Christmas Party

Well this is as good as we got with our Christmas babies (sorry to Luke who just left and Noah & Judah who are covered). They are in it, but not a single smile!!! But we did have a great time.

Christmas Giving

Merry Christmas to all!
We hope you are having a wonderful Christmas season and wanted to share a few ways that you can give back to that baby who gave us so much!
1. Its the season for the Lottie Moon Christmas Offering for International Missions. This supports Southern baptist missionaries around the world. Please pray about how your family can give generously and sacrificially this year and be creative-match your Dec tithe, give as much as you spend on gifts for family, give your unexpected bonus or if God isn't pressing on your heart to give really big, please give something. We are highly encouraging everyone in our church to give to this (for more details read below).
2. The Homebuilders Sunday school class is collecting money for Norman Elementary family Christmas food boxes ($35) and sleeping bags for homeless who attend Church Under the Bridge ($10). We will be accepting cash or checks (made out to HPBC) Sundays Dec 5 & 13 and a big in gathering at our Christmas party on Dec. 12. Let's see how many our class can do.
Thanks for your generous spirit this Christmas season!

Lottie Moon served as a missionary to China for almost 40 years during the end of the 1800s. She tirelessly wrote letters home to urge Southern Baptists to give so more missionaries could join her sharing the good news. A lot of changed since that time and the IMB now has around 5000 missionaries serving overseas. They are supported by Lottie Moon Christmas Offering and the Cooperative Program. Last year the LMCO fell $30 million short, so the number of missionaries being able to go in 2010 is extremely limited. Caleb and I went with a two year program in 2002 that is now on hold in 2010 so if we wanted to go this year the IMB would have to tell us sorry but there isn't enough money! Yes the economy is bad but we are very very blessed and all of us have money that we can give so others can go and share the gospel. Many other missionaries with other agencies spend years raising support to go but Southern Baptists have always supported missionaries so the didn't spend the time and have the financial worries; an independent missionaries normally raises $60-80,000 per year to live while the IMB only uses around $41,000 per missionary per year so the money is well spent. Let's not be the generation that stops supporting our missionaries. Let's let God soften our hearts and give so the $100,000 HPBC goal is blown out of the water!