Merry Christmas... We wish you Joy We wish you Love We wish you Peace

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1 Vol. 59 Issue 12 The Reminder December 2014 Pastor s Paragraphs Clement Clark Moore s famous epic poem begins, Twas the night before Christmas, when all through the house; not a creature was stirring, not even a mouse. Most all of us know the story and with its message conjure up visions of sugar plumbs, flying reindeer, and a jolly old elf called St. Nick. Even though Christmas does indeed bring to mind Moore s poem and thoughts of childhood, Christmas trees, Santa Clause, and presents; Christmas is far more than any of these things. In reality, it is about Jesus. Without him, there would be no Christmas, no carols, no lighted trees, no presents all nicely wrapped. continued on page 2 Merry Christmas... We wish you Joy We wish you Love We wish you Peace May you and your family experience all of this and more through our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ! Remember Jesus is the Reason for the Season so Keep Christ in Christmas! From the Staff of BCFBC

2 Continued from Page 1 It s time to think of Christmas; it s just around the bend. It s time to think of hope and love, of a world that has no end. It s the time to remember Jesus God wrapped in human skin; a baby born so long ago to save us from our sin. It s time to think of Angels singing praises with voices clear their sweet melodious proclamation announcing the Savior s here. Let s lift our voices one and all and together our anthems raise, for Christmas is about Jesus, the One who s worthy of praise. (an original poem entitled Thinking of Christmas By Michael Simmons) By the time you get the December Reminder, many of you will already have decorated your homes and started your Christmas shopping. In the rush of the season and the stress of trying to get everything done; take time to give a word of praise, sing a verse of your favorite Christmas carol, and think about what Christmas really means. It might just make your Christmas a wonderful time to remember and enjoy. Sandra and I are thankful that we can spend this, our twentieth Christmas with you. We are looking forward to celebrating the birth of Jesus with our church family as we come together for all of the special Christmas services and gatherings. It is our hope that each of you will experience the kind of peace about which the Angels sang so long ago and know the meaning of God s joy to the world. God bless you. We are looking forward to seeing you Sunday. Pastor Michael and Sandra WMU Update... Come join us for our Foreign Missions Study taking place on December 10 th. Dinner will be served at 6:30, and the study will begin at 7:00. Our speaker for the evening will be Mary Rhodes, who will be speaking with us about her experiences while she is in the process of being called to the mission field. Admittance is a contribution to our church food pantry. We look forward to you joining us! Jennifer

3 Music Update Hello everyone! Christmas is almost here. Counting the days as we prepare for celebrating Christmas together as a church. The children and youth are diligently working on programs to share with you as we come into the season to recognize and celebrate the birth of Christ. The story of Christmas is always a story of love and amazement. We enjoy bringing the children into the realization that the story really is true and Jesus really did live on earth and we follow Him from that humble beginning in a stable. Pray that God s message of salvation does become a reality for people this Christmas. On November 30th, at the 11:00 worship service, we will bring in the Advent season with music and candles. The sanctuary choir will be sharing a new version of O Come, O Come Emanuel! The sanctuary will be beautifully decorated for Christmas. Sunday morning, December 7th, will be our Christmas celebration for all. The children will be participating in Stickin to the Word led by Doug Jones. Martha Harmon will lead the handbell choir in a few Christmas songs. The sanctuary choir will be singing special arrangements of Angels from the Realms of Glory, Angels We Have Heard on High, Go Tell It with Tell It and Let There Be Peace on Earth. We will have guest accompanists on violin, flute and cello. Joan Lanier and Taylor McCulloch will be playing piano and organ as well as a beautiful Christmas offertory. We will be blessed with the children playing handchimes on Sunday morning December 14th led by Jonathan Lazenby and Ella Mitcham. Joan Lanier will be sharing Christmas music on the harp with Taylor McCulloch playing piano and cello. They will also continue their beautiful music on Sunday morning December 21st and Christmas Eve, December 24th. The youth and children will continue our Christmas celebration on Sunday evening, December 14th with a drama and music. They are practicing weekly to learn the script and music. The message of the drama is to convince a member of the cast that Jesus Christ is real and the participants are learning the joy of sharing the story of Jesus. We are going Christmas caroling again this year on Sunday evening December 21st at 5:00 pm. Please join us in bringing Christmas cheer to our shut-ins. Merry Christmas to All Dorothy

4 A Special Baby Mark Lowry, who wrote the lyrics to the Christmas song Mary, Did You Know? says he s always been amazed by Mary s silence at the cross, as her son was being crucified. Maybe she was remembering back to that first Christmas, he wonders, when she counted Jesus fingers and toes. I wonder if she realized then that those were the same fingers that had scooped out the oceans and formed the seas. I wonder if she realized those were the same feet that had walked on streets of gold and been worshiped by angels. Those little lips were the same lips that had spoken the world into existence. When Mary kissed her little baby, she wasn t just kissing another baby; she was kissing the face of God. Mary silently watched her son die 33 years later, Lowry notes not just for the world but also for his own mother. The baby boy she had delivered on that first Christmas was now on a cross delivering her. Jesus is our greatest gift. He brought us salvation! Do you know him today? Sonshiner News... The Sonshiners have been busy throughout the year and are taking a break in December to give honor to our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ as our families begin to celebate this most joyous time of the year. Come to my house on December 20th at 7 pm and enjoy a Christmas Celebration. Bring your favorite Christmas treat to share. This will be a special time of sharing with our Sonshiner family. Carolyn Johnson

