Welcome to our final newsletter of 2022. The end of a calendar year is a great time to carve out some space for reflection. Looking back over the longer time frame of a whole year can help us gain perspective on the events and happenings in our lives. As we allow God’s light to permeate our reflection, it can provoke new prayers of praise, celebration, lament, supplication, hope and thankfulness to rise from our hearts. It could illuminate areas where are growing, where God is pushing us to greater obedience or where He might be leading us to take a step of faith. Our prayer is that as you look back, you can see evidence of God’s faithfulness and lovingkindness in 2022. May you enter 2023 with a firm hope founded on all who God is and all that He has accomplished through His Son, Jesus Christ and all that He offers through the power of the Holy Spirit who lives in us.

O God,
Your days are without beginning
and without end.
We dedicate this coming year to you.
Give us such prosperity as you know is good for us,
and make us abound in doing whatever is pleasing to you;
through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.

Source: Mozarabic Collect

DISCIPLESHIP AND MINISTRY OPPORTUNITIES

New Year's Eve Service - Saturday, December 31
PLEASE NOTE: OUR NEW YEAR'S EVE SERVICE WILL NOT BE SHOWN ONLINE AS PREVIOUSLY STATED. Join us in person to reflect on the past year and celebrate the new one ahead at our New Years Eve Service on Sat., Dec. 31 at 7:00 p.m., here at RAC. The church building will remain open after the service until midnight for your use. Please note, there will be no formal programming during that time but you are welcome to stay and utilize the building to gather with friends and family. Feel free to bring your own event supplies such as games, food, etc. Please note that the kitchen will not be available and children need to be under the supervision of their parents. Happy New Year!

Online Service Only New Year's Day - Sunday, January 1
We will be showing a special, pre-recorded message online on New Year's Day. There will be no in-person service. A link to watch may be found on our website, HERE. The message will be available to watch after 10:00 a.m. on Jan. 1.  We will resume our regular service schedule and meet again in person on Jan. 8.

BEDLAM Jr. High Retreat - Register before January 1 for Early Bird Discount
BEDLAM Jr. High Winter Retreat is a super awesome off-site, overnight weekend for grades 6-8. We join several Alliance churches in our district at Joy Bible Camp (Bancroft, ON) for a weekend of fellowship, worship, and amazing memories. Bedlam has been an important part of our district's history and has led many students closer to a relationship with Jesus and with one another. This year, BEDLAM happens Jan. 27-29. Register by Jan. 1 for the early bird discounted fee. Register and find more information HERE.  

Alpha Leaders Training - Monday, January 2
Please let Pastor Cheryl know if you'd like to be an ALPHA table leader or hospitality greeter: cguinness@rexdalealliance.ca. Training is happening Mon. Jan. 2 from 7:30 - 8:30 p.m. over Zoom!

Blizzard Retreat- Register by January 7 for Early Bird Discount
Blizzard Sr. High Winter Retreat is a fantastic, off-site, overnight weekend for grades 9-12. We join several youth groups at Muskoka Woods Bible Camp (Rosseau, ON) for a weekend of fun, worship, and great memories. Blizzard has been an important part of our youth ministry history and has led many students closer to a relationship with Jesus and with one another. This year, Blizzard happens Feb. 10-12. Register by Jan. 7 for the early bird discounted fee. Register and find more information HERE.  

Invite Your Friends to Alpha - Starts Monday, January 9
Alpha will happen on Mondays from Jan. 9 - Feb. 27 from 7:00 - 8:30 p.m. in the Youth Centre (Downstairs at RAC). Bring your friend or family member for conversations about life, faith and Jesus! Using high quality & creative videos with numerous real life stories of people encountering Jesus, conversations are created around the tables about the meaning of life, who Jesus is, why He had to die and why it would be relevant to me.
*Who would Jesus like you to invite? Ask Him!
To register: cguinness@rexdalealliance.ca

Youth Alpha - Starts Friday, January 13
As usual, Youth happens from 7-9 p.m. on the 2nd and 4th Friday of every month! Students in Grades 6-12 are welcome. We will be continuing our Youth Alpha series and joining other churches in the area! Stay tuned to our Youth newsletter because the location will be rotating. For more information, please contact: youth@rexdalealliance.ca

Young Adults Alpha - Starts Saturday, January 14
Young Adults will be meeting bi-weekly on Saturdays in the new year and we will be doing ALPHA! Come ready to learn, ask questions and have some great conversations. This month we are meeting on Jan. 14 and 28 at 7:00 p.m. in the Fireside Lounge.

