Happy Monday family!
I pray that you had a restful as well as a safe weekend, and that you were able to get at least some of the things on your to do list done. It is hard to believe that we have now entered into the sixth month of the COVID – 19 journey. I’m sure that none of us could have imagined six months ago that our lives would have been completely changed in every way because of this virus. Nonetheless, here we are. I am reminded of one of my favorite lines from the film Antoine Fischer, which is delivered by the main character, a young man who had been abused as a child. As a young adult he stands before his abusers as he utters these powerful words, “I’m still here. I’m still standing!” Well, after sixth months, we are still here. We are still standing. To God be the glory.
As you well know, this past Sabbath we celebrated our 11th Annual Sligo Homecoming. And although it was a virtual experience, it was indeed a rich blessing to our community. From the Sligo Live presentation acknowledging the 25th anniversary of the first three female pastors ordained into the Seventh-day Adventist Church, the amazing music both prerecorded and live, to the powerful and timely message by our speaker, Dr. Kendra Haloviak-Valentine, it was a homecoming we will not soon forget. Thanks to our worship and media teams for all the hard work that went into putting together this creative and meaningful worship experience. In case you missed it, we invite you to view it on our website at <sligochurch.org>. You will definitely be glad that you did.
Since the first Sabbath back in March when we had to close the doors of the church, the pastors, Elders and ministry leaders put into action a plan to connect with our members of our congregation. Not a week has gone by where there hasn’t been calls made, cards sent or zoom visits made to our members. But as diligent as our efforts have been, I am sure that there may be some of you that not have heard from us as yet. This may be due to incorrect contact information that we may have or due to an oversight on our part. But whatever the case, if you know your information has changed, please reach out and let us know. If you haven’t been contacted by one of our leaders, and you would like to hear from one of us, please reach out to us at <sligochurch.org> and click the contact icon. Or you can simply call or email a pastor or your Elder and let us know.
As always, please take a moment and review the opportunities of how we can continue to do life together while we are apart:
Join us for virtual Prayer Gathering – Invite your family and friends for this additional prayer time to claim God’s power and peace over the giants we are currently facing. our presenter will be Elder Fitzroy Thomas; We are studying Chapter 4 of Steps to Christ, titled, Confession . <https://m.egwwritings.org/en/book/108.139#139>
- Wednesdays from 7:00 – 7:30 p.m. (Zoom call) Contact Pr. Cheryl Wilson-Bridges at <cbridges@sligochurch.org> for access to the link.
- Sundays from 11:00 to 11:30 a.m. (Conference Call: Prayer Line Number 425-440-5010 code: 867642#)
Children’s Ministry: Each Sabbath at 10:00 a.m., you can connect your children to one of our 3 weekly Zoom Sabbath School Sessions: Little Friends, Kindergarten or Juniors. The new weekly link is emailed out on Fridays, via our Pathfinder, Adventurer, and Parent (parents of children 14 years old and under) email groups. Parents, if you have not received an email, and would like to be included, please contact Pr. Hazel Marroquin at <hmarroquin@sligochurch.org>
Youth and Young Adults – If you are a youth or young adult and you’re looking for ways to remain connected with other youth and young adults, just click the link to get started on your journey. <sligoyouth@sligochurch.org>
Journey Groups – If you are a member of a Journey group, or would like to be part of a Journey group that will meet through an online platform, such as zoom or Skype, please just click on the link to receive more information. <http://sligochurch.org/journey>
Assistance – If you are aware of a member of the church that has lost his or her means of livelihood as a result of the pandemic and needs assistance, please contact one of the pastors about this. We will certainly do our best to provide them with whatever support we can.
Giving – Thank you for your continued faithfulness during this time of unparalleled crisis. While many of you are continuing to return your tithes and offerings online, others are either mailing their contributions to the church or bringing them directly to the church office, and for this we are eternally grateful. <adventistgiving>
Stay Hopeful!
Charles A. Tapp
Senior Pastor