2024 Advent Devotions

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This year for our Advent devotions, we asked our church members to share their stories. Each person was assigned a scripture passaged to reflect on and to share how it applies to our Advent theme. We are grateful for those who have taken time to write for our devotional this year and look forward to hearing their stories as we journey through Advent together.

Senior Saints Christmas Lunch

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The Senior Saints Christmas Lunch will be on Thursday, December 11 from 11a-1p. The cost is $15/person and will include a catered lunch by Patsy Wood. This year, we will be entertained by the Weekday Preschool and Buddy Thomas and Wanda Eaves. You can sign up by contacting the church office. Payment can be made to FBW with "Senior Saints Lunch" in the memo line. Please sign up by December 4th.

November Mission Focus: Angel Tree

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Each year, FBW receives several Angel Tree angels from the Salvation Army. WE also provide gifts for the family that is staying in our room at the WARM house. Starting November 10th, you will find a Christmas tree in the Canada Room with angel tags on them. You can take a tag, purchase the requested gift, and then return the gift (unwrapped) WITH the tag attached to the church. As we learn deadlines, we will share them in all church communications. Thakn you for helping us make the holiday season a little brighter for families in our communtiy.

October Mission Focus

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For the month of October, we will be collecting a few different items to share with some of our mission partners. We will be collecting socks for all ages (adult and children) to donate to local shelters, clothing closets, and to share with the Berkeley Glenn community. We are also collecting children's winter hats and gloves that we will give away at the Berkeley Glenn Fall Festival. These items can be brought to the church and placed in the Canada Room for the whole month of October.

November Short Term Study Group

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As a part of our prayer focus for the month of November, we will also be offering a short-term study group focused on prayer. This group will meet on Sunday mornings during the Sunday School hour and will be led by Loyd Allen. Using Marjorie Thompson's book "Soul Feast," participants in this class will learn about the importance of prayer, different approaches to prayer, and how prayer can impact our lives and our community. All adults are invited to participate in this small group opportunity.

Back to School Bash 2024

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On Sunday, July 21 and Sunday, July 28, we will have a table at the Waynesboro Public Schools’ Back to School Bash! This community event provides an opportunity for families to come and receive information about community partners, pick up materials they may need for the school year, and connect with other organizations in town.

There are two ways you can help us with this event:
1- Volunteer for a shift at our table! We will be present both days handing out information about FBW and socks and underwear for families. There are 2 shifts each day. We would love to see you there!

2- Donate new socks and underwear! These are some of the most needed items for families. You can bring new socks and underwear (children, youth, and adult sizes needed) to the Canada Room at the church between now and July 28th and we will make sure they get to KCMS.

If you have any questions, please contact Pastor Kristen.

Final Transition Update: Introducing Justin Moser, Senior Pastor

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We are excited to announce the calling of Rev. Justin Moser as the new senior pastor of First Baptist Waynesboro!

After nine months of intense prayer, discernment, resumes, phones calls, Zoom meetings, interviews, reference checks, and more prayer, our pastor search committee unanimously presented Justin as the candidate for senior pastor. Justin spent the weekend answering questions from the congregation in two Q&A sessions, and then led in worship on Sunday, November 26th. In a vote following worship on Sunday, the congregation overwhelmingly affirmed Justin's call to be our next senior pastor. 

We ask that you be in prayer for Pastor Justin and his family, Ellie, Micah, and Lewis, as they prepare to say goodbye to their church family and their community over the next several weeks. Justin will wrap up his time at his current church, FBC Saint Simons Island, GA, at the end of December and then he and his family will transition to Waynesboro after the first of the year. There are still a few details to work out when it comes to his first Sunday with us, but we will keep you updated as those are finalized. 

We give thanks for the ways that God has guided our church, our search committee, and Justin through this process. We look forward to this next chapter in the life of our church as we continue to do, love, and walk like Christ in this world. 

Finally, we say thank you to the pastor search committee and their families, who have given so much of their time and energy to this process over the last nine months: Susan Shiflet (chair), Tom Woodworth (vice-chair), Libby Allen, Laurie Landes, Ed Morse, Seth Price, Devin Roller, Cheryl Rosberg, and Jeremy Rowe. 

There are exciting days ahead, and we are glad that we get to experience them together!

Transition Update #10: Call Weekend Schedule Released

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As was shared on Sunday, November 5th, the Pastor Search Committee has issued a call to a candidate to be our next senior pastor.

Call weekend is November 25th and 26th. We hope you will make plans to join us that weekend for a chance to meet the candidate and his family. A schedule of events is listed below.

Saturday, November 25:

9:00am- Candidate meets with Church Council
9:30: Q&A Session with Candidate in Fellowship Hall

Sunday, November 26:

9:00am- Q&A Session with Candidate in Fellowship Hall
10:30am- Candidate leads in worship
11:30ish- Special Called Business Meeting for vote on candidate

We appreciate your continued prayers for our church and the candidate as we prepare to welcome him and his family to FBW the weekend of November 25 and 26.

Transition Update #9

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The Pastor Search Committee is excited to announce that after reading resumes, listening the sermons, and doing many rounds of interviews, we have issued a call to our top candidate. We feel is the one to lead FBC in the future. He has accepted our call and we are anxious for you to meet him and his family.

We will have a call weekend on November 25th and 26th. A schedule for the weekend will be published soon. At this time you will have the opportunity to meet him and hear him preach. After worship there will be a called business meeting where we will vote to make him our next Pastor.

