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| 1 | HOUSE RESOLUTION
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| 2 | WHEREAS, The members of the Illinois House of | ||||||
| 3 | Representatives wish to congratulate the congregation of New | ||||||
| 4 | Testament Fellowship Church on the occasion of the church's | ||||||
| 5 | 29th anniversary; and
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| 6 | WHEREAS, New Testament Fellowship Church was founded by | ||||||
| 7 | Pastor Sam Russell, an Elder at the Churches of God in Christ | ||||||
| 8 | in Carbondale; he shared the gospel with others by teaching | ||||||
| 9 | weekly bible study in his home, which became a launching pad | ||||||
| 10 | for the New Testament Fellowship Church; and
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| 11 | WHEREAS, Shortly after the passing of his mother, Pastor | ||||||
| 12 | Sam Russell announced to his church that he would be departing | ||||||
| 13 | to start his own church; after securing and renovating a | ||||||
| 14 | building as a place of worship, New Testament Fellowship | ||||||
| 15 | Church's first service was held on September 21, 1986 with the | ||||||
| 16 | message of "Be Faithful"; and
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| 17 | WHEREAS, Revivals began and were held monthly at New | ||||||
| 18 | Testament Fellowship Church in 1987; through these revivals, | ||||||
| 19 | many souls were saved, many backsliders were reclaimed, and the | ||||||
| 20 | church's membership grew; during this time, the church's Sunday | ||||||
| 21 | School Department also grew greatly; and
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| 1 | WHEREAS, Under the leadership of Pastor Sam Russell, there | ||||||
| 2 | have been many diverse community outreach ministries developed | ||||||
| 3 | at New Testament Fellow Church within the last 20 years, such | ||||||
| 4 | as Pastoral Care, PH Connection, Hurting and Healing, | ||||||
| 5 | Children's Church, Teen Ministry, Food Distribution, Financial & | ||||||
| 6 | Education Planning, Women's Ministry, Neighborhood Outreach, | ||||||
| 7 | and Prison Ministry; and
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| 8 | WHEREAS, Pastor Sam Russell and the congregation of New | ||||||
| 9 | Testament Fellowship Church serve as models of hard work, | ||||||
| 10 | integrity, and dedication for the people of the State of | ||||||
| 11 | Illinois; therefore, be it
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| 12 | RESOLVED, BY THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES OF THE | ||||||
| 13 | NINETY-NINTH GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF ILLINOIS, that we | ||||||
| 14 | congratulate the congregation of New Testament Fellowship | ||||||
| 15 | Church on the occasion of the church's 29th anniversary and | ||||||
| 16 | wish them continued success and happiness in the future; and be | ||||||
| 17 | it further
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| 18 | RESOLVED, That a suitable copy of this resolution be | ||||||
| 19 | presented to New Testament Fellowship Church as a symbol of our | ||||||
| 20 | esteem and respect.
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