How long is your gratitude memory? We are often quick to forget past kindness, past sacrifices, past provision, especially when we’re focused on what’s happening in our lives right now. And if we’re prone to doing that with people, it’s not much of a stretch to see how easily we can do the same thing with God. I’ve read the story of how the Lord led the Israelites out of Egypt many times, and every time I still find myself wondering, “How could they forget? How could they turn their backs on God again and again after witnessing so much of His power and provision over time?” He showed Himself faithful so many times and yet they still struggled to trust Him when life became hard. Before we shake our heads too hard at the Israelites, it might be worth pausing and asking ourselves if we’ve ever done the same. 2 Samuel 7:28 reminds us: “Sovereign Lord, you are God! Your covenant is trustworthy, and you have promised these good things to your servant.” God’s promises don’t expire. They don’t depend on our mood, our circumstances, or how grateful we happen to feel that day. God has been with us in the past, even when we didn’t realize it at the time. He is with us now, even when things feel quiet or hard. And He will be with us in the future, long after our current worries have faded. His love and His promises endure forever. Not temporarily. Not conditionally. Forever. “For the LORD is good and his love endures forever; his faithfulness continues through all generations.” (Psalm 100:5) At this new beginning of 2026, let us take a moment to look back before we look ahead. To remind our hearts of what He has already carried, healed, provided for and restored. Sometimes the most faithful thing we can do is to simply remember.
May we always remember ~ Lois
SPIRITUAL CARE
What God Meant (Luke 6:1-11)
Communication is always a challenge. Every person you talk to is different than you are. We generally do better when we know each other, but our conversations can go off the rails anyway. Throughout time, humans have struggled to understand our Creator. Some people try to build their understanding of God from what makes sense to them. Others actually read God’s Word for themselves, but they don’t quite get the message straight. The religious leaders of Jesus’ time were like this. They were serious about reading, knowing, and following the Law that God had given. Unfortunately, they had missed what God meant. Jesus tries to show them their mistake, but they can’t see it. Perhaps we can learn from what He says to them.
WEDNESDAY NIGHT BIBLE STUDY: Tonight!
Pastor Mark will be leading a new series, “Find Rest.” We all know the frustration of misplacing something and not being able to find it. We try to remember the last time we saw it, but it seems like every time we look somewhere new, it just isn’t there. Most of us live our lives chasing a thing that our soul needs, but that seems impossibly lost. We all need rest. In fact, Jesus tells us that we are called to it and that He gives it to us when we come to Him. So why do so many of us struggle to find it? Let’s see what may be stopping us from the kind of renewing rest that Jesus gives. Join us at 6:30P for coffee & donuts, and 7:00P for study. (HopeKids! Programs will be provided for infants through 5th grade, and Hope Youth will meet for 6th-12th grades.)
SUNDAY MORNING PRAYER:
Anyone can join us Sunday mornings at 8:30 in Pastor Mark’s office to pray for that morning’s services. Contact Bob Baumiester for more information (rbaumiester@gmail.com).
ANNOUNCEMENTS
A daily essential in any believer’s walk with God is time in His word. That’s why Hope has curated two special bible reading plans for you to choose from to start in the new year! You can grab our “Bible In A Year” plan or pick up one of our bookmarks that will give you a sampling of the entire bible over the course of 2 years. All options are available at the Connection Center!
MEN’S BREAKFAST: This Saturday!
We meet on the 2nd Saturday morning of each month from 8:00-9:30 for a time of fellowship, bible study, prayer, and of course – breakfast! Join us for delicious hot and FREE breakfast and a time to be with brothers in Christ. Invite a friend and we hope to see you this Saturday in the GoZone.
NEW TO HOPE RECEPTION: This Sunday!
If you are new to Hope within the past six months, our leadership and staff would love to get to know you more! Stop by our kitchen in-between services on Sunday, January 11th for a sweet treat and a hot cup of coffee. Bring your family, we can’t wait to meet them!
NEW TO HOPE CLASS:
If you’re new to Hope within the past year, you’ll want to join us for a special evening just for you! Come learn how we do things (and why we do them!) here at Hope. This class will be taught on Wednesday, February 4th at 7:00 by one of our Elders. Sign-up at the Connection Center to attend!
