GREENWOOD FOREST BAPTIST CHURCH Transfiguration Sunday February 11, 2018 Chiming of the Hour Processional Hymn 161 Welcome to Worship See Our Lord in All His Glory Rev. Lauren Efird Leader: The Lord be with you People: And also with you. Passing of the Peace Rev. Efird Preparation for Worship We Labor Unto Glory Porter s Gate Worship Praise Team My God, my God, where e er I go glory. Where I reap and where I sow glory. When my hand it grips the thorn glory In the still and in the storm glory. Oh, we labor unto glory When heaven and earth are one, Oh, we labor unto glory Until God s kingdom comes. The sun it shines and then goes down glory. Rain, it pours and beats the ground glory. Dust, it blows and ends my days glory. Hearts they burn beneath your gaze glory. My heart, my hands, they re kingdom bound glory. Where thorns no longer curse the ground glory. Trim the wick and light the flame glory. My work, it will not be in vain glory.
Call to Worship (Psalm 50:1-6) Matthew Greg Prayers of the People and Lord s Prayer Rev. Wesley Spears-Newsome Leader: The mighty one, God the Lord, speaks and summons the earth People: From the rising of the sun to its setting. Leader: Out of Zion, the perfection of beauty, People: God shines forth. Leader: Our God comes and does not keep silence, People: Before God is a devouring fire, and a mighty tempest all around. Leader: God calls to the heavens above and to the earth, People: That God may judge the people: Leader: Gather my faithful ones, who made a covenant with me by sacrifice! People: The heavens declare God s righteousness, for God is judge. Invocation Hymn 159 Offertory Prayer Matthew Greg Fairest Lord Jesus Seth Hardison Offertory O Wondrous Sight, O Vision Fair DEO GRACIAS Presentation of the Offering Praise God from whom all blessings flow; Praise God, all creatures here below; O praise God! Alleluia! Praise God above, ye heavenly host; Praise Father, Son, and Holy Ghost. O praise God, O praise God! Alleluia! Alleluia! Alleluia! LASST UNS ERFREUEN Leader: Lord, in your mercy... People: Hear our prayer. Our Father, who art in heaven, hallowed be Thy name. Thy kingdom come, Thy will be done on earth as it is in heaven. Give us this day our daily bread, And forgive us our trespasses as we forgive those who trespass against us. Lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil, For thine is the kingdom, and the power, and the glory, forever. Amen. During the following hymn, children (ages first grade and younger) are invited to go to Children s Time. Parents may pick up their children in the Children s Wing after worship. Hymn 472 Turn Your Eyes Upon Jesus Scripture Reading Mark 9:2-9 Rev. Efird We affirm the reading of Scripture with the following response: Reader: The word of God for us, the people of God. People: Thanks be to God. Anthem This Is My Beloved Son Knut Nystedt He was still speaking, when lo, A bright cloud overshadowed them, And a voice from the cloud said: This is my beloved Son, With whom I am well pleased; Hear ye him. Sermon I Am Listening Kadeisha Bonsu
Hymn Total Praise
Benediction Postlude Please stand as you are able. Rev. Efird The flowers are given today by the Bonsu Family in honor of John and Kadeisha Bonsu s First Wedding Anniversary. Our Pastoral Intern is Matthew Greg. The Deacon of the Day is Seth Hardison, Chair of the Outreach Ministry. Today s acolyte is Griffin Beal. Hearing assistance devices are available at the back of the sanctuary. Prayer Concerns Emma Aeppli, Don Beal, Gilles Bikindou, Valerie Brooks, Wilma Caldwell, Margaret Curl, Jennifer Denning, Sara Martin (Jay and Doris Martin s daughter-in-law), Denise Morgan (Diane Smith s niece), Mildred Shaver (Sally Shaver s mother), and Iris Thomas Dot Alexander and Mildred McCray: Oaks at Whitaker Glen We extend our sympathy to Addie Smith at the death of her brother, James Herring, of La Grange, NC. Our partner church, Ebenezer Baptist, Cuba, and our brothers and sisters of the Oromo Evangelical Lutheran Mission GFBC by the Numbers Focus on Finance 2017/2018 Budget (MDP + MSP) $900,457 Amount of Budget supported through Stewardship Giving $825,216 (excludes cell tower lease, GFCC receipts, and outside groups) Week 23 of 52 (February 4) Stewardship Giving needed Week 23 YTD to fully subscribe budget $15,242 $384,223 Actual Stewardship Giving $13,777 $367,696 Over (Under) $(1,465) $(16,527) Attendance Last Week Praise Assembly 56 Faith Formation 133 Worship 158
