| In this issue: Let’s Celebrate Toy Store Registration October Events Momentum and Tailgate Baking for Babies Fall Celebration Save The Date Youth and Children’s Volunteer Training Resource of the Week Church News Partner News |
| Let’s Celebrate Toy Store RegistrationsToy Store Registration Complete! We are excited to share that 354 families have registered for this year’s CRBA Toy Store, representing 853 children who will be served this Christmas! Praise the Lord for the opportunity to share His love in such a tangible way. We still have volunteer spots available for shoppers, childcare helpers, clean-up crews, counselors, and spanish interpreters. Volunteer dates: December 8–11 To sign up, call the CRBA office at (828) 437-0137 and get on the list today!  Upcoming Events Youth Momentum Rally and Tailgate  Please call or email with the estimated number of students you will be bringing so we can begin to make plans for the pizza order. (828) 437-0137 admin@crbanc.org Baking for Babies  A Big Day for CRBA – Sunday, October 19th!     October 19th will be a full and exciting day for our CRBA family, and we don’t want you to miss any of it!4:30 PM – Annual CRBA Business Meeting (Burkemont Gym) Pastors and messengers will share a meal together and conduct our annual business. Please call in your messengers to CRBA as soon as possible. 4:30 PM – Joint CRBA Choir Rehearsal (Burkemont Sanctuary) The choir will practice at the same time as the business meeting. Choir members will not eat the meal but will have a light snack. Because these overlap, we ask that churches avoid assigning messengers who are also choir members. 6:00 PM – Joint Celebration Worship (Burkemont Sanctuary) All CRBA churches are encouraged to move their Sunday evening service to Burkemont for this special night of worship. The CRBA Joint Choir will lead us in song, and Dr. Terry Long will bring the message. Coats for the City- All Coat Collections will be gathered at Burkemont to sort and send to NY. Following Worship – Mission Fair & Ice Cream Fellowship (Burkemont) After service, enjoy time together at the Mission Fair with ice cream! 5:00–7:00 PM – Momentum Youth Rally (Mt. Home) Our youth will gather separately at Mt. Home for their rally with Dr. Scott Pace as guest speaker.Mark your calendars and plan to be part of this exciting day of worship, fellowship, and ministry! Save the Date Conference-level Training offered FREE   This training offers conference level information paid for by your CRBA! Don’t miss out on an opportunity to provide your volunteer workers with training. Resources of the Week 30 Ways to Honor Your Pastor for Pastor Appreciation Month- By Chuck Lawless I update and publish this list each year so you and your church can consider ways to show your gratitude to your pastor during Pastor Appreciation Month: Give your pastor and his family a weekend getaway. Give them a break on somebody else’s nickel – and make sure that time is not counted as vacation! Do some tasks for him and his family. Rake the leaves. Cut the grass. Wash the cars. Paint a room. Power wash the deck or the house. Do something that helps him. Catalog his books. Computer tools allow you to catalog books quickly, but somebody has to do the labor. Save your pastor the work. Provide gifts for his wife and children. The church that loves a pastor’s family will have a pastor who loves them. Prepare a notebook of “thank you” notes. I still have and cherish a notebook of notes that folks wrote to me as their pastor. Give him an Amazon tree. The “tree” might be only a big twig or an artificial plant, but the leaves are Amazon gift cards. Every pastor I know wants more books. Make a personal commitment to speak well of him—and choose not to listen to those who speak otherwise. Support your pastor in front of others. Update and upgrade his office. Paint the walls. Provide new furniture. Replace outdated wall paintings. Give him a new computer. If he’s like the rest of us, he’s used his current one for many, many Zoom meetings and recordings over the last few years. If you’ve been sitting a while in church, start serving. I assure you he’ll appreciate every believer who gets more committed to God and His work. Provide a framed picture of your church building. I have pictures of both churches I pastored hanging on my office wall, and I’m grateful for those congregations every time I look at the pictures. Offer a few nights of childcare over the rest of the month. Give your pastor and spouse the opportunity to have several date nights this month. Give him time and funds to attend a conference he wants to attend. Even if he already receives a conference benefit, increase it for this year. Set aside a special day to honor his wife. If you really want to make your pastor happy, focus on his wife instead. A great day for her is a great day for him. Send him a video-recorded thank you note from your family. Take a few minutes, record a short video greeting and “thank you,” and send it. Give him a trip to Israel. Of course, these days we first need to pray for the peace of Jerusalem. When travel allows, though, your pastor will never approach the Bible or the pulpit the same way after walking in the Holy Land. Pay his costs to earn a doctoral degree. Make a long-term commitment to help your shepherd get the additional study he wants. Give him and his family a local gym membership. Because you appreciate them, help them live longer by staying in shape. Help him participate in his hobby. If his hobby is golf, give him several rounds of golf. If it’s reading, give him Amazon cards. Give him something you know he’ll enjoy. Detail his car. Clean it. Wax it. Change the oil. Fill it with gas. Give it back to him with a few restaurant gift cards in the front seat. Give him a commentary set, one or two volumes per month. That way, this year’s appreciation gift keeps on giving. Have the church’s children write him notes. Few things melt a pastor’s heart like simple, honest words and drawings from children. Give him an extra week of vacation. Even if it’s only for this year, he’ll be appreciative. Commit to praying for him daily—and then be sure to do it. Let him know you’re doing it, too. He’ll be grateful. Ask him, “What can I do to most help you?” You might be surprised by his answer. He might have immediate needs . Say to him, “I want to give you some gift to show my appreciation for you. Please tell me something you would like to receive.” You may have to push him to get an answer, but invite his input in this decision. Establish a “meal train” for one week for his family. Providing dinner each night for a week allows several folks to honor your pastor, and it frees him and his family from meal preparation. Give him a gas card. I spent a lot of time in my car as a pastor, and a gift card would have been quite helpful. Help alleviate these fuel costs. Tell him, “Thank you, Pastor.” Just those three words from a sincere voice can make a difference. Yet, many pastors hear them far too little. Plan with others to give your pastor one of these gifts each week in October. He’ll likely assume that the first gift is the final one–which makes sense–but do something different. Work with others to surprise him throughout the month.  Your CRBA has a generator available for your ministry needs. If you would like to reserve a resource for your church please call us at (828) 437-0137. Church News Burkemont – is seeking to hire a Part-Time Office Assistant. To see description please see all our staff openings in CRBA churches here. Lakeview – Trunk or Treat Oct. 31 from 5-8pm. Hamburgers and Hotdogs! Pleasant Hill –  |
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