PARTNER CLASSES:
If God has brought you to Hope and convinced you over time that this is the church for you, we’d love for you to become a partner. This is our way of doing ‘membership’, but we use the word ‘partner’ instead because it connects us to the Biblical idea that we are called to partner together in ministry (Philippians 1:3-6). As partners, we share the burdens and work of the ministry together, and we serve our Lord as a team. Our Partner Classes will cover the way our church functions as well as what we believe. Join us on Wednesdays at 7:00 on February 11th, 18th, and 25th. Sign-up at Connection Center!
YOUNG ADULTS
If you are post high school through your 20s, our Young Adult group provides a place to connect, apply God’s Word to real life, and live in relationships with others. Hope’s Young Adults is a great way to grow your faith and find help to navigate the big decisions on the horizon. We meet the 1st & 3rd Tuesday of the month at 7:00P in the GoZone!
JANUARY 20TH: Ruth
There’s a story in God’s Word that often gets called a love story. We’re going to read it and discuss what we’re supposed to learn from this tragedy and struggle that turned into a central part of God’s plan for humanity. You can read the story before you come if you have time. But either way, we need your help in exploring and discussing the ins and outs of what happened here and what it means for God’s people today.
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For any questions about Hope’s Young Adults contact Mark & Dana Ott.
HOPE YOUTH
All 6th through 12th graders are invited to join us on Sundays from 6-8pm for games, bible study, worship, and more!
CURRENT SERIES: New Year, New Me
Sometimes we can treat our walk with God the same way we treat New Year’s resolutions. We feel convicted to make a change, stop sinning in one way or start pursuing Jesus in another, but we rarely keep these habits going. There’s a key component that we are missing and Hope Youth is going to explore what that key component is in our series “New Year, New Me.” Join us as we walk through the New Testament and explore the theme of rejuvenation from Jesus to Paul.
WEDNESDAY NIGHTS: Exodus, Our God Saves
Exodus begins with a genocide and only ramps up from there. The parting of the Red Sea, the 10 Plagues of Egypt, this is just the tip of the iceberg when it comes to Exodus and in our Hope Youth Wednesday Night Bible Study we will be diving so much deeper. As we read through the classic Exodus narrative we will be looking at what the story says about God, how we can apply it to our own lives, and see how the whole Exodus story points to a baby boy who would be born in Bethlehem. Join us on Wednesday nights from 6:30-8pm for our new series “Exodus, Our God Saves.”
HOPE YOUTH CALENDAR:
Parents, stay up to date with everything happening on our calendar here!
JOIN OUR TEXT THREAD:
Stay in the loop for all of the most important notifications! Text “”hopeyouth” to (856) 420-6078 to start receiving updates this week!
For any questions about Hope Youth contact Pastor Dan at: danlein@hopechristianfellowship.org
HOPEKIDS!
WONDERZONE SNOWFLAKE SPECTACULAR:
Sign-up to be a part of the fun happening on Saturday, January 17th from 10:30am-noon for our first ever WonderZone Snowflake Spectacular – a celebration for preschoolers (infants through Pre-K) and their parents! We’ll make snowflake crafts, play games, sing preschool worship songs, hear a snowy story, and more!! We can’t wait to see you and your preschooler(s) there!
SUNDAY MORNING PROGRAMS:
We offer childcare and classes from our littlest Hopers to our 5th graders every Sunday morning at both services. Each classroom is staffed with friendly, enthusiastic, background-checked team members to ensure your child’s safety. Our WonderZone! serves our youngest children from infants through Pre-K, who are full of wonder about who God is! K-5th graders gather in the GoZone! where we GO for God, GO for growth and GO forever.
WEDNESDAY EVENING PROGRAMS:
We are excited to welcome back all of our HopeKids! on Wednesday nights in both the WonderZone and GoZone! We’ll have classes opening at 6:45pm for all infants through 5th graders beginning on January 7th alongside our regular adult Bible Study sessions. Our team can’t wait to spend time cultivating relationships, diving into Scripture, and establishing a foundation of faith with all of our little ones as we head into the new year!
Check out our social media (and more) here!
For any questions about HopeKids! Ministry contact us at: kids@hopechristianfellowship.org
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