Announcements and Upcoming Events Mission Assistance Fund - Support for Gilles Bikindou If you would like to help with the costs surrounding Gilles Bikindou's ongoing efforts to avoid deportation, you may do so by making a special offering to the Missions Assistance Fund. The Missions Assistance Fund is a restricted fund established at the November 2017 church business meeting as a source of financial support for church members and their families in crisis. This fund covers essential costs for a limited period of time that exceed the capacity and/ or mandate of the Emergency Assistance line item in the budget. Contact Rev. Wesley Spears-Newsome if you have any questions. Ash Wednesday Service February 14 Make plans to attend the Ash Wednesday service this Wednesday evening, February 14 at 6:15 pm. Each year, this meaningful liturgy reminds us of our mortality and our hope in God as it ushers us in to the season of Lent. Join us! Family Promise Week February 18-25 Our next Family Promise Week starts next Sunday, February 18 and ends on Sunday, February 25. Seventy percent of the families who participate in the Family Promise program successfully exit to a safe and secure environment. Many of the 800 homeless family members in our area on any given night are children. Our church provides temporary housing, meals and transportation for three to five participating families during our hosting week. Sign up on the chart outside the church office or contact Vivian Denning at vivian.denning@itresourceinc.com. Youth Baptism Class During the Lenten season, Wes will host a baptism class for all youth interested in baptism. We will explore what it means to be a committed Christian and what baptism means for us. Contact Wes for more information. VBS Committee Volunteers Needed The Children s Ministry Team requests your time and talent in preparing for VBS 2018. We are currently asking for volunteers to serve on our VBS Committee, and we are looking for a chairperson for the committee. This request is specifically for committee members; the call for general volunteers will come later. Our first committee meeting will be held on Monday, February 26. If you are interested, please email kadeisha.bonsu@gfbccary.org. Youth Shrove Tuesday Pancake Supper February 13 The Youth Ministry will also host a pancake supper at the Spears-Newsomes home at 6 pm on Tuesday, February 13. Contact Wes for details. Come Play Handbells on February 18! Have you ever played handbells? Have you ever thought about playing? Do you just want to try something new? We are trying something new this year, and we want as many people as possible to give it a shot. We are convening a handbell choir that will rehearse for three Sunday evenings (February 18, February 25, and March 4 from 5 to 6 pm) and then to play in worship on March 11. This is a great opportunity to play without having to commit to a full year. We want as many players as possible regardless of experience the more players, the more fun it will be! Please sign up in the Narthex after worship today or email Helen Bishop at hbishop1337@gmail.com to let her know you will be there, and join us next Sunday, February 18 at 5pm in the Handbell Room. Faith Roots Class February 25, March 4, 11, and 18 The Faith Roots Class begins on Sunday, February 25 and continues each Sunday through March 18. This class which is offered to 3rd-5th graders helps prepare our older elementary kids for their entrance into the Youth Group. The class will meet immediately following worship in Room C226 (the Grace Faith Formation classroom). Lunch will be provided. We are in need of four volunteers to serve as a Second Adult for each of the above dates. If you would like to sign up, contact our Director of Children s Ministry at kadeisha.bonsu@gfbccary.org. Lenten Sermon Series Jesus Uncensored February 18 Resisting Satan Mark 1:9-15 February 25 Setting Our Minds on Divine Things Mark 8:31-38 March 4 Overturning Our Tables John 2:13-22 March 11 Exposing the Darkness John 3:14-21 March 18 Hating the World John 12:20-33 Baby Shower for the Efirds February 25 Rev. Efird and her husband Adam are expecting a baby girl in the spring, and we would like to shower them with gifts on Sunday, February 25 from 2-4 in the Fellowship Hall. Clothing items and Babyganics diapers are especially appreciated! They are registered at Target and Amazon.
