Dear Saints,
Thanksgiving
As we enter into the
Thanksgiving Season, truly we all have much to be thankful for. For many, the last couple of years, having
been challenging economic ones. I
believe that the Apostle Paul can be a model for us in that he truly understood
what it meant to go through difficult, life-threatening times. During those times, the spirit of
thanksgiving was upon him whether he found himself in a state of destitution or
whether he was in abundance. He wrote to
the Philippians these words: “But I rejoiced in the Lord greatly, that now at
the last your care of me hath flourished again; wherein ye were also careful,
but ye lacked opportunity. Not that I
speak in respect of want: for I have learned, in whatsoever state I am,
therewith to be content.” (Phil. 4:
10, 11). One commentary states that the
word “learned” is originally taken from the phrase “learned the secret” or
“initiated into the secret.” Yes, Paul
learned the secret of rising above all circumstances in life. He learned the secret of being cheerful and
joyful in times of privation and of being grateful in seasons of prosperity and
abundance. The secret of his contentment
is found “in Christ” or in his relationship to Christ. How is your relationship with Christ? Do you find yourself thanking Him during
times of abundance and also during times of want and hardship? That is truly what a thankful spirit is all
about. As you reflect on the ‘Source’ of
your contentment, it is my prayer that you and your family have a blessed
Thanksgiving Season.
YAK Retreat - Camp
Roganunda
Last month the YAK Winter
Retreat was held at our State
Campground, Camp Roganunda. Though the
numbers were low, the Spirit and the teaching and worship were wonderful
according to what Brother Bob Gaines reports.
Portable heaters were used in the cabins and all the campers and staff
were quite comfortable.
As most of you know, one of
the goals of the Camp is to have several cabins winterized this Fall and Winter
so that our Campground can be used year round.
By the way, any of you that are wanting to come up to the Camp during
the week or during the weekend, to help with some of the work projects, please
contact Brother Bob Gaines at 509-658-1013.
All help and/or donation of materials will be greatly appreciated!
Gordon-Conwell Theological
Seminary
This last month we also had
our Gordon-Conwell Seminary School in Kirkland.
The class being taught, Theology II, by Dr. Hector Ortiz was a
wonderful, thought-provoking class.
Instruction was given in the subject areas of Ecclesiology (the Church), Pneumatology
(Holy Spirit), Hamartiology (Sin), Soteriology (Salvation), and Eschatology
(Last Things). This class had our
students broadening their thinking about a number of areas in theology that we
generally take for granted. We truly
appreciate Kirkland Family Church and Pastor Kaye Cabales for the use of their
fine facility for our classes! Our next
class in Kirkland will be May 16-19, 2013.
If any of you are interested in being a student in our seminary, please
contact Bishop Knoblich.
Adult Retreat
This year, as in past years,
Adult Retreat will be held at Pacific Beach.
The dates are for February 1-3, 2013.
Our Retreat Theme is: “Anointed For Service.” Whether we may realize it or not, we are all
gifted and called by God for His service. We are expecting an awesome time in
the Lord! Western Canada National
Overseer, Bishop Walter Doroshuk and his lovely wife, Sister Claudia will be
our special guest speakers at this year’s
Retreat! They are both so
excited to be with us and we are excited
to have our neighbors to the North of us with us. Applications have been sent out individually
and will soon be sent to the pastors. You
can also download an application by going to the State Website at: wacogop.org
Applications should be
sent in no later than November 30th, 2012. This is going
to be a Great Retreat!!! Please don’t
miss it!!! Pass the word on to
others. We look forward to seeing you
there!!!
2013 State Convention
Please mark your calendars
for next year’s State Convention at the Kennewick Red Lion Hotel. The dates are August 23-25, 2013.
Events Calendar for 2012
November 9-11 Pastor's
Wives Retreat - Cannon Beach, OR
November 30 Application
deadline for Adult Retreat
January Stewardship Month
January 18-20 Winter Teen Retreat - White Pass (Shelly Symonds, Director)
January 24-27 Gordon-Conwell
Theological Seminary - Salem, OR January 18-20 Winter Teen Retreat - White Pass (Shelly Symonds, Director)
(History of the Church of God of Prophecy - Dr. Ortiz)
February 1-3 Adult Retreat - Pacific Beach (Don & Mary Knoblich, Directors)
February 15 District Convention - Tacoma (Rick Bear, District Overseer)
February 16 District Convention - Brush Prairie (Franklin Smith, District Overseer)
March 16 District Convention - Kirkland (Roger Jones, District Overseer)
March 23 District Convention - Tri-Cities (Franklin Smith, District Overseer)
August 23-25 Washington
State Convention - Kennewick (Red Lion Hotel)
"Designed For God’s
Greatness"
Bishop/Dr. Don Knoblich
