First Baptist Church Weaverville is seeking a part-time Organist. Someone who feels called by God and has a great love for church music.
Qualifications
Education: 4 year college music degree preferred. ( 2-4 year college degree acceptable)
Experienced on the organ and piano, to help guide the church in worship.
Comfortable with a wide variety of musical styles.
Possess good interpersonal skills and relates well to all age groups.
[Click on job title to read more….]
Yuri Sipko, a pastor and former president of the Union of Baptists in Russia, had to flee the country in August when authorities attempted to arrest him for publicly praying for peace in Ukraine. He anticipated the government’s action after his participation in a virtual prayer vigil in February. The event was hosted by Mission Eurasia on the one-year anniversary of the invasion.
Pastor Sipko said, “The law makes it a crime to call the war a ‘war’ and does not allow anyone to call for peace in Ukraine. But I prayed for peace and said it is a crime to drop rockets and bombs on the Ukrainian people.”
He evaded capture at his Moscow home on Aug. 8 and has since been placed on a most-wanted list for disseminating “false information” about the invasion. “It is a terrible thing when the word ‘peace’ is outlawed. Everything is upside down in Russia. But until I am gagged, I will continue to speak out. The gospel and Christianity compel us not to remain silent. Jesus Christ was not silent, and the apostles were not silent. Paul was not silent even when he was in prison. I am merely following the example of the gospel and such great Christian witnesses.”
Mission Eurasia is a Nashville-based global ministry helping Sipko with living expenses while he is in hiding. Mission Eurasia president Sergey Rakhuba said that Pastor Sipko “left his house in a t-shirt and jeans and barely managed to escape. They came after him with special police, like SWAT teams. They wanted to arrest a pastor for saying, ‘Stop killing people’ and ‘Stop bombing people.’ The state threatens evangelicals and there is no religious freedom under Putin. Only the Russian Orthodox Church has freedom, and the state threatens evangelicals with imprisonment.”
He added a plea for US churches to continue helping and praying for Ukraine: “Ukraine is a very resilient nation, but they need help defending their country, feeding their people, and protecting their right to freely worship God.”
We had a great hike this month! We went out to Mill Ridge, near Hot Springs, for some lovely views in perfect weather.
Church volunteers had a great time working at the Mountain State Fair this year! In the Break Tent we made coffee and sandwiches for fair workers to have for free, at the Ministry Booth we gave out teddy bears and offered prayer support to folks walking by, and in courtesy carts we gave rides to people with mobility needs. In everything, we got to show the love of Jesus!
We were truly blessed to hear from Amy Meinch recently in Bible Study. She shared her family’s struggle with childhood cancer and the loss of their daughter, Kalina. It was convicting, moving, sad, informative, and inspiring. She said, “Your church is different. You are a light. You are all beautiful people. Thank you for becoming advocates!” We learned how we can show love to families in that situation: be with them, cry with them, ask them about their child. And we learned about treatments for childhood cancers: there’s not many. To see the slides Amy used during her talk, click here.
September is Childhood Cancer Awareness Month, and Weaverville is getting involved. Gold is the color, since children are more precious than gold, so everyone is encouraged to show their gold. Amy says, “Are you in Weaverville and want a gold mailbox? I’ll come spray it!” The Fire Department is wearing supportive t-shirts this month and have sprayed the fire hydrants gold. There are QR codes around the hydrants for people to scan and donate money to fund childhood cancer research that is more effective and less toxic.
The Police Department is helping organize a 2nd Annual Childhood Cancer Research Fundraiser for the Art in Autumn Festival next Saturday on Main St. They will have great raffle prizes from local businesses at their booth during the festival. 100% of raffle monies go to funding research.
Also, Melinda Knutson is a local photographer whose family has battled childhood cancer. She will have a tent in front of our church during Art in Autumn and offer photography sessions, then give the proceeds to childhood cancer research.
AND if you go to Blue Mountain Pizza this month and donate money to childhood cancer research, they will double it! Then, on Thur., Sept. 21, Blue Mountain will donate 25% of its proceeds that day.
If you have any questions about these events or childhood cancer in general, you can e-mail Amy Meinch here.
Cases of Covid-19 are at an eight-month high in Buncombe County, but it can be hard to find testing kits. The church has a few tests available. They are in the copy room next to the phone if you or a family member needs one. (Only take ones that you need, since we have a limited number.)
September is Childhood Cancer Awareness month. One Weaverville mother, Amy Meinch, lost her daughter Kalina to cancer when she was 5 years old. Amy’s mission is to spread awareness and share opportunities to help families in the trenches of childhood cancer, adding that “once it enters your life, you will be forever in the trenches.” She will share her family’s story during the Bible Study time this Wednesday (6:00 pm). Everyone is invited to come, listen, and learn.
The Weaverville Music Study Club Presents
First Baptist Church, Weaverville
Community Sponsors:
Edward Jones-Bill Boughton
Motoriffic Sales and Service, LLC
West Family Funeral Service
Peterson Insurance Group, Inc
A freewill offering will be collected to benefit the North Buncombe Music Scholarship.