5 From the Library It s Your Turn to Get free books! Sunday November 23rd On Display in Fellowship Hall Come check out the books we will have on our display tables. Pick out what you want. They are free!!! Parents you many want to choose a few to take home to read to your children. Take advantage of this ONE DAY ONLY EVENT! WOW!!! Children s Ministry... A big thank you to all the people who have been assisting with the Children s Ministry while I am recuperating from hip replacement surgery. Your faithfulness has allowed this ministry to continue without interruption. Glory to God! I appreciate the calls, visits and many acts of kindness shown to me during this recovery process. My outpatient therapy will begin at Total Body Therapy in Lillington next week. Hopefully, this will enable me to resume my regular activities shortly. Watch for details about Denton Lights, The Angel Tree and the Beach Retreat! Debbie

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7 Remember in Prayer Lauren Mitchell Kenneth Stewart Jim Bales Ed Johnson Tom Baker AG Hare Chrystal Johnson Eloise Turner Lou Sherman Celia Melvin Frances Austin Angie Stewart Gina Smith Gene Stewart Betty Stewart Jon Stewart Joan Lanier Our church council had debated long and hard about whether to leave the building unlocked. People in our tiny town were used to such practices, yet we were near a highway, and who knew who might pass through? One snowy morning after Christmas, I found a note pushed under the office door: Thank you so much for the shelter of your church late Christmas Day. My husband, baby and I were traveling through when our car ran low on gas. Nothing was open except your church. We were able to stay warm until the gas station opened again in the morning. We are so grateful. There was no signature. The words gave me goose bumps. Intentionally or not, for that night at least, the unlocked doors were a blessing. Heidi Man Our Nation, Its Leaders, Our Armed Forces Our Homebound: Joyce Stewart (Harnett Woods), Eloise Shepherd, (Harnett Woods), Kenny Moore (Emerald Health & Rehab), Mary Lou Boswell (Universal Health Care- Wayne Hatcher s mother), Ashley Stewart (Universal Healthcare), Barbara Harmon (ARC of Dunn) Our Members: Lisa Johnson, Frances Johnson, Rufus Turner, Debbie Jones Others: Edwin Kendrick (Ron Kendrick s father), Johnny Honeycutt (Hope Hammond s father), Ellen Troyer (Renie Jones sister-in-law), Delton Maynard (Priscilla Mangum s father), Norma J. Clayton (Phyllis Tankersley s mother), Betty Lou Cutts (A. G. Hare s sister-inlaw), Christine Morrill (Robert Morrill s mother), Joanne Upchurch, Edna Ogburn (Rue Stewart s mother), Mike Frazier (Sandra Simmons cousin), Dan Deaton (LRBA),Lexie Ennis (Tony Hayes niece) Bethlehem s Church of the Nativity, which marks the likely spot of Jesus birth, has a four-foot-high entrance. Throughout the centuries, the height of the entrance has been lowered twice: once to prevent looting and once to keep out camel and horse riders. Because visitors must bow as they enter, this has become known as the Door of Humility. It s a reminder of the reverent, submissive posture our hearts should take as we approach our newborn Lord and Savior. It s also a reminder that Jesus is the narrow door (Luke 13:24) the only path to eternal life. As you worship this Christmas season, whether or not you re physically able to kneel, enter Jesus presence with a humble and thankful heart. He alone deserves our reverence because he alone is able to save.

8 FIRST BAPTIST CHURCH 118 Main Street P O Box 160 Buies Creek, NC Phone: Fax: P ASTOR: D R. MICHAEL SIMMONS Church Staff Sr. Pastor Dr. Michael Simmons BuiesCreek@embarqmail.com Minister of Music Dorothy Mullins Minister of Children Debbie Jones childrenbcfbc@embarqmail.com Minister of Youth Sherry Hayes Stephanie Tripp bcfbcyouth@gmail.com Administrative Assistant Patsy Paul bcfbcoffice@embarqmail.com Weekly Worship Opportunities Sunday 9:45 a.m. Bible Study 11:00 a.m. Morning Worship 5:15 p.m. M & M 6:00 p.m. Choir Practice Monday 7:00 a.m. Men s Prayer Meeting 7:00 p.m. Boy Scouts Wednesday. 6:00 p.m. K.I.S.S. (Keep It Simple Supper) 6:30 p.m. Bible Studies and Prayer Meeting Adults/College/ Youth/Children 7:30 p.m. Handbell Practice Thursday 7:00 a.m. Men s Prayer Meeting 7:00 p.m. Girl Scouts Every Thursday except the First Thursday