Blog Posts

The New Year Starts with Communion

1/28/2025

January 4, 2025, was the first Sabbath of the New Year and a communion Sabbath. The communion service is a time to reflect on the sacrifice/death of Jesus our Savior on the cross. In that service we have three elements footwashing, taking of the bread, and the grape juice ("wine"). The footwashing reminds us of Jesus' last night, before His death. He washed the disciples' feet as an example of His servant leadership. We partake of the bread that symbolizes His broken body for us. And then the grape juice as the blood of His sacrifice.

At this most recent communion, elder Marlin Benedict reminded the congregation that communion was a time of reflection and gratitude. It is a time to recall that the story does not end at the cross either. After this, the rest of the service proceeded as usual with, as mentioned above, footwashing, the bread, and the grape juice. A closing song was sung to remind everyone of the occasion's solemnity.

Many people skip church when they hear that there is going to be communion. There are a variety of reasons that we'd heard, "I'm uncomfortable with having someone wash my feet," or "I am not spiritual enough to take communion." The good news to all of that is this... That is the point! We aren't good enough or worthy by ourselves and communion reminds us who is. Jesus paid it all so that we could have a fresh start through Him. May we start this New Year afresh in Christ.

To learn more about what Seventh-day Adventist believe about communion see the video below.

For the sermon from this past communion click the picture above.

Cookie Gifting

12/29/2024

Sunday, December 1, the roads were icy to the Wrangell Seventh-day Adventist (SDA) Church. Nevertheless, a few brave and determined women decided to meet anyways to carry on the cooking making tradition.
This year the group was tasked with making cookies for the local schools, as a part of the Wrangell Ministerial Association project to show support for the teachers. This made getting the cookies done all the more imperative.
The women quickly took inventory of where else they would be making deliveries, including the local medical clinic, mental health office, and senior apartments, to name a few.
The cookies were mixed, cut out, and baked in what felt like record time. Then the fun of decorating began, while a Christmas movie played in the background. Once that was completed the cookies were boxed up and slated for delivery.
The next day during delivery, a cookie recipient shared, "We look forward to these cookies!" The women believe their time was well spent despite the ice to bring a little bit of cheer to the community.

Miracle of Jesus- Week of Prayer 2024

11/30/2024

The Wrangell Seventh-day Adventist (SDA) Church's annual week of prayer aired on KWRG 99.9, the week of November 24-30, 2024. This year's theme was the "Miracles of Jesus." It is a special subject for the church family. Since they are without a pastor right now, the church looks for creative ways to have sermons that didn't involve watching a prerecorded sermon from the internet. For several months, the two elders, Marlin Benedict and Brooke Reynolds have been jointly sharing with the congregation a couple of miracles a month (in chronological order). The congregation was then invited to share what they learned about God from these miracles.

This same series was then turned into this year's week of prayer. Over the seven days a selection of miracles were covered. This included the miracles of the miraculous catch of fish, the Centurion, and the crippled woman. Marlin and Brooke anchored the 20 minute episodes by sharing straight from the Bible and bringing in what had been learned during the series at the church. The series can be listened to here: Week of Prayer 2024.

Significant Women's Retreat

10/27/2024

The weekend of October 18-20, 2024 was a busy one for the Wrangell SDA Church. Several church members helped with the community health fair in town. While others headed south to Ketchikan for the first annual women's retreat in Southeast Alaska. Ketchikan Seventh-day Adventist (SDA) Church graciously hosted the event. And in addition to Wrangell, ladies from the Craig SDA Church joined. All attendees made it to the event on time despite a delayed plane from Wrangell.

After introductions and music, a round of "comparison bingo" was played to illustrate the speaker’s, Brooke Reynolds, topic for the evening. Brooke’s talk was entitled “The Comparison Game” in which she talked about the story of Leah (Genesis 29). Brooke’s main point was that comparison gets us nowhere and we should put our focus on the One that really matters and knows us, God.

Sabbath morning, the women participated in the Sabbath School at the Ketchikan SDA Church service. Special music was shared by some of the ladies from Craig. Kari Defreest, elder at the Ketchikan SDA Church, gave the sermon on Leah called “Learning to Praise.” Kari talked about how praise can be incremental. Sabbath afternoon those who wished to went for a hike around Ward Lake and were blessed with some decent weather.

