Hi friends,

This week, my prayers have been that you’ve enjoyed a physically and, especially, spiritually positive week. I trust that as you faced successes and challenges, you strengthened your relationship with God through prayer. I also trust that you went to God’s Word so He could answer you. (Meditation works very well in tandem with Bible study.) If it’s been a difficult week, know that God’s Sabbath is here for rest and as a spiritual reset.

As we prepare for services once more in Buford and Atlanta this Sabbath, here are this week’s announcements.

1. Sabbath Services in Buford and Atlanta. Tomorrow, in the morning, the Buford congregation will meet at the Holiday Inn Express, Bethlehem (Georgia) at 10:30 AM for services. In the afternoon, the Atlanta congregation will meet at Unity Atlanta at 2:30 PM for services. After services, Atlanta’s Soup, Chili, and Bread Meal takes place. After sunset, we are set for a Bunco Party. Everyone is invited!

2. Atlanta Soup, Chili, and Bread Covered Dish Meal: 12/20. We will be holding our annual Chili Covered Dish Meal tomorrow after services. We hope you can join us after church for fellowship and food! Please take note of the following:

1. Volunteers Needed (Men & Women):
   We need help with setup and cleanup.
   → Go to https://tinyurl.com/ucgchili and, about halfway down the page, mark that you are willing to assist.
2. Tell Us What You’re Bringing:
   Please indicate what dish(es) you plan to contribute so we can ensure variety and avoid duplicates.
   → Use the same link: https://tinyurl.com/ucgchili.
3. Label Your Items:
   Label all serving dishes and serving utensils with your name.
   • If you purchased an item (e.g., cookies in packaging), please transfer your item to your own labeled serving dish and bring a labeled utensil (such as tongs or a serving spoon).
4. Take Everything With You After the Meal:
   Please take home all dishes, utensils, and any leftovers when you leave.
   • Do not leave containers—disposable or otherwise—on the tables. Cleanup volunteers cannot determine who items belong to or whether leftovers should be saved or discarded.

Afterward, we will play Bunco in the Fellowship Hall. Plan to join in the fun. (If you’ve not played Bunco before, don’t worry. We will teach you how. And as for prizes this year, they are something special!

3. Under the weather this Sabbath? Tune into our UCG Atlanta Webcast. If you are sick this week, plan to watch the webcast online. To view the service, enter the password tree of life (with no spaces) in the channel password box. The URL location is: https://www.ucg.org/congregations/atlanta-ga

4. Sabbath Services on 12/27. Live Webcast from WFW. For those unable to attend the Winter Family Weekend (WFW) in person in Hamilton, Ohio, we are pleased to announce we will be webcasting live on Sabbath, Dec. 27, starting with seminars in the early afternoon.

The broadcast schedule is as follows:

• 12:30 p.m. EST: Live coverage of two seminars.
• 2:30 p.m. EST: Sabbath Services. John Elliott, president of the United Church of God, will be delivering the sermon. 

Watch live here: https://www.ucg.org/watch/webcast

5. Next UCG Atlanta Bible Study: 1/6. Our next UCG Atlanta Bible Study takes place on Tuesday evening, January 6 at 7 PM. Mr. Jerold Aust will review Hebrews 3 and then go through Hebrews 4. Below is information to attend the study online:

Join the Zoom Meeting here:
https://us05web.zoom.us/j/83871677401?pwd=CSoupVrJ3qHxQQaq94jgeBnQZOajZ…

Meeting ID: 838 7167 7401
Passcode: 857315

See you there.

6. 2025 Winter Family Weekend: 12/23–12/28. Get ready to be “Fueled by Faith!” Registration for the 2025 Winter Family Weekend in Cincinnati, Ohio is almost here. Click here for more information: https://www.ucg.org/members/winter-family-weekend/winter-family-weekend-2025

7. Wamatochick Young Adult Weekend: 2/13-2/16/26. Young adults, you are invited to join your brothers and sisters for the fifth annual UYA Wamatochick Weekend, Feb. 13-16, 2026, in the picturesque pines of Northern Arizona! 

The theme is “A New Creation” (2 Corinthians 5:17). The presentations will invite and encourage us to be active and grow in our walk with God. The Sabbath will include interactive presentations and discussions. Sunday will feature additional presentations as well as indoor and outdoor activities, including hiking, horseback riding and mountain biking, and weather permitting. Everyone is welcome to stay an additional night to extend the weekend into Monday to enjoy further fellowship and activity time!

Ages are 18–32 and married and single are welcome. Cost is $165 per person, including sleeping arrangements and seven meals. Camp is outside of Prescott, Arizona and the Phoenix airport is a two-hour drive from camp. Rides from the airport can be arranged. Please plan to arrive no later than 2 p.m. on Friday, Feb. 13, and depart no earlier than 1 p.m. on Monday. Check-in starts at 4 p.m. on Friday at Camp Wamatochick.

Registration Deadline: Feb. 10, 2026. Please text or email Grant Fogelson (623-238-2044; grantfogelson@gmail.com) or Katarina Fogelson (469-858-1720; katarina14.reinoso@gmail.com) if you are interested in attending or for more information.

Registration site now available: https://ucg.regfox.com/wamatochick-weekend-2026

8. No 2026 SE Regional Weekend in Atlanta. After 5 consecutive, wonderful years (and 17 total years) of offering the Southeast Regional Formal Weekend, the Atlanta congregation will not host this event in 2026. We appreciate the strong support and participation from our teens and families from around the U.S. over the past 5 years and are grateful for all who have helped make these weekends meaningful.

We encourage those who are able to consider attending one of the other UCG teen proms/formal events being offered (e.g., the Dallas/Fort Worth “Regional Family and Prom Weekend” or the “Midwest Teen Prom” in Berlin, Ohio). Additional information is available through the event coordinators for those weekends.

Those are our announcements this evening. If anything more comes my way, I will send it to you; otherwise, Happy Sabbath!

In love,

Philip Aust

United Church of God, Pastor

Atlanta & Buford, Georgia

Memory Verse

Isaiah 8:19-20  And when they say to you, “Seek those who are mediums and wizards, who whisper and mutter,” should not a people seek their God? Should they seek the dead on behalf of the living? ²⁰To the law and to the testimony! If they do not speak according to this word, it is because there is no light in them.