How Easy Is It To Quit Sinning

In order to succeed at being a Christian, it is necessary to quit some things that we used to do. Specifically, in order to be a Christian it is necessary to quit sinful habits! Let me point blank tell any young Christian, it ain’t always easy to quit old sinful habits. The Bible often calls quitting “repentance”. Being a Christian starts with repentance. When Jesus told Nicodemus “You must be born again” it wasn’t a suggestion, it was a command. Being born again is Jesus’s metaphorical way of saying, start over, quit your old ways and relearn everything about how to live life. In John 15, Jesus told his disciples “Ye are my friends, if ye do whatsoever I command you.”

Short term missionaries Mark and Desiree Hensley of Sharps Chapel, along with Melanie Hurst of Maynardville recently returned from an 18 day mission trip to Uganda. It was Melanie’s first mission trip. Melanie plans to go on more mission trips and return to Uganda in the future. The trio joined a Hope 4 Kids International team comprised of 26 individuals from churches across the U.S. While there, they had the privilege of celebrating the opening of a borehole in the remote village Buwasyeba in Manafwa District that was funded with donations raised by the Walk 4 Water Union County event of May 2024.

As with many rural areas, agriculture and trades are a way of life. This statement holds true in our small community. Both adults and young workers alike seek careers locally with specific trade skills in mind. At Union County High School (UCHS) the volume of students enrolling in programs of study to prepare for skilled trades occupations correlates with the high demand for careers in the area and offers some insight to the future workforce of these industries in our region.

Union County churches, groups and individuals want children in need around the world to receive a gift this Christmas season and to experience the love and hope that can only be found in Jesus Christ.

The Union County Board of Education approved multiple items to comply with state and federal regulations as well as proceeding as planned for the new middle school construction at the November meeting.

Three votes and a recess transpired before the Union County Commission agreed on new building permit fees at the regular meeting in November. The building permit fees were originally set by a private act of the Tennessee General Assembly, and to increase the fees takes another state legislative act. To meet the December 1 deadline required that action be taken at the November meeting in order to file the bill and receive action in the legislative session that begins in January 2025. The first two proposals failed by large margins.

My church celebrates the beginning of Advent around the first of December by sometimes carrying out the “hanging of the green” tradition of decorating the church sanctuary for the Christmas season. Our pastor explained the meaning of the Advent tradition, which was good because while I had heard of it, I didn’t really know what it was about. I’m all about old traditions, and so it sparked my own research which I thought I would share.

This is a great way to prepare fresh mushrooms for a relish tray. Use the small button mushrooms from the produce department at Food City. You wouldn't think that fresh mushrooms would have much flavor, but they do. If you never have tried them this way, it will be a treat for you, plus another recipe to add to your holiday collection.

In the 1973 Extension reports I found this in the Agents Report. It was titled “Facelift for Dolly”.

An all day Candle Making Workshop was held one day last Fall by a Homemakers Club. Since time would be taken for simply allowing the candles to harden, each member brought other hand work to do. One member (Mrs Graves) who belongs to a doll club was making doll clothing for her antique dolls she collects, renovates, dresses and sells. She showed us a doll dating 1848, that she had purchased in Nashville for $65.00. The doll was rare because of its wax head.