once and for all.”
As we celebrate Christmas together let’s never forget the hope that this brings to us all.
God is neither remote nor disinterested, but He entered and enters our world in the midst of our struggle and mess to set things right.
There is nothing that is beyond the scope of His interest or power. God is able to set all things right, however hard or impossible our situation may be.
Let’s invite Jesus who lit up the darkness on the night that He was born, to do the same for each one of us this Christmas.
And let’s never forget that He is the One in whom we can confidently put our Hope!
Everything Matters More at Christmas
Christmas is a time when everything seems to matter more than at any other time of the year.
Those who are lonely will feel more lonely, those who are away from family will feel the absence of family all the more, loved ones who are no longer with us will be missed with a greater sense of loss, those who have lack of any kind will feel their lack even more, because everything seems to matter more at Christmas.
Let’s do everything in our power this Christmas to reach out to those around us, to those who the Holy Spirit puts on our hearts and minds, and encourage them in whatever way we can.
Whether it’s calling them, sending them a text, praying for them, letting them know they’re in your thoughts and prayers, catching up for a coffee or an invitation to an activity are just some of the many ways we can be there for the people in our world.
We can be the difference in their world at a time when everything seems to matter more!
Christmas – A Time of Giving
Christmas is a time of giving and the giving of our donations, tithes and offerings is especially important at this time when we are continuing to do all that we can to meet the natural and spiritual need in our community.
My Christmas Wish which we are hosting today is an opportunity for us to share our love with families at Christmas.
At the same time our Food with Love ministry is continuing to grow, along with the need for more food and provision.
Over recent weeks we have been distributing food from our church and our building is serving as a storehouse and hub of hope and faith in ever increasing ways for our community.
Thank you for your generosity at this time, your giving is making a significant difference.
A big thank you to all those who have contributed to our end of year Thanksgiving Offering. If you have not had an opportunity to contribute to it yet you can do so by clicking here.
We’re Thankful for….
Don’t forget to check out the Instagram stories of members of our church, who are sharing what they are thankful for on our Newport Church account. You will be encouraged by their stories!
Prayer Changes Things
Let’s never forget the power of prayer as we keep praying that God will turn back the tide of COVID-19 and that His Kingdom come and His will be done in our lives and world.
God is not only able but willing to do exceedingly abundantly above and beyond all that we can ever ask or imagine!
We look forward to you joining us tomorrow for our Christmas Special either online or at our Newport Church Café!
We are thankful for you and love and appreciate you greatly.
With love and blessings
Jonathan & Dianne Wilson
Senior Pastors