In the early evening, Janet Fairchild-Hamilton (in ministry with her husband at the Ketchikan and Craig SDA Churches) lead a discussion on legacy. Janet read passages in Genesis 29 and reminded everyone that God used several of Leah's children in a special way. Janet emphasized that from Leah’s son Judah Jesus our Messiah would be born. To end the retreat, after sundown the women watched the movie Unsung Hero, the story of the Smallbone family. The movie brought the point home that our significance is provided by God.

The group hopes to meet again next year with more women including those from other Southeast Alaska communities. See you in 2025!

Wrangell SDA at the Health Fair

10/20/2024

Some of the goods that were available at the booth.

Wrangell SDA Church Volunteer, April, shows off some of the goods that were at the booth.

The Wrangell Seventh-day Adventist (SDA) Church participated in the local health fair on October 19, 2024. They had several books available including Redemption at Hacksaw Ridge, the story of Desmond Doss (see below if you are interested in a copy being mailed to you). Glow Tracts were available on a variety of health topics. Church member, Marilyn, who is known for her healthy cooking, shared two recipes and provided samples for the crowd. The pumpkin spice muffins were a big hit. Some folks were more skeptical of the brownies made with dates but several church members attested to their deliciousness. There were two prize drawings. One for kids and the other for adults. The kids' cookbook is pictured in April's hand in the photo to the left. April reports that the booth went well and that several people came by to say hi. She also passed out some flyers for the newly formed Adventurer club. Additionally there was a shepherd and sheep craft available for kids to take home. The annual health fair is a highlight for the church and a great opportunity to share with the community about the importance of spiritual and physical health.

Adventurer Club Begins

9/29/2024

Adventurer Club Leaders

Wrangell Seventh-day Adventist Church knew something had to change. The church has a heart for children’s ministries but unfortunately hasn't had an active children’s ministry in many years. In the past few years, members of the church have helped with Camp Lorraine and have gone to Bethel, AK to put on a Vacation Bible School. While these activities are important, they only happen once a year. Church members knew something had to change.

The church board decided to rectify this problem by daring to start an Adventurers club. Some people might ask, "Why not start a Pathfinders club?" After prayerful consideration the board realized that there were many activities already in the community for Pathfinders age kids (5th grade and up) and by comparison not as much for the younger kids.

Taking a step of faith, the team began to research how to set up and run a Adventurer Club. Brooke Reynolds, Adventurer Club Director, shared, "I had never been in either Adventurers or Pathfinders, so it was entirely new to me as to how to do this. However, I can see how God has been leading us to this moment."

On September 14, the Wrangell Adventurer Club launched. At the first meeting, one brave child showed up and was willing to stay for the whole program. She let the team know that she had a good time. At the second meeting, the club had quadrupled to four members. The church is thrilled to start with this humble beginning. As of this post, there is word that more children are interested in coming. Please pray with us as we go through our first Adventurer Club year together.

If you'd like to learn more about our club click HERE!

Local Food Bank Donation

8/30/2024

Reading the local newspaper, one church member came across an article about how the local food bank was in desperate need of nonperishable items, especially after the landslide last year. Inspired the church member talked to one of the elders of the church about starting a donation drive.

During the months of April and May the church set out to collect items. Many food items were donated such as soups and cereals. Additionally, feminine hygiene products were rounded up. These items are often overlooked but are a basic necessity.

By June the church had enough items ready to donate. Four full boxes were taken to the Salvation Army in Wrangell. They greatly appreciated the additional supply to their stock. If you live in Wrangell and would like to donate please contact: (907) 874-3753 or stop by the Salvation Army for more ways to donate.

Wrangell SDA Church is happy to partner with other churches and the local community to meet everyday needs.

Happy 10 years of Vacation Bible School

7/28/2024

It's been ten years since the Wrangell Vacation Bible School Team set out for their first visit to Bethel, AK.

As part of the celebration we'd like to share some highlights from each year.

2024 (Good Shepherd)- One of our smallest teams to go and yet the most consistent number of children to attend. The kids loved the theme song "I Just Wanna be a Sheep."

2023 (Good Soil)- An abbreviated version of the standard VBS. The team got to go to Kasigluk, AK as well as Bethel. Making the tissue paper flowers was the best craft.

