I am so excited to share with you our plans for our 13th Annual Christmas Offering! Over the years, this offering has made a HUGE IMPACT on our ministry! Well, beginning THIS Sunday, November 23rd, through Sunday, January 11th (8 weeks), we are encouraging our entire Coastal family to give above and beyond their regular tithes and offering to this year’s Christmas Offering.
To give, all you have to do is designate your gift “Christmas” on your check, offering envelope, online, or TEXTing (843-571-1777). You can give your gift during those 8 weeks (Nov. 23rd – Jan. 11th) at any of our regular Sunday morning services, or anytime through TEXTing, or our website. You might also consider giving it all at once during one of our 4 Christmas Eve Services (Tuesday, December 23rd, 6pm; and Wednesday, December 24th, 2pm, 4pm, & 6pm). Our entire Christmas Eve offering will go toward our Annual Christmas Offering.
Why a Special Offering? It’s a way for us to grow in our faith and to prepare us for what God wants to do through our church in a bigger way in 2026. It’s a way for us to sacrifice together as a church family and give generously. Christmas is all about giving. Many people, during this time of year, are in fact looking for opportunities to give. And there is no better place to give than to your local church.
What is our goal and where is the money going? Our overall goal is $200,000! Is that a big goal? Yes! Can we reach it? Absolutely! As always, I am very excited about where this year’s money will be going and the potential Kingdom impact. The money will be used for New Life Children’s Home in Peru, Soldier’s Angels Food Distribution, Summer of IMPACT, VBS, CSM Summer Camp Scholarships, Box Truck Maintenance, & Auditorium Lighting. The money is also used for Benevolence & General Outreach.
Let me specifically explain each project for this year’s offering:
Peru Mission – New Life Children’s Home. A portion of this year’s Christmas Offering will go to providing Christmas for all the children/workers in the orphanage. It will also help cover various expenses for the Home and salaries for the Staff. It will also pay for the annual Peruvian License Fee for the Children’s Home to operate.
Soldier’s Angels Monthly Food Distribution. Through the Low Country Food Bank, Soldier’s Angels provides approximately 80lbs. of groceries to 200+ local veterans who find themselves facing food insecurity. Coastal already provides Volunteers each month who help with organizing, sorting, preparing, and loading the food. We will be footing the bill for half (6) of this year’s Food Distributions!
Box Truck/Vehicle Upkeep/Maintenance. We now have five different Box Trucks & two 15 Passenger Vans that are all wrapped, fitted, and deployed for Outreach all around our community. As such, these vehicles endure a lot of wear and tear and need some attention.
Auditorium Lighting. We have what I affectionately call a “worshi-gym-a-torium.” It’s basically a large metal building that gets used by our church and community almost every day/night of the week. And that’s exactly the way we want it! It’s also our primary gathering place for our weekly worship services. For a while now, we have been putting a “bandaid” on our lights for worship and making due with what we have. It’s time to update that.
VBS & CSM Summer Camp Scholarships. Coastal has made the strategic decision to invest in the next generation – children and students! VBS at Coastal is AWESOME! We see hundreds of children and don’t charge a thing. Also, each year Coastal subsidizes Summer Camp and even provides scholarships for students who can’t afford it. We don’t see these things as an expense. We see them as an investment – an investment in the next generation, an investment in the Kingdom.
Summer of IMPACT. One of the largest overall Outreach efforts of our church is “Summer of IMPACT.” Summer of IMPACT is simply a month long emphasis during the month of June on Outreach. Last year, for example, we had 70+ projects during the month of June alone. Your generosity makes sure that each of these projects are fully funded (food, supplies, etc).
How much should you give? Prayerfully consider giving a gift that will stretch your faith and include your whole family. For some people, coming up with “extra” money is difficult. We’ve learned that as we give, God provides. Every gift counts, every gift matters. Just like our Giving Campaigns over the years and all the other Christmas Offerings we’ve done in the past, we can’t all give the same amount, but TOGETHER, we can ALL make a sacrifice. That’s when God does a miracle, when together we ALL step out in faith.
Remember, this offering should be over and above what you regularly give. If you’re not regularly giving (weekly, monthly), use this time of year to start. If you’re not tithing (10% of your gross income), step out in faith and start tithing. Reaching this goal will be a celebration of what God can do through us as together we stretch our faith.
If you have any questions, please do not hesitate to contact me. The easiest and fastest way to give to the Christmas Offering is through TEXTing the word “GIVE” to 843-571-1777 and follow the simple instructions. Just make sure you designate your gift “Christmas.” I love you Coastal! I love being your Pastor! And I love Christmas at Coastal!
Merry Christmas!
