The Baptist Record FIRST BAPTIST CHURCH EUPORA

OPPORTUNITIES THIS WEEK

Sunday, December 9

9:45 Sunday School

11:00 Morning Worship — Lottie

Moon “Blessing of the

Envelopes”

11:00 G-Force

4:00 Praise Band Rehearsal

5:00 Ladies Handbells

5:15 Ignite (Youth Bible Study)

5:15 Boomwackers

6:00 FBC Family Christmas Event

Monday, December 10

6:30 Deacons & Staff Christmas

Party @ Lake Tiak-O-Khata

Wednesday, December 12 4:45 Acteens 5:45 Ladies Handbells 6:00 Kids Meal @ FLC 6:30 Prayer & Praise Service 6:30 Revelation (Youth) 6:30 GA’s, RA’s & Mission Friends

7:15 Adult Choir Practice Thursday, December 13 *** Deadline for Poinsettia Sunday memorials &

honorariums

SUNDAY SCHOOL RECORD Adult…….……..…………………..169 Youth….…….…………….............22 Children….……..…………….…….15 Preschool/Nursery..…...........20 Golden Living Center…….......18 TOTAL…………….…….............244

FINANCIAL

Weekly Bud. Rec…...$17,929.00 Weekly Bud. Need..$10,211.72 Budget Needs to Date…$500,374.28 Gifts to Date…….….$506,321.07 Over Budget……......…$5,946.79

BUILDING FUND

Gifts this week………….….$35.00 Gifts to date…….….$184,276.15

CHURCH STAFF

Travis Gray, Pastor W. S. Stewart, Sr., Pastor Emeritus

Jason Carson, Music Minister/Assoc. Pastor

Anita Russell, Children’s Director Yvonne Hitt, Financial Secretary Marcelle Robertson, Custodian

Kathy Bailey, Librarian Sara Hitt, Clerk

Gwen Sisson, Church Secretary

Nursery—Amanda Richardson Children’s Church– Carol Turner

Sanctuary Flowers – Lottie Moon Offering

CHRISTMAS EVENTS Dec. 8—Kids Christmas Party/JOY Club Trip Dec. 9—FBC Family Fun Christmas @ 6 p.m. Dec. 9—Youth Christmas Party @ Jane Love’s Dec. 10—Deacons & Staff Christmas Party Dec. 16—Poinsettia Sunday Dec. 16—FBC Christmas Cantata @ 6 p.m. Dec. 23—Christmas carol-ing at 5:30 p.m. Dec. 24—The Lord’s Supper Dec. 25—Christmas Day

Dec. 6, 2012 Edition

Vol. 4, No. 172

www.fbceupora.com

Twitter.com/FBCEupora

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FirstBaptistEupora

First Baptist Church, P.O. Box 268 * 520 W Fox Avenue, Eupora, MS 39744 * Phone: 662.258.3491* Fax: 662.258.2520 * firstbaptistc57@bellsouth.net

It’s beginning to look a lot like Christmas

Making more shoes hit the pavement should be a goal

Join us for a Christmas party trip HAPPY BIRTHDAY this week to...

Then Jesus said to His disciples, “If anyone wants to come with Me, he must deny himself, take up his cross, and follow Me. For whoever wants to save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life because of Me will find it.” Matthew 16:24-25 (HCSB) O-BE-dient. BE His Heart, His Hands, His Voice — this the theme of the 2012 Lottie Moon Christmas Offering. When reading this scripture this year, I can’t help but think of giving an offering. I’m not talking about just writing a check as an offering. Our offering to God is anything we do in His name. Digging into our pockets is the easy part. It’s just the beginning. Think about this: which is the bigger sacrifice, giv-

ing of our money or getting our hands and feet dirty and giving of our time? Making more shoes hit the pavement should be a goal of our church this year. Many of us are already putting plenty of miles on our shoes. How are you serving God through FBC? We have many opportu-nities. Some haven’t been realized yet. Is God re-vealing a ministry to you? May we impact Eupora and Webster County like never before in 2013. Let your financial giving just be the start of your offering to God. Let’s turn our lip service into Life Service.

