First Baptist Church
224 Main St. Penn
Yan, NY 14527
(315) 536-9821 e-mail: pyfbc@peoplepc.com
Rev. John R. Tharp,
Pastor
Feb. 1 “Fanning the Flame”
I Thessalonians 5:12-22
Feb. 8 “Finding God in the Movies”
Isaiah 55:6-11
Feb. 15 “Putting Faith on the Line”
Feb. 22 “Adventures in Giving”
Luke 6:37-38
Greeters in February Lay
Readers
Feb. 1 Necia Smith & Guy Love George
Jensen
Feb. 8 George Jensen, Clifford LaBarr,
Paul Nash George Slocum
Feb. 15 Lisa Wood & Betty Johnson Matt Scutt
Feb. 22 Brittany Griffin & Stephanie
Fulkrod Pat Ames
5 ~ Karen Taylor 24 ~ Leon Stiles
6 ~ Chris Fuqua 26 ~ Cindy Ovens
10 ~ Sheryl Robbins 27 ~ Chapita Shaver
15 ~ Eva Dillon
Most
of us saw at least one of the highlight replays of the Presidential
Inauguration. It was a day replete with old and new. The 44th
President took his oath of office with his hand on the Bible used by the 16th
President. With all the sign of newness and change, the ancient foundations
were clearly evident. “… to preserve, protect, and defend the Constitution of
the United States of America, to the best of my ability, so help me God.” With
these words, Barach Obama stepped into the stream of history. Each man, who has
stood where he stands, feels the presence of those who have gone before him.
Washington, DC is filled with monuments
and statues of the men and women of valor who hold up a high standard before
the new president. The White House is filled with pictures and names of heroes
and gallantry. Yet it is on the next page of history that he must write his
story.
One
of my seminary professors told us about a church that had learned to handle
change. Each year this church held an “Old Home Day.” People came from all over
to be a part of the festivities - pie baking contests, dramas about how it was
done 100 years ago, honoring the eldest members, pictures from way back when,
and so forth. It was fun and a lot of people looked forward to it each year. At
the end of the day, during the close of the evening worship, the announcement
would be made for what new and exciting plans the church had for the coming
year. The people, who had spent all day remembering, were now ready to take on
a new adventure.
Our
history is a gift to us and we cannot do the “new thing” without it. On the
other hand, our history is dead unless it produces the “new thing.” If we look
at he words of our Lord, we find that he often cited the words of the former
people of faith (“You have heard it said of old… but I say unto you.”) those
words became the launching pad for the new that Jesus was and the new which he
wants us to experience. Jesus expects us to use “that which has been” to
fashion a better “yet to be.”
I
often walk my dogs about sunrise out in a county place. Each day the Lord
creates a new “sunrise experience.” Some of the days start in great
multicolored beauty; others are grey and forbidding. Yet each one has the
content of a living promise: “I will be with you always, even unto the end of
the age.” (Matthew 28:20)
When
Jesus talks about the new, it is always rich with the presence of the Holy
Spirit. And our moving out into the world in the footsteps of Jesus is the path
we are called to take. And we will have to give and account for how many steps
we have taken. Trusting in the Spirit of Christ is the new, that springs from
the foundation of what has been, toward the goal of what will be.
-Pastor John
It’s A Date!
Say “I Do” all over
again with the No. 1 inspirational film. The creators of Facing the Giants
brings Fireproof! This action
packed love story is a natural ministry tool for inspiring couples. We have set
a tentative date of Sunday, Feb. 22, to show this film. Watch for more details.
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Mary & Martha Circle
Fellowship
Class
Tuesday, February 10 Wednesday,
February 25
10:30 am
12:00 Noon
Marge Cornell will bring desserts and lead devotions
for the meetings this month.
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A short meeting was held after the Annual Meeting on
Jan. 18, to welcome new members and to elect new officers. Cheryl Stewart will
remain as Chairperson and Nancy Tharp will remain as Secretary. The next
meeting will be on Tuesday, Feb. 10.
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Lenten Lunches!
This year’s theme
is “Bad Guys of the Bible.”
The Villains of the
Passion Story.
Each week we’ll take a look at one of the bad guys -
people we’d love to hate,
but, who played a key role in events leading up to
Jesus’ death?
What does their story have to say to us as followers
of Christ today?
This year the lunches will be held at the Penn Yan
United Methodist Church downstairs in the fellowship hall. The hall is
handicapped accessible with an elevator. The schedule will be as follows:
Feb. 26 Judas
Mar. 5 Caiaphas
Mar. 12 Pilate
Mar. 19 Herod
Mar. 26 The
Soldiers who mocked and beat Jesus
Apr. 2 The
Two Theives
Bringing Up Boys
In March a new parenting class will begin meeting with
a focus on “Boys.” This is another series by Dr. James Dobson and we hope it
can be useful to those who parent boys.
The class will be offered twice a week and will be led
by Eileen Modaffari.
You may choose to attend on Sundays, following worship
service starting
March 15 and running through June 7, or on Friday
evenings at 7 pm, when
classes will run March 13 through May 29. This is a
12-week series.
This class is open to everyone and anyone, church
members or not, parents, caretakers, grandparents, guardians, aunts, uncles
etc.
Attend with your spouse! Or make it a girls night out
or a guys night out and invite some friends to attend with you!
Childcare will be available here at the church
nursery.
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American Baptist Women Breakfast
The annual ABW Breakfast will be held on Saturday,
February 7, at
8:30 am at the Essenhaus. There will be
a short program delivered by Erma Mullins, with
devotions led by Bethany and Diane DeLooza. Reservations are required by
calling Erma at 536-8730 by Wed. Feb. 4.
If you need a
ride to the breakfast call Erma or Diane DeLooza at 536-3162.
All women of the church are invited to join us!
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Did you know …
·
Of the 188 million
cards exchanged on Valentines Day, over 50% of them are purchased in the 6 days
prior.
·
The top five classic
favorite romantic movies:
1. Casablanca 4. From
Here to Eternity
2. Gone with the Wind 5. An Affair to Remember
3. Roman Holiday