Pre-Thanksgiving Update

GREETINGS, EVERYONE!  Thanksgiving Day is my favorite holiday of the year for many reasons. For many people, it's all about the three "F"s: family, food, and football! But for me, there is a fourth "F": Faith. And this is the primary reason for the day. Giving thanks to the true and living God for the manifold blessings of this life and the promise of eternal life through faith in Jesus Christ, our Lord and Savior. Take time to do that with intentionality this week and especially on Thursday.

Here is what is happening this week:
TODAY (11/20)
Thank you for indulging me on a personal note as I invite you to hear our eldest daughter, Hannah, perform her senior violin recital for our church and community. So many of you have prayed for and ministered to her during her years in Bolivar attending Southwest Baptist University. This recital is the culmination of those years of study and practice. Please join us in the sanctuary this evening for this violin recital at 7 pm, coupled with piano duet prelude (and a piano trio interlude!). This is not strictly a church-sponsored event, but rather a family event to which you are heartily invited. Featured composers will be Kabalevsky, Chopin, Mendelssohn, Shostakovich, and Novacek. Prelude will be piano duets from Lorrie Dixon and Judy McElwain. Approximately one hour in length, dress comfortably. 

THE LORD'S DAY (11/21)

• Sunday School/Bible Study for All Ages at 9:30. If you are not in a Bible Study class, there is no better time to join than this Sunday!
• Worship Together at 10:40 in the Sanctuary. Here are the Scriptures we will be reading that will shape our corporate worship. Take a few moments to read and meditate on them. Also, we have seven different Scriptures in our morning worship, so they make a great resource for personal or family worship Sunday through Saturday. Click anywhere on the link to see a printable version of these passages on biblegateway.com
  •  Fighter Verses: Psalm 125:1-2
  • Call to Worship: Psalm 93
  • Old Testament Reading: 2 Samuel 23:1-7
  • New Testament Reading: Revelation 1:4-8
  • Preparation and Prayer for Confession: Psalm 132
  • Assurance of Pardon: Psalm 51: 16-17
  • Sermon Text: Luke 8:26-39
  • Benediction: Numbers 6:24-26
• Shoebox Brigade: After morning worship, join us as we line up, "bucket brigade" style, to carry our Christmas shoeboxes for Operation Christmas Child to an awaiting cargo vehicle outside. This is a fun way to pray for the children who will be receiving the shoeboxes as well as get them situated for transport. If you are able to stay for a few minutes, please do so!
• Ministerial Alliance Thanksgiving Service, 7 pm at Amity United Methodist Church

MONDAY (11/22)

• Monday "Sunday School" online via ZOOM at 7 pm. See Pastor Kyle to join this virtual Bible study group.

TUESDAY (11/23)

• "ThanksLiving" Meal and Service, 6 pm. Join us as we meet in the Fellowship Hall for a brief devotional service along with our annual traditional Thanksgiving meal. You received an e-mail yesterday asking that you respond on Signup Genius to give us an approximate idea of how many are coming and what food you are bringing. The church is already covering the turkey, dressing, mashed potatoes, beverages, and table service. You bring everything else (salads, sides, and desserts). This is also a great opportunity to invite friends and family, especially someone who may be away from family or otherwise alone for the Thanksgiving holiday. We invited our Kids' Club families and are not asking that they bring anything but themselves. So we ask that our members and regular attendees prepare a little extra of whatever side or dessert you were planning to bring. We did not get to have this event last year, so I am really looking forward to it, and I hope you are too!

WEDNESDAY (11/24)

• OFFICE CLOSED; NO AFTERNOON OR EVENING ACTIVITIES ON WEDNESDAY. WE WILL RESUME OUR REGULAR SCHEDULE NEXT WEEK. 

THURSDAY (11/25) - THANKSGIVING (OFFICE CLOSED)

FRIDAY (11/26) - OFFICE CLOSED


COMING UP

• Sun., Dec. 5, 2 pm - Community Caroling, meet at FBC
• Sat., Dec. 11, noon-4 pm - Bible Quiz in St. Joe
• Sat., Dec. 11, 6 pm - MACH IV Men’s Ministry at FBC
• Sun., Dec. 12, 10:40 am - FBC Children’s Christmas Program 
• Sun, Dec., 12, 6 pm - Member Meeting - 2022 Budget discussion
• Sun., Dec. 19, Noon - 2022 Budget approval
• Fri., Dec. 24, 6 pm - Christmas Eve Candlelight service

ICYMI: Last Few Sundays' Messages Hearing and Doing the Word of God, Luke 8:16-21

                                                                                                   Jesus, Master of Wind and Wave  Luke 8:22-25Please visit our YouTube Channel to see the edited service video. 


READ THROUGH THE BIBLE schedule is attached. We are in Week 47.


ON THIS DATE IN CHURCH HISTORY In 1806, Isaac Backus, influential Massachusetts Baptist leader, died at age 82. Backus began as a Congregationalist, and he even served as the pastor for the Separatist Congregational church in Middleboro. This was the group which stood in direct succession to the Pilgrims who settled Massachusetts. Having been born in 1724, Backus was deeply influenced by Jonathan Edwards and the Great Awakening of the late 1730s and early 1740s. He was soundly converted in 1741. While pastor in Middleboro, Backus became convinced of Baptist doctrine -- believer baptism by immersion only -- and Baptist ideals -- namely separation of church and state. He started baptizing believers by immersion upon their profession of faith. For a time, he continued to sprinkle the babies of church members (paedobaptism) as well. Not surprisingly, more and more members began to adopt their pastor's convictions which created a rift between the so-called "credobaptists" (those who baptized believers only by immersion) and the paedobaptists. Whenever a believer was immersed in baptism, the paedobaptists would roll their eyes. Whenever a baby was sprinkled, the credobaptists would roll their eyes. This went on for about five years under Backus' leadership. Determining it best to separate from the "separatists," Backus became the pastor of a new congregation of Baptists in Middleboro, largely those who came to Baptist convictions under Backus' preaching. Happily, that church continues to this day as an evangelical Baptist congregation, First Baptist Church of North Middleboro, under an evangelical pastor, Jason Genest. (Their website served as a resource for this paragraph for the things I couldn't recall from the seminary paper I wrote on Isaac Backus many years ago!). Praise the Lord for their faithfulness across many generations.

BONUS: And now, some inspirational music for Thanksgiving from Perry Como, the Norman Luboff Singers, and the Boston Pops. Enjoy!


See you in church!


Grace and peace,


Pastor Greg