Martha Stearns Marshall Month of Preaching Today s Preacher: Kadeisha Bonsu Since 2007, Baptist Women in Ministry has sponsored the Martha Stearns Marshall Month of Preaching, inviting Baptist churches to participate by having a woman preach during the month of February. Martha Stearns Marshall was an eighteenth-century North Carolina Separate Baptist preacher. Martha s enthusiasm and her preaching in worship scandalized the Virginia Regular Baptists, who opposed women speaking in public. But among Martha s family and friends, her behavior was a perfectly acceptable way for her to exercise her spiritual gifts. Martha eventually moved further south to North Carolina and settled in Sandy Creek, North Carolina, near what is now Siler City. In 1755, she co-founded a Baptist church at Sandy Creek with her brother, and within seventeen years, the church grew from 16 to 606 members. Martha s preaching and leadership were instrumental in the growth of her brother s ministry, and she was well respected throughout the Sandy Creek Association. Today, in observance of the Martha Stearns Marshall Month of Preaching, our Director of Children s Ministry, Kadeisha Bonsu, will deliver the sermon. By observing the Martha Stearns Marshall Month of Preaching, we publicly voice our support of women in ministry, to be counted with other Baptist churches in celebrating the gifts and calling of women, and to be reminded that God s word does indeed speak through women. Kadeisha Bonsu is a fourth year student in the M.Div/MSW dual-degree program at Duke Divinity School and UNC School of Social Work. She is a New Jersey native, but Durham has been her home since 2008. She first came to Durham as a Duke University undergraduate where she completed her Bachelor of Arts Degree in 2012, double majoring in Religion and Dance. Upon graduation she served as an AmeriCorps Corps Teaching Fellow for Citizen Schools at Lowe s Grove Middle School in Durham. She then matriculated into the M.Div/MSW program from which she will graduate in December 2018. Outside of her professional and academic work, she loves to travel and dance. Kadeisha believes, Dance is the vehicle by which I get to God and God gets to me. Embodied worship is her language to God and sustains her relationship with God and her community as she seeks to honor God and witness to others through dance. Though she has received training in various dance styles, African dance remains her favorite. She has studied dance in Ghana, West Africa, for a semester at the University of Ghana, Legon. Furthermore, she has traveled four times for study, missions, and vacation to Ghana. Her other travels include Israel and South Africa. In the summer of 2015, she interned with the Umoja Project in Kenya, serving orphans and vulnerable children, under the organization of the Global Interfaith Partnership of Indianapolis. Kadeisha feels called to bi-vocational work. Kadeisha has been the GFBC Children s Ministry Director since late September of 2017. She enjoys using her gifts to minister to our children and their families.
On Ministry Mondays, all committees meet in the Fellowship Hall at round tables. Ministry Mondays is fostering a team mentality and is providing a sustainable and energetic way to do the work of ministry together! It is helping us to work towards a common vision and communicate across ministries. If you are serving on a ministry team this year, save these dates: Team A Children Congregational Care Missions Outreach Stewardship Worship February 26 May 21 Schedule 6:00-7:00 pm Team A 7:00-7:30 pm Dinner 7:30-8:30 pm Team B Our Next Ministry Monday! Team B Discipleship Fellowship Finance Personnel Properties Youth Dinner will be provided. Bring $7 for a sub, chips, and drink. Please contact Doug Black at black_douglas@bellsouth.net with any dietary restrictions. This Week at GFBC Sunday, February 11 9:30 am Children, Youth, and Adult Faith Formation 10:30 am Coffee in the Narthex 11:00 am Worship 12:00 pm Youth Bar/Bat Mitzvah 3:00 pm Youth Alpha and Omega 4:30 pm Youth Choir Tuesday, February 13 11:00 am Senior Adult Fellowship Committee Meeting 6:00 pm Children s Ministry Shrove Tuesday Pancake Supper 6:00 pm Youth Shrove Tuesday Pancake Supper Wednesday, February 14 5:30 pm Second Wednesday Community Meal 6:15 pm Ash Wednesday Service 7:00 pm Sanctuary Choir Rehearsal Sunday, February 18 Family Promise Week Begins 9:30 am Children, Youth, and Adult Faith Formation 9:30 am Youth Baptism Class 10:30 am Coffee in the Narthex 11:00 am Worship 3:00 pm Youth Alpha and Omega 4:30 pm Youth Choir 5:00 pm Handbell Choir Rehearsal GFBC: Making Committee Meetings Fun Since 2017
Welcome to Our Church Community! Our Vision Our vision is to be a welcoming and diverse community of faith united in Christ. Our purpose is to worship God and to form and equip disciples who selflessly share their resources and provide loving service to all. Our Core Values Centrality of Christ and Scripture Inclusivity and Diversity in Community Women in All Areas of Leadership Ministries for People of All Ages Liturgy and Innovation in Worship Spiritual and Intellectual Formation Showing God s Love through Missional Service Sharing Our Resources with Others Unity in Fellowship and Family Life Historic Baptist Beliefs and Practices For more information about our church, please visit our website at gfbccary.org or contact us at 919-467-0481.