We continue to raise money to repair the sanctuary gutters. Please make this a matter of prayer as we address the big repair cost. The good news is that people are stepping up to help make the repairs happen. So far people have pledged $59,000 of the $80,000 we need to raise! That’s a wonderful start. May it inspire others as well to help our sanctuary building look its best.
Pledges and/or donations can be made by contacting Debbie Sprinkle at the church office (645-6720, debbie@fbcwvl.org). — The Stewardship Committee
Children, youth, family members, and friends are invited on a fun field trip to the Waynesville Rec Center Indoor Pool. Meet at the church at 10 am or at the park at 11 am. Pack your swimsuit, towel, bag lunch, and a drink. The church is covering the cost to swim but you need to RSVP to Regina by this Sunday, August 13, if you plan to go so she can get a headcount and permission forms. We’ll arrive back at the church by 4:30 pm.
We're moving our church calendar online so that whenever you look at it, it is always up-to-date and you can see any month you want. We hope to add church members' birthdays to it as well and descriptions of various activities. Below is our always up-to-date (ideally) church calendar, and if you would like a separate page to bookmark and easily go back to, click HERE.
It’s always good to make good financial plans. Creating an estate plan is one of those good ways that lets you bless others far into the future. When you make a will and craft a plan for your estate, you are able to decide how to support the people and places you love, and be a good steward of the resources God has given you.
The Cooperative Baptist Fellowship Foundation partners with FreeWill to offer preparation services to members of Baptist churches. FreeWill’s online estate planning tool can help you create your will and safeguard the things and people that are important to you. Go to FreeWill’s website here to get started.
You may notice something different in our sanctuary. In one of the back corners is a new family worship area. This is an intentional space for families with children that may need a little extra wiggle room, so caregivers and children can worship together. The bookshelf contains quiet toys for those who need to fidget, Bible coloring pages and worksheets, crayons with scrap paper, and children's storybooks and Bibles. We want everyone to feel welcome in our house of worship, no matter what kind of needs they may have.
The WNC Baptist Fellowship is a network of cooperative Baptist churches throughout Western North Carolina, and its Spring Gathering this year will be right here in our church—Sunday, May 21. Everyone is invited to eat dinner with fellow Baptist brothers and sisters in our Fellowship Hall at 5:00, with the meal prepared and served by David Stone and students from his college ministry. (Register online here for dinner.) Then a program of worship and updates will be in our sanctuary at 6:00. All are welcome!
An assistant/substitute is needed from 9:45am to 12:45pm. It's a rewarding position interacting with community seniors adults, making sure activities run smoothly. The position will help unload food containers and abide by posted meal site kitchen guidelines for preparing meals. They will help clean the kitchen after lunch and assist with minimal paperwork. Must have Covid vaccination. This is a paid position. Please contact Jennifer Hilliard at 828-768-0522 for information.
The Weaverville Music Study Club Presents
North Buncombe High School Chorus
"Choral Spotlight"
Directed by Jeannie Graeme
(Accompanist: Linda Jones)
Chris Duncan moved to Weaverville with his wife in 2021 and has been visiting our church the past few months. He won’t be in worship during May because all month, he is riding his bicycle the entire Blue Ridge Parkway with his son and a Romanian pastor to raise money for children in Romania. Chris is a supporter of a Romanian missions organization called Missio International, which serves children at risk from things like human trafficking and abuse, as refugees from Ukraine, and more. We’re cheering for Chris over all the 469 miles of the Parkway. To learn more about his ride and see some updates, click here.
Our church’s Thriving Congregations team is hard at work to learn more about our church and community. For the last six months, we have had one-on-one conversations with many of you. Those are continuing, so please say yes when invited!
For the next six months we will be diving into the history of Weaverville and First Baptist. We will also start having small-group Listening Sessions. By the middle of June, we hope that at least half of active church folks will be able to participate in a group listening time.
The sessions will last around 1 hour, and the same questions will be asked in each group of 8-12 people. During these sessions, there will be a group leader (asking the questions), an assistant leader, and a scribe taking notes. Every participant will have a chance to answer the questions.
To help us learn from these listening sessions, if you receive an invitation over the next few weeks, please can join us!
Thank you all for your prayers for this Thriving Congregation work that we are doing.
Thank you to everyone that has already picked up and filled some eggs for our hunt on Saturday, April 8th at 12pm. There are still some available in the hallway outside the Fellowship Hall, so if you haven't already, pick up a bag, fill the eggs, and return them to the church by next Thursday. We also need some volunteers that are willing to come that Saturday to hide the eggs and connect with families. Please let Regina know as soon as possible if you can help that day. Thank you!
We had a fun time with a fun group of people (and dogs!) last month, so there will be another good Hike Group trek on Sunday, March 26. A great opportunity to walk an established safe trail with friendly folks. All are welcome!
(Read more details about this trail HERE.)
Sundays: PO Box 547, Weaverville, NC 28787
Small Group Bible Study: 9:45 am info@fbcwvl.org
Worship: 11:00 am 828-645-6720
Youth Group: 6:00 pm Directions: Click here
Wednesdays:
Prayer & Bible Study: 6:00 pm
Choir Practice: 7:15 pm