Dear Trinity Bible Church,

Every good and perfect gift comes from God—everything from the oxygen in our lungs to the salvation of our souls (Jas. 1:17). Our God is generous. For decades, Trinity Bible Church has encouraged her members to give towards a special Harvest Offering as an expression of our gratitude to God for his extravagant generosity towards us. We will begin collecting our annual Harvest Offering on Sunday, November 22nd during the service and you are welcome to continue to give through the end of the year.

If you are new to the Trinity family, this is a special offering we give over and above our normal, faithful giving as a reflection of our gratitude for God’s gracious provision in our lives. We typically split the offering between internal needs and outside missions.

Consider what God has done through us in recent years:

• 2014 — Supported Steven M. in a one-year intensive church planting training with 20 Schemes and made renovations to the children’s area.
• 2015 — Financed a Wycliffe translation project for the Mao people in northeastern India, and upgraded our campus lighting to LEDs.
• 2016 — Sent support to 20 Schemes to plant a church and updated our women’s bathroom in the Education Center.
• 2017 — Donated to "Hope for Addiction" and improved our preaching platform and street signs.
• 2018 — Bought beds for children at Rancho 3M, a gospel-centered orphanage in Mexico, and gave to Choices Pregnancy Center as well as updating our Worship Center Lobby making it more inviting for visitors.
• 2019 — Supported members traveling to Guatemala to train pastors ministering to people speaking Q'eqchi' (an ancient Mayan dialect). Since then, Nick Dylewsky and David Egolf have scheduled online conferences to train pastors in Guatemala and Ecuador. The remainder went to repair the stucco surrounding the roof of the Worship Center.

In 2020, the elders have allocated the annual Harvest Offering to be divided between a retirement gift for our supported missionary, Dale Armstrong, and towards a new projector and screen for a stage update.

Dale and Janice are no strangers to Trinity Bible Church. Dale has served as an elder in the past and Janice has served us as an administrative assistant in our office for over a decade. We love this couple who has committed their lives to ministry—adopting and fostering children, going on church mission trips, and serving our local body in countless ways. Dale worked in the computer technology field for decades. About ten years ago, a downturn in the economy required him to look for a new job. Wycliffe Bible Translators needed someone with Dale’s skills to create computer software. The software would enable translators to produce their translations of the Scriptures for unreached people groups in real time rather than having to wait for a completed edition in print. So for the last 10 years, Dale has traveled to many countries engaging in this cutting-edge ministry to take the Word to the nations. We are so grateful for Dale’s years of service on the mission field! We would love to celebrate him by giving one large gift to him through Wycliffe towards his retirement as he rolls off of our support in December.

The second part of our offering will focus on updating our projector and screen, which has both a practical and aesthetic rationale. Practically, we need a new projector and screen for our worship services that is bright enough for our congregation to see the words and video in our services where we value keeping the lights on so we can see our brothers and sisters in Christ worshipping God together. We have made adjustments to improve what we have, but we still regularly get feedback that visibility is difficult. The new projector and screen alone are approximately $18K. Of course, the heavier screen will require a more structurally robust wall that will serve as the backdrop for our stage area.

Our current stage backdrop was built from PVC pipe before Jon Shaw found a light metal and fabric to cover up the wall, which is deteriorating behind the screen. For years we have hoped to build a more permanent structure that also refreshes the area in which our congregation meets week in and week out. We need the structure to hold the screen, but we also hope that it will allow for an update to the facility, creating a more hospitable feel. For years we received feedback from our visitors that our church feels old and outdated. We don’t desire to be showy or garish, but we also don’t want to feel like we don’t care for the great facility God has given us. We have been working on this project for a couple of years now. We have had engineers and architects working on the plans for the new structure. We have mockups and are currently waiting on bids. We are creating a fund for this project that half of this offering will go to as we continue to progress on the project.

At our last meeting, the elders spent time voicing our gratitude to God for your generosity as a congregation especially given the chaos of our current cultural environment. We believe your faithful generosity week in and week out is a testament to the work of the Holy Spirit in your lives individually and our lives collectively. You’ve even given over and above to provide Bibles and Systematic Theologies to pastors in Guatemala and Ecuador through our new Latin American Ministry. Praise God!

Please join us in praying about how you can join us in this special Harvest Offering on Sunday, November 22nd during the service (or through the end of the year) and ask that God would use it for the equipping of saints for works of ministry and Taking Jesus Further.