2022 (Jonah, Overboard)- Wrangell VBS team was join by volunteers from Anchorage and Kennewick, WA. The engineering of props was next level thanks to coordination of some of the men on the team.

2021 (God Makes Me Brave)- Alaska Camps sent over 3 staff member to join the Wrangell and Anchorage team to share the story of Joshua. The skits for Joshua were fun and interactive. The kids loved when they got to march around the walls of Jericho.

2020 (VBS Podcast)- We had been making plans to go when COVID hit. Instead we were able to use this time to create a podcast about how we make a DIY VBS every year.

2019 (Jesus, Water of Life)- Along with the usual trip to Bethel the team went to Trout Creek, MT. It was unanimous that doing the water crafts was the most entertaining place to be during VBS.

2018 (Prayer Warriors)- The team goes once again to Bethel, Craig, and Ketchikan. It was a hit to create a program in which the kids follow along a new believer who is learning to be prayer warrior with the story of David.

2017 (God Leads His People)- The team goes once again to Bethel, Craig, and Ketchikan this year. It is agreed that Old Testament News is a hit. This is confirmed by reports from parents that kids were going home trying to re-enact their own new stations featuring Bible Stories.

2016 (Lost and Found)- VBS team is in Bethel and Ketchikan. One of the rotations included a nightly Lost and Found Treasure hunt. The kids loved it!

2015 (Faithful God)- One of the largest VBS teams arrives in Bethel with the totes to prove it. The youth group got to re-use an idea from their drama group to create the women of the Bible Old Testament version. The kids were enthralled with the idea.

2014 (God's Creation)- The first year the team goes to VBS. They have little idea what would work and thus they chose to start at the beginning in Genesis. It is slow going with two kids the first night but slowly builds up to 12 by the end of the week. They learn valuable lesson and make enduring connections. The team makes plan to return.

The Wrangell VBS team wishes to thank all the volunteers who have helped with VBS during the last 10 years!

Outdoor Church with Missionaries

6/30/2024

Pre tear down 2022

From mission trip 2023

June 29, 2024 saw the Wrangell Seventh-day Adventist (SDA) Church out at Vank Island for Outdoor Church. It was a special Sabbath, as not only our fellow members from Petersburg were there, but we got to visit with a special group of missionaries. For those who don't know for many years a group from White Salmon, WA and nearby areas have dedicated time to various building projects at the camp. Through the years they have worked on cabins, the bath house, the gym, and the lodge. The last several years they have been focused on the caretaker's house. This year they got even closer to finishing as windows were put in, wiring/plumbing started, and the kitchen got a jump start. The current camp caretakers, James and April Eilertsen, are excited at the progress being made.

This special Sabbath we were able to fellowship together. The Sabbath School lesson was about the end of Revelation and participation was good among the group. The Wrangell SDA Church continued in a series they started called "The Miracles of Jesus" which also allowed more participation from the congregation. The potluck was a delicious potato bar/haystack lunch. The weather was clear, so in the afternoon people were outside talking or taking a walk on the lawn.

We want to say a special thanks to the White Salmon Missionary group for their dedication to camp. And for giving us an good excuse to have outdoor church at Vank Island!

The Good Shepherd VBS

5/31/2024

VBS team from Wrangell

This year was the 10th year of Vacation Bible School with the Bethel Seventh-day Adventist Company in Bethel, AK. The theme was Good Shepherd. The stories included Beyond the Good Shepherd, the Lost Sheep, the Unmerciful Servant, the Good Samaritan, and Psalms 23. Each night 20+ kids came to share in songs, Bible movies, games, crafts, and Bible puppets. Many kids by the end of the week could quote the memory verse, which was Psalms 23:1. The kids also enjoyed enthusiastically singing the theme song, "I Just Wanna Be a Sheep." The team was blessed in so many ways including getting air miles to use for travel and having a place to stay in Anchorage for free. The team wishes to thank everyone who provided support for this year's endeavor.

Active in Ministry Blog

Welcome to the blog of the Wrangell Seventh-day Adventist Church.

The purpose of this blog is share what is going at our local church. We are a small church and active in endeavors to share with others.

Our hope is that you get to know us a little better. We'd love for you to join us!

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