First Baptist Newsletter

First Baptist Newsletter | April 4, 2024

The First Baptist Church of St. Petersburg exists to help people experience God's gift of life in Jesus.

A Note from the Pastor: Eastertide

First Baptist Family,

Thank you for your robust participation in our Holy Week activities, from our church-wide fellowship and egg hunt on Palm Sunday, to our meaningful time of dinner and communion on Maundy Thursday, to the beautifully intergenerational Stations of the Cross on Good Friday, to our enthusiastic worship together on Easter Sunday, it was a significant week in the life of our church. Thank you so much for taking part! Here are just a few photos from Thursday and Friday:

The Lord is risen! He is risen indeed!

And the great news is that Easter is not over. We have entered a season of our yearly Church calendar called Eastertide. These Sundays between Easter Sunday and Pentecost are when we celebrate the time after Jesus resurrection, before his ascension and the coming of the Spirit. And when we ponder the meaning and impact of Jesus' resurrection for our lives.

During Eastertide this year, we're going to be digging into the first epistle of the apostle John. First John has long been beloved for its simple affirmation that "God is love"; but it also holds within it deep complexity revealing how the early followers of Jesus wrestled with understanding what Jesus' life, death, and resurrection meant. How was God (Love) truly in human flesh and further, how did God (Love) experience life, death, and resurrection? What were the philosophical, theological, and ethical ramifications of that claim? Over these coming six weeks of Eastertide we'll be exploring those questions and more through First John. I hope you'll join us for this series:

April 7

At One | 1 John 1:1-2:2

God has made a way for us to be forgiven and restored through the life, death, and resurrection of Jesus.

April 14

Like Him | 1 John 3:1-7

God has redeemed us to make us righteous like Jesus.

April 21

Love in Truth & Action | 1 John 3:16-24

God calls us to love like Jesus: in truth and action!

April 28

Love God. Love People. | 1 John 4:7-21

God, who is love, instructs us to love both God and people.

May 5

By Water & Blood | 1 John 5:1-6

Christ, by becoming like us in baptism and redeeming us through death, has shown us how we are to love.

May 12

Eternal Life | 1 John 5:9-13

If you believe in Jesus, the Son of God, you have eternal life.

Christ has risen. He has risen indeed! I'm excited to dive into this short letter of John together in the coming weeks to learn from the deep faith of this early community of Jesus' disciples about why that claim matters in our lives today and how we should live as a result. I'm looking forward to seeing you Sunday!

Blessings,

Ben

Sunday Worship

April 7, 2024 | 10:30 a.m.

Songs of Worship

Open Up The Heavens

Jesus Saves

Leaning on the Everlasting Arms

Come Alive (Resurrection Power)

Just As I Am

Sermon

"At One"

1 John 1:1-2:2

Ben Winder

God has made a way for us to be forgiven and restored through the life, death, and resurrection of Jesus.

Kids in Sanctuary Worship

This Sunday our Elementary school kids will join their families in the Sanctuary. Be sure to visit the kids table at the rear of the sanctuary for activities for use during worship.

Preschool Worship

Our Preschoolers will be kicking off a new series - "SHINE" - in which they'll be talking about Jesus - the light of the WORLD - and how when we do what Jesus says, we shine and light up the dark so others can see their way to Jesus. This week they'll study Matthew 5:1-2, 14-16 learning that Jesus says to let my light shine.

Fellowship Lunch

Following worship all are invited to join us in Heritage Hall for good food and intergenerational fellowship around the tables.

WATCH WORSHIP ON YOUTUBE

WATCH WORSHIP ON FACEBOOK

Sunday Mornings Before Worship

9 a.m. Bible Studies & Choirs

If you're not here on Sundays at 9 a.m., you're missing out!

We have great offerings for all ages. Here's what's going on:

Preschool Choir (2-PreK) | Room 109

Music and fun for preschoolers.

Kids Choir (K-5th) | Room 206

Music and fun for elementary-aged students.

FirstYOUTH Bible Study | Multipurpose Room

A weekly gathering for Middle and High School students.

Digging Deeper Class | Room 204

A co-ed group of adults of all ages currently studying the Book of Romans.

Masters Class | Conference Room

A co-ed group of adults of all ages, utilizing the Formations curriculum to facilitate class discussion.