Have a blessed week, Bro. Jason

With Christmas cantatas and parades all around us, the at-mosphere of Christmas is begin-ning to build. It can be a very busy time of year, but it can also be very rewarding. When we slow down enough to remember the true meaning of the season, our hearts begin to swell with joy. What if we were deter-mined for our joy to be conta-gious? Jesus wants everyone to know the joy He came to bring. This Sunday during our morn-ing worship time, we will have a special opportunity for fami-lies to bring their Lottie Moon Christmas Offering. If this Sun-day is not good for you, please don’t feel obligated to give. Thanks for being such a giving church to help spread the gospel of Jesus to the ends of the earth. Our challenge is to be His heart, His Hands, His Voice at every opportunity presented to us. At the close of our morning worship service, we will vote on the proposed budget for 2013. Thanks for your financial gifts to the Lord that allow us to have the programs and ministries that we have at FBC Eupora. Your gifts of time, talent and heart are greatly appreciated as well. Sunday night, we will have our FBC Family Christmas Celebration. We will sing Christmas carols and have other special presentations. Make a special effort to be in atten-dance. The youth will be going to Mrs. Jane Love’s for their Christmas party after the eve-ning service. Parents send some finger foods.

In Christ’s Love, Bro. Travis

What has made Christmas at FBC Eupora special for you?

Hey everybody! I hope you’ve had a good week at school. Don’t forget about the Christmas party this Satur-day, Dec. 8. We will meet in the Family Life Center at 12:30 p.m. and the cost is $8 per person. This includes entrance into the Christmas on Ice and pizza afterward. Children that are younger than first grade are wel-come to go as long as at least one parent goes with them. Hope to see all of you there! We will have G-Force this Sunday, but that will be the last meeting time for this year. We will resume Jan. 13th. Hope to see you Saturday and Sunday!

Love,

Mrs. Anita

Dec. 6 Kayla Bagwell Fisackerly Dec. 7 Jacob Carson Dec. 8 Pam Brooks

Dec. 9 Kimmy Mixon

Dec. 10 Janice Wade

Dec. 10 Pam Shaw Dec. 11 Dr. Dan Hall

Dec. 12 Samantha Cooper Dec. 12 Bobbie Blaylock Dec. 12 Stewart Bland Dec. 12 Kyle Hawk Dec. 12 Pete Bailey

“Christmas at First Baptist is always very special to me, but there are two years that really stand out. The first was the year that Drew, my son, was baby Jesus in the cantata! It was so special to have a real live baby as Jesus but for it to be my son really made a lasting impression on me! To think, Mary had a baby boy that would grow up and be-come our Savior! The second Christmas that was very special was last year when Tinsley, my granddaughter, was the silhouette for baby Jesus behind the screen. These are very special Christmases that touched my heart and I will never forget! Merry Christmas to all!”

— Amanda Richardson “The cantata with all its praise and glory to sing of the world's wel-coming Christ as He came among us as a child. I always think of Brother Bill sitting on the front row with tears in his eyes worshiping with every note we sang.”

—Dot McCorkle “My favorite thing that we used to ALWAYS do was have a Christ-mas Eve service. We would come about 6 p.m. and the lighting was low with lots of candles. We sang Christmas carols and Bro. Bill would give a short message about the meaning of Christmas and then someone (usually Leah Bland or Mrs. Jo Faulkenbery) would sing "Oh Holy Night," we would pray, then visit and tell each other Merry Christmas, then leave. I truly miss this service and the quiet, peaceful, candlelit atmosphere that guided our hearts to the REAL reason for the season. My family and I would leave from this service and go to my aunt's house to exchange gifts and reminisce of Christmas' past. Then we go home, open one present (pjs) and go to bed to wait for Santa!!! This has been a tradition in my family since before Stephanie and I were born and we look forward to this all year long!!! I wish so badly that we would start back having this service!!!!”

— Suzanne Stephens Bird

“The cantatas! Christmas is just not Christmas for me without all the preparation

and presenting of the Christmas cantata.”

— Cindy Morrow Alderman

“We've only been here for two and a half years, but Amy and I love the Silent Lord's Supper on Christmas Eve. It's a time for us as a family to go to the church, pray, talk about the Lord's Supper with our children, and read the Christmas story from scripture. It's a very intimate and personal time that we can spend together as a family.”

— Jason Carson “I think one of my special memo-ries is helping the kids in G-Force make little happies to take to the nursing homes and then going and delivering them and singing Christmas Songs for the residents. Really a meaningful and special time.”

— Anita McCormick Russell

Copies of the 2013 church budget will be available Sunday at the church.