"What good is it, my brothers and sisters, if you say you have faith but do not have works? Can faith save you? If a brother or sister is naked and lacks daily food, and one of you says to them, "Go in peace; keep warm and eat your fill," and yet you do not supply their bodily needs, what is the good of that?" James 2.14-16(English Standard Version)

     Here I am taking another detour from our appointed study of James. Yet the information that I need to share with you is time sensitive, so I jump forward from my plan to hear the counsel of James 2.14-16.

     June 4th will be an exciting day here at Grace. It is Pentecost Sunday; a day set aside to remember God’s gift of the church. Pentecost reminds each member of the church that God has personally given us the gift of the Holy Spirit to inhabit our lives. In the words of Acts 2.2, “All of them were filled with the Holy Spirit…”

     June 4th is also the kickoff Sunday for the One Great Hour of Sharing offering. The OGHS offering is an emergency relief offering which is collected by a number of denominations to help with basic human needs around the globe. It is through OGHS that Grace and other American Baptists responded to both the Asian Tsunami disaster and Hurricanes Rita and Katrina. It is our opportunity at Grace to follow James admonition to combine our faith in Christ with compassion for our brothers and sisters.

     So on June 4th I need your help to make our Pentecost/OGHS experience a success. Here is how you can help.

• Wear the color red. Red is the symbolic color of Pentecost. Join in the spirit of the day by going to your closet and finding some article or articles of red clothing. The Mission Committee will be taking a church picture of us all dressed in red.
• Come with an open mind. We will begin a sermon series on Spiritual Gifts and how God equips His church to complete His mission.
• Pray for God’s direction in how you can give to the OGHS offering and help strengthen your faith by the act of compassion.