Call to Prayer
Church family, you are God’s chosen ones, holy & beloved, and called to prayer to be filled with the knowledge of His will in all spiritual wisdom & understanding; pray with us! (Colossians 1:9-14)

Many of you know it is our long standing tradition to start the new year in a time of corporate prayer! This year's Call to Prayer schedule will be as follows:

Jan. 22 - Sunday service 10:00 - 11:15 a.m. - Rejoice!
Jan. 22 - Sunday 6:30 - 8:30 p.m. - Repent!
Jan. 24 - Tuesday 7:30 - 9:30 p.m. - Rebuild
Jan. 27 - Friday 7:30 - 9:30 p.m. - Reengage!
Jan. 29 - Sunday service 10:00 - 11:15 a.m. - Review!

Please note: an opportunity to include the spiritual practice of fasting together will be provided. Understanding the how & why to fast along with what to pray about with your fast will be given soon. Please consult your doctor if you have health issues.

ANNOUNCEMENTS, FAMILY NEWS, PRAISE AND PRAYER REQUESTS

Holiday Hours at RAC
Please note that the church office and building will remain closed until Jan. 2.  During this time, calls and emails will not be answered and there won’t be anyone onsite to receive visitors. Of course, the building will be open on December 31 for our in-person New Year’s Eve service. As you know, our service on January 1 is completely online. If you have an urgent need, please reach out to one of the pastoral staff directly via email or using their phone extension

From Jan. 2 to Jan. 5, the office will be staffed intermittently by volunteers so, we appreciate your patience as it will take time to respond to phone calls or email messages. Thanks for your understanding as we endeavour to give our staff a break during this holiday time.

Financial Update – December Offerings Target
As mentioned at our November AGM, December is a key month for giving here at RAC! It’s a special month of celebrating our Saviour’s birth where we can honour God’s gift to us by giving gifts of our own. December is also that last opportunity to make any final contributions in the 2022 calendar year. We are on our way towards our Ministry Fund target of $175,000 for the month. Up to Dec. 25, $98,100 has been received. Thank you for investing your financial resources at RAC which is a wonderful demonstration of your generosity and God’s faithfulness.

Custodial Staffing Help
Sometimes, we need a little extra help in staffing for our custodial tasks. For example, we might have some work during an evening or weekend event. In some cases, there are shifts available when our staff take vacation. If you are able to help us out either as a volunteer or in a paid capacity, please check out the job posting online. We don’t have consistent hours to offer yet, but our building is being used more and more such that additional work is needing to be done. Feel free to reach out to hr@rexdalealliance.ca if you are interested or have questions.

SERVICE AND PRAYER OPPORTUNITIES

Weekend Services
As mentioned, we are having an in-person and online service on New Year's Eve, and a pre-recorded online service only on New Year's Day. A link to watch these services will be available on our website: www.rexdalealliance.ca.

For those who do not have internet, you mall call the following number to listen to our services, using the Meeting ID below:
Phone No. +1 647 374 4685 Canada
Meeting ID: 849 6287 9924

You may also join the Zoom Meeting directly:

https://us06web.zoom.us/j/84962879924

Opportunities to Pray Together
  • Tuesday Church Online Prayer at 7:30pm. Join here.
  • Prayer for International Workers on Tuesday evenings starting at 8:30, immediately following our weekly church prayer time.
  • Men's Prayer on Wednesdays at 7:00 a.m. Join here.
  • Send a prayer request to our dedicated prayer team here.

Please let us know if there is any way we can help you. Contact the church office at 416-741-1110 or at church@rexedalealliance.ca  

From the Staff and Elders of Rexdale Alliance Church:
Have a wonderful weekend and week ahead!

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