The 2021 Summer for First Baptist Church of South Hill has been quite busy so far.
I trust, by the will and grace of God, that it hasn’t been only busy but also fruitful.
Our July 4th Sunday Morning Worship Service was at Lake Kerr, with fellowship and a covered-dish lunch afterwards.
On the Sunday of July 11th, we observed Communion together and conducted a Business Meeting following the Worship Service.
The July 18th was our Graduate Sunday in which we celebrated our High School Graduates and saw them participate in the Service.
First Christian School was recognized and dedicated at the July 25th Service, and we also gave special recognition to our Headmistress, Erinn Baird, for going far beyond the call of duty for FCS. We will soon have a new upper playground and we are adding back 5th Grade! We look forward to a wonderfully fruitful year coming up.
Our church held Vacation Bible School the last week of July, and the attendance was very good, and we were blessed with many volunteer workers for which we are very thankful. We had an exciting Opening Assembly each day, and had several stations for the children, such as Bible Station, Singing Time Station, Creative Time Station (crafts), Game Time Station, and the Horse Station on Friday. The premiere of the First Praise Puppet Team was quite well received by the children – so much so, that we added a third appearance!
Our VBS theme was from “The Great Commandment” taught by Jesus. This commandment was first recorded in Deuteronomy 6:4-5. Our Lord Jesus was asked what the greatest commandment was, as recorded in Matthew chapter twenty-two and Mark chapter twelve. His reply, as recorded in Mark 12:29-31, was, “The most important is, ‘Hear, O Israel: The Lord our God, the Lord is one. And you shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind and with all your strength.’ The second is this: ‘You shall love your neighbor as yourself.’ There is no other commandment greater than these.”
Each day the children sang our theme song, which is an upbeat and active motion song “Love the Lord your God” – and I trust, by the working of the Spirit of God, that they (and we who worked in VBS) come to better love God with all our being (heart, soul, mind, and strength.) We pray that God prepared the hearts of the children to receive the seed of the Word of God so that they trust in Jesus, grow to love Him more and more, bearing the fruit of the Spirit to the glory of God, for their good, and for the good of others.
Grace and peace, Pastor Steve