To: ARP Family
From: Jack Hill, Chairman of the Board of Benefits
Dear Friends,
Is there a retired ARP minister or ARP minister’s widow in your community? If so, please be aware of the service these individuals have rendered to our denomination. Synod’s Christmas Benevolent Fund is a ministry designed to assist these individuals with financial needs.
First priority is given to those persons who qualify for ongoing monthly assistance due to their limited resources. An application for such assistance is required annually. Once the needs of these individuals have been met, any funds remaining in the Benevolent Fund are distributed in equal amounts as a Christmas gift from the denomination to retirees who wish to receive such a gift. (A number of retirees opt not to receive this gift so that the funds can be used for those with greater needs).
The Board of Benefits contacts eligible participants each year to determine at what level they wish to participate in the program. If you know of a retired minister or a minister’s widow who is in special need, please contact Paul Bell (pbell@arpsynod.org or 864-232-8297) before October 22ndto determine if the Christmas Benevolent Fund can help.
The Christmas Benevolent Fund is included annually in the Thanksgiving Season Special Offering. Offering envelopes and a bulletin insert will be sent to your church shortly.
Donations to the fund have been decreasing the past few years. Please make every effort to afford the members of your congregation the opportunity to participate in this important ministry and encourage them to be generous. One hundred percent of gifts given to the Benevolent Fund are used for the purposes indicated above. No funds are withheld for administrative costs.
Learning Series on Prayer
Rogers Memorial ARP Church will host a new learning series on prayer, Prayer—the Adventure, taught by Dr. Bill Fleming. The series will run on Wednesday nights from Oct. 10 through Dec. 5, from 6:30 – 8 p.m. The cost is $15 per person. There will be a handbook and additional material available via the internet.
The goal of Prayer—The Adventure is not only to teach you to pray, but to train you in prayer. In this series, Dr. Fleming will go step by step through the elements of prayer, including meditation, praise, thanksgiving, examination, confession, and petition. Along the way, there will be exercises designed to help you develop a deeper and more enriching prayer life.
To secure your place, or for more information, call Rogers Memorial Church at 803-327-5724, or email rmemorial@comporium.net, or Dr. Fleming at (bfleming@nlts.edu).
Dr. Bill Flemingis supply pastor at Rogers Memorial and chairman of the Department of Pastoral Studies at New Life Theological Seminary, Charlotte, NC .
Books Needed for Seminary
Needed – used or new books for the library of the Yucatán Seminary, Cenotillo, Mexico (a new outreach of World Witness). Books can be English or Spanish, and on a wide range of topics, such as theology, Bible commentaries, missions, church history, preaching, ministry, Greek and Hebrew language, and other academic subjects suitable for seminary study.
Books can be shipped to Mr. Gene Kim in Concord, NC, who will transport them to the Yucatán Seminary. For more information email Gene Kim at: asmylord@gmail.com. His mailing address is 4428 Glen Haven Drive SW, Concord, NC 28027-0408.
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