Raising Adults Class | Room 205

A co-ed group for adults in the stage of life with kids in their home.

Sonshine Class | Heritage Hall

A co-ed group composed primarily of retired adults, utilizing the Formations curriculum to facilitate class discussion.

Special Needs Class | Heritage Hall Room 2

This co-ed group for adults with intellectual disabilities is part of our Special Needs Ministry.

10 a.m. Intergenerational Fellowship in the Narthex

Between our 9 a.m. offerings and the beginning of worship each Sunday we offer coffee, juice, and other goodies for you to enjoy in the Narthex. We encourage you to come a few minutes early or stop by after your 9 a.m. activity to spend some time getting to know other members of your church family of all ages. We'll see you Sunday!

Fellowship Lunch This Sunday

Join us following worship this Sunday for Fellowship Lunch in Heritage Hall.

This month's menu is:

Shepherd's Pie

Southwest Salad

Cornbread

Butterfinger Cake

We suggest a donation of $5 per person, $20 family max for lunch.

April Senior Adult Day Trip

April 9 - 9 a.m.

Join us for April's Senior Adult Day Trip to Plant City. For those who love trains there will be a train scavenger hunt and museum to see. For those who love antiques and interesting shops you can enjoy that before we reunite for lunch at Fred's Market. The bus will leave the church at 9 a.m. Cost is $20 with lunch on your own. Sign up at the link below!

FAST Justice Ministry Update

FAST Rally - April 11

Nehemiah Action - April 30

Through Faith & Action Through Strength Together (FAST) we partner with 50+ other faith communities in our county to find solutions to issues of injustice in Pinellas County through research, then ask our public officials to implement those solutions.

Currently FAST is targeting three issues:

Affordable Housing

Our community is experiencing a housing affordability crisis, and those hardest hit are those with lowest household incomes (95% of the families in Pinellas county who pay more than half their income on rent make $65,000 or less). FAST is asking the City of St. Petersburg to set a goal to create 5,000 new units of affordable housing for those making 80% or less of the Area Median Income by the end of Mayor Welch's first term in 2026.

Water Quality

Many in our community have experienced negative health outcomes and economic hardship caused by Red Tide. A huge driver of Red Tide is unfiltered stormwater runoff which pushes nitrogen into our water bodies feeding the Red Tide. FAST is asking the City of Clearwater to include Green Stormwater Infrastructure requirements in the new water management master plan on which they are currently working, to reduce stormwater runoff and serve as a model for the rest of Pinellas County.

Criminal Justice

Currently, those who commit non-dangerous driving offenses in Pinellas County are subject to arrest, which leaves them with a life-long arrest record. Since many of these infractions have to do with minor, sometimes unknown paperwork issues or unpaid fees & fines, such a severe and permanently damaging punishment is unjust and often criminalizing poverty. FAST is asking local law enforcement to expand the adult arrest diversion program to include non-dangerous driving offenses so that folks can be penalized for their wrongdoings without being marked for life with an arrest record.

These are each important issues, and we want our public officials to act on them. To make that happen, we need YOUR help! FAST has been successful in getting big things accomplished in the past when we have organized people-power to demonstrate to our public officials the significant desire for action in our community. The best way you can help ensure our public officials take action is by showing up!

FAST Rally

Thursday, April 11 - 7 p.m. | St Michael the Archangel

A gathering for Justice Ministry Network Members, and others to hear about plans for Nehemiah Action and learn tools to help with inviting others to attend.

FAST Nehemiah Action

Tuesday, April 30 - 7 p.m. | First Baptist Church of St Petersburg

We are hosting this gathering this year, to which public officials are invited and asked to implement solutions FAST has researched. We need EVERYONE to show up in order to show our public officials how seriously we take these issues! Please make plans to attend.

If you have any questions about FAST, issues on which we're working, or anything else about our Justice Ministry, feel free to connect with our Justice Ministry Team Leaders - Doug Harrell, Joye Quire, and Ben Winder.

CBF of Florida & Caribbean Islands

Spring Celebration

Saturday, May 4 | 8:30 a.m - 3 p.m.

