The OBC Elders met for their regular monthly meeting at 6:30am on December 14, 2016. The meeting began with Pastor Pat leading the elders in a time of prayer. We as elders are very encouraged by our gracious God to be able to gather for the corporate worship of Jesus Christ in weekly public church services. We are very thankful to be able to have the freedom in this country to fully exercise our faith without government interference. We continually pray for that privilege now and into the future.

It was just a short time ago that Pastors Chris Peterson and Mike Grimes traveled to India to serve alongside our missionary, Vineet, from Pune, India. In this past trip, many Pune locals were encouraged in Christ through a Bible conference at the local YMCA. It was beneficial for our pastors to spend time with Vineet and his family for mutual encouragement and to see how we might be able to meet any material needs they have. We thank the body of Christ at OBC for their continual love and prayers for India.

It is another busy time of year with the holidays approaching as well as Sunday night Care Groups. The book we are reading, One to One Bible Reading by David Helm, is a great encouragement to the entire body in what reading the Bible with another person will accomplish.

Relationships are built by communication from the Bible, focus on the Bible, and effort in Bible reading. The Spirit of God uses the Scripture as a means of grace to strengthen our faith and trust in our Lord Jesus. We as elders are thankful for the body life at OBC and we urge the entire church body to be engaged in Care Groups.

Frank Barber discussed the Giving & Attendance Report from November. The monthly general offering totals were $49,352.91 against a plan of $52,768.59. We are praying for continued sacrificial giving to continue in the upcoming months (December and January). We are praising the Lord that our needs are being met and we continue to pray for strong giving, as we strive to reach our budget for the year. Please pray as this presents a tremendous opportunity for the Lord to deliver what is needed as a church.

Finally, the elders are very encouraged by the progress of our church membership and the faithfulness of the body in this regard. Nothing is more praiseworthy to the Lord than to see the body of Christ respond to church leadership. Church membership is a vital tool for everyone to grow in the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ and His church.

The meeting closed at 7:33am. The next scheduled elders meeting is planned for January 10, 2017.