Thank you for all of the love and support that I have been given for the past almost 18 years. I am blessed to be able to grow up with such a supportive church home. Thank you for the coffee cup that will be used a little too much the next four years! I hope to be able to come home be able to hear the Word of the Lord with Jeff and the rest of the church!
– Love, Macie Bryson
Click HERE to view the spring youth newsletter!
We are thrilled to announce a very special Homecoming celebration as we honor Dr. Bob Holquist for his remarkable 40 years of dedicated service as our Minister of Music. This momentous occasion calls for a grand reunion, and we are calling all FBC Choir alumni to join us in this joyous event.
On Homecoming Sunday, we will gather on October 15 in worship to celebrate Dr. Holquist's incredible contributions to our church and community. Prepare your vocal cords, as all former FBC Choir members are invited to return and raise their voices during the 10:30 AM worship service. Let us fill the sanctuary with the harmonious sounds of praise and gratitude!
In addition to the exciting reunion of our FBC Choir, we are honored to welcome former FBC pastor, Rev. Ed Beddingfield to fill our pulpit. Presently serving as the pastor of Memorial Baptist Church in Buies Creek, NC, Rev. Beddingfield will grace our service with his leadership.
After the worship service, we will continue the festivities with a feast for the ages in the Mission and Fellowship Center. It will be a time of fellowship, laughter, and reunion. This is an opportunity not to be missed as we commemorate Dr. Holquist's extraordinary tenure and the impact he has made on our church family.
Please help us spread the word about Homecoming 2023. In particular, share this announcement with any FBC Choir alumni or former members of our congregation who may not be aware of this special Homecoming celebration. Let's come together to make this day truly spectacular!
Save the date, mark your calendars, and join us on October 15 for a day filled with reunion, celebration, and gratitude. We look forward to seeing you there!
We're excited to invite you all to our Church-Wide Picnic at the beautiful Deep Creek Pavilion in the Smokies, near Bryson City! Join us THIS Sunday, August 27, as we gather for a day of fun, fellowship, and spiritual celebration.
Come early and dive into the wonders of Deep Creek! Whether you love tubing down the creek, admiring the majestic waterfalls, or taking a leisurely stroll on the shaded hiking trails, there's something for everyone to enjoy.
Then, 4:30 PM: Join us at the Deep Creek Pavilion for our delightful covered-dish feast. Bring your favorite dishes to share!
6:00 PM: After the feast, we will gather at the creek for a special baptism service. Witness the profound expressions of faith and support our fellow church members.
Please be aware that the national park now requires parking fees for those without an annual or weekly parking pass. To avoid any inconvenience, plan ahead and ensure you have your $5 parking fee either paid onsite or online before arriving. Also, consider carpooling to share the cost of parking!
Don't miss out on this fantastic opportunity to connect with your church community while surrounded by our breathtaking mountains. We encourage everyone to bring friends and family, as this event is open to all!
Join us for a day filled with joy, fellowship, and a deep sense of love! Let's make memories together at Deep Creek Pavilion in the Smokies to close out our summer!
If you would like to provide flowers in the sanctuary for Sunday morning services, please contact Gwen Messer at 828-506-8370, or Janice in the church office to be placed on the calendar.
The CDC recommends that you wear a mask indoors.
Maximize protection from the Delta variant and prevent possibly spreading it to others.
Our worship service will be streamed online at firstbaptistsylva.com.
Each week we include a recipe in the Church Chimes and we hope that you are enjoying reading and trying them. You can add your favorite recipes to the Chimes by sending them to Cheryl Beck at cabeck@ncsu.edu. This is an ongoing WMU project.
Thanks for participating!
The family of Ruth Crawford, in her memory and what would have been her 100th birthday, July 23, has donated dolls to the Baptist Children’s Home in Clyde. If anyone would like to honor Ruth’s memory with a donation or doll for the Children’s Home, please bring them to the church office, and I will take them to Clyde and notify the family of your contribution.
–Linda Stewart
My prayers are very different in my personal life than they are in my professional life. In my professional environment, as a part of a pluralistic military setting, the ministry of presence plays a paramount role in my care of airmen. Requests for prayer can be private or public, as an individual or in community. These prayers span the gamut from blessings and celebration to desperate pleas of agony and everything in between. While public prayers tend to be more formal and require particular language (for example, I cannot pray in the name of Jesus unless it is in a voluntary setting), private prayers are sacredly specific to that particular airman.
In celebratory times, I am often asked to give the invocation at various ceremonies: promotions, retirements, assumption of command, change of command, hall of fame inductions, etc. When a member asks me to pray for them at one of these events, it is my honored privilege as their chaplain to provide spiritual care and presence and to discover what is meaningful to them. For each of these, I meet with the airmen, craft an original prayer, print it out and leave it with them after the ceremony as a reminder of the blessing they carry with them into the next chapter. I am also called on to pray in difficult moments: funerals and memorials, remembrance services, POW/MIA services, to name a few. These are hard and holy moments where presence is a prayer, a powerful symbol of God-with-us.
In my personal prayer life, I am much more free flowing with my prayers—both in my words and in my movement. I was born a dancer and I love to move as I pray, to pray with my entire body. At times when I cannot speak, dance becomes the embodiment of my prayers. I am also drawn to moments of silence with God. When I was a hospital chaplain and worked the night shift, I would visit our five chapels in the middle of the night, to see if anyone needed a chaplain. If a chapel was empty, I would use it as an opportunity to be silent with God, to allow God’s holy presence to fill me. I would find solace and restoration to fuel me for the rest of my shift.
Those of us who serve God as ministers, clergy and chaplains often forget that we too need to be refilled by God. I think of Jesus calling the disciples away with him (Mark 6) to go to a quiet place for rest. Part of prayer, for me, is taking regular time away to be with God. Going off grid, away from technology and distractions, even just for a few hours or sometimes a few days, creates space for me to hear from the Lord. It is a time for restoration, replenishment and renewal. As Jesus tells the disciples in Mark, the ministry will be there when you get back.
Pray. . .Give. . .Go.
Add this email address to your contacts list on your devices so that our staff and Pastoral Care Team can learn of your prayer requests as quickly as possible. And yes, you may still contact the church office directly at 828-586-2095 to share your prayer concerns, as well.