First Baptist is hosting the Spring Celebration for the Cooperative Baptist Fellowship of Florida and the Caribbean Islands. This year's one-day event celebrates mission engagement and will feature Trina Harris (Touching Miami with Love), Rick & Ellen Burnette (Cultivate Abundance), Jason Coker (Together for Hope), and Francis & Missy Angalla (Amani Sasa). Along with learning from these experienced mission practitioners, we'll also worship together, led by Francis Angalla with new CBF FL/CI Associate Coordinator Xiomara Reboyras preaching.

It will be a wonderful day celebrating missions, and this is a great opportunity to learn more about CBF of Florida and the Caribbean Islands and many of our mission partners right here on our own campus! Please register at the link below by April 26. Registration is free; lunch is available $15 the day of the event.

Learn more & register here.

Serve St Pete Day | May 18

A few times a year we take a day as a church family to serve our community in Jesus' name. We start the day at various locations around our city working alongside mission partners and others to make positive impact. Then we meet at the church for lunch together to cap off the morning of service. There are opportunities to serve for all ages and abilities. Please sign up at the link below to join us for our next Serve St Pete Day on Saturday, May 18!

Mission Partners Update

Cultivate Abundance

We are a CBF Encourager Church for Rick & Ellen Burnette who work alongside migrant farm workers in Immokalee, Florida ensuring they have food and know the love of Christ. They recently provide the following prayer updates:

Ellen’s dad, Joe Holley, passed away on March 5 after a long struggle with cancer. A celebration of life service for Joe will be held on April 6 at First Baptist Church Huntsville, AL.

We are grateful for the recent involvement of volunteer teams from First Baptist Rome, GA and a Missouri team coordinated by Mark Buhlig, pastor of Englewood Baptist, near Kansas City, to assist Primera Iglesia Bautista Hispana in LaBelle, FL to improve their facilities to accommodate future volunteer and disaster response teams.

More teams and resources are needed to complete the Primera project. The remaining work includes finishing the exterior and interior walls, installation of more windows, plumbing and installation of shower and toilet fixtures, installation of the A.C. system and installation of tiles.

(Our own Troy Willingham did pro bono work in developing the building plans needed to request the building permit and has coordinated efforts for the Primera LaBelle - be on the lookout for how you can jump in to help answer this prayer request by being part of a team working on the project!)

Amani Sasa

We are a CBF Encourager Church for Francis & Missy Angalla who work alongside refugees in Kampala, Uganda. They recently provide the following prayer & praises updates:

Amani Sasa Staff: Please pray for the 38 staff at Amani Sasa who we minister alongside. Please pray for God to open doors and ministry opportunities within our refugee community.

New program participants and shelter residents: Please pray for for the new basket program participants and shelter residents. Please pray for God's healing, transformation and opportunities for them to experience the hope and love of Jesus.

Shelter graduates being resettled to Miami: Agnes and Natalie are 2015 graduates of the women's shelter. They have been notified that they are going to be resettled to Miami in the next few months. Please pray for God's provision for them as they prepare for and arrive in the US. Please pray for God's provision for community when they arrive. Please also pray for our community as we say goodbyes. They will be deeply missed.

Refugees experiencing healing and transformation: We are so grateful for your prayers and partnership! God has provided many refugees within our community hope, healing and transformation. We are grateful to continue to hear testimonies from our graduates of the long-term impact that your partnership has had.

University graduations: We recently had 3 students in our scholarship program and 1 shelter alumnae graduate from college. It's amazing to see the transformation that has taken place in their lives.

If you would like to receive more regular updates from Francis & Missy, you can sign up for Amani Sasa email newsletter.

And check out this 2023 Amani Sasa Ministry Highlight Video:

Zanglais Baptist Church

We partner with Zanglais Baptist Church in Zanglais, Haiti through Reciprocal Ministries International including providing funding for a daily hot lunch for the 500+ kids in their school. Haiti is in an extreme state of unrest currently, but God is still at work in Zanglais. Pastor Sylveste Monlouis recently provided the following updates:

During Easter, the church is organizing a spiritual conference to reflect on the death, the crucifixion, and the resurrection of Jesus Christ.

We thank you so much for your help with the school kids. Because of your generosity, our school is still open. We are so grateful to God for our partnership in the gospel.

Please pray that God would provide peace in the hearts of His children in this world of trouble.

Pray That the Lord will continue to bless our country.

Pray for spiritual blessing and financial support for the people of Zanglais and the satellite churches.