This weekend is right after Thanksgiving, and we know many of you will be traveling. We urge you to enjoy this holiday with your family, but plan to be back for Saturday or Sunday for this important weekend.

The Pastor Search Committee want to thank you for the trust you have given us and your patience through this process. We couldn’t be more excited, and we look forward to sharing that excitement with you on November 25th and 26th.

Transition Update #8

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On Sunday, September 17, Susan Shiflet reported on the progress of the Pastor Search committee. Our first meeting as a group was February 21. We have met regularly for over seven months totaling over 90 hours. This does not include the many hours individual committee members have spent listening to sermons and reading resumes. As you remember, we partnered with The Center for Healthy Churches on a consultant basis to walk this journey with us. Through the process, we established goals for our committee and looked to future goals for the leadership of our church for the next decade.

We have received candidate recommendations from the Center for the Healthy Churches, BGAV, CBF, as well as individuals in the larger Baptist world. We have reviewed a group of highly qualified candidates and have begun to narrow our selection. We have done phone and zoom interviews with all candidates, and our next step is a face-to-face interview with our top candidates. Confidentiality is very important to our committee as well as the candidates.

We know this seems like a long process, and many of you have approached us with questions. I can truly say we are making good progress. Your Pastor Search Committee wants the very best person to lead our church in the future, and this takes time. We appreciate your trust and we continue to ask for your prayers and patience.

Transition Update #7:

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As you may know, at the February Business Meeting, the congregation approved the engagement of Center for Healthy Churches to assist in our search for a new senior pastor.  The Pastor Search Committee has completed the training provided by CHC, and we have now drafted a Covenant that will be upheld by all members of the Committee.  We would like to share our Covenant with you, and ask that you continue to pray for us as we continue the journey to call a new pastor.

Transition Update #6: Pastor Search Committee Announced

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Dear FBW Family,

It is with great excitement that we share this latest update in our transition process. Please see the update below submitted by Carla Thomas, chair of the Nominating Committee. 

On behalf of the Nominating Committee, I would like to share some information with you regarding the Pastoral Search Committee and how we got to this moment. This evening at the business meeting, we presented the following information which was put to a vote and passed.

The process started with each of you - you attended listening sessions, participated in the survey and prayed for those on the Transition Team as they prepared and presented the profile for our church. Then you provided names, 69 separate names to be exact, with a total of 198 nominations.

A few additional statistics: of those 69 nominees:

  • 37 are women, 32 men;

  • 22 prefer a contemporary style of worship, while 47 prefer a more traditional style of worship;

  • the age breakdown of those nominated is as follows:

    • 34 and under- 4 individuals

    • 35-44- 6 individuals

    • 45-54- 8 individuals

    • 55-64- 9 individuals

    • 65-74- 25 individuals

    • 75 and above- 15 individuals

    • and 2 individuals that the church records didn't provide us the information to know which age group that they fall into.

And again, you prayed over those nominated. The Nominating Committee came alongside you and prayed over these names. We sought some guidance from a variety of resources, reviewed the church profile and survey results ourselves and compiled the above referenced statistics to put together our list of nominees. The diversity of this group was important to us and we spent time reviewing the statistics to ensure that all of the areas important to you were represented: worship style, age, gender and previous search committee experience.

Those that rose to the top were chosen based on the resounding number of times they were nominated. They were then provided with a cover letter from the nominating committee, the profile and the survey results created by the Transition Team and the request to pray for wisdom and discernment in seeking God's call over them for such an important responsibility. You should know that all of them took time to review, pray and ask questions.

At this time, the Nominating Committee is confident that the team nominated by you, selected by our committee, and accepted by each of the nominees will be a strong and dedicated team. It is with great joy and confidence that these individuals will represent the congregation well and aide us in finding a new pastor that takes us into the future.

The Pastoral Search Committee will be made up of: Libby Allen, Laurie Landes, Ed Morse, Seth Price, Devin Roller, Cheryl Rosberg, Jeremy Rowe, Susan Shiflet as the Chair, and Tom Woodworth as the Vice-Chair. As we move forward, the Nominating Committee asks that each of you continue to be in prayer for our Search Committee as well as for the person (and their family) that God is already preparing to be our next pastor.

Respectfully submitted by the Nominating Committee
Debbie Boling, Chris Furr, Mike Hartzler, Mary Kane, Katherine Megginson, Alan Melton, and Carla Thomas (Chair)

Transition Update #5: Nominations now open for Pastor Search Committee

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Now that we have approved the profiles created by the Transition Team, we are ready to move to the next phase of the senior pastor transition. The FBW Nominating Committee is now accepting nominations for individuals to serve on the Pastor Search Committee. 

How do I make my nomination? 
There are two ways you can submit names for nomination:
1- Email Carla Thomas, nominating committee chair. She will collect names and share them with the nominating committee.
2- Fill out the paper nomination form, which will be found in your bulletin over the next two Sundays. You can place the form in the offering plate or drop it off in the church office during office hours. We will pass along any paper nomination forms to the Nominating Committee. 

Who can I nominate? 
Any active member is eligible to be nominated. Self-nominations will also be accepted. 

When is the deadline to submit nominations?
Nominations will be accepted until Sunday, January 15th. 

What if I have questions? 
Any questions can be directed to the FBW Nominating Committee (names listed below). 

We ask for you to keep the nominating committee in your prayers as they work together to discern who are the best individuals to serve on this search committee. 

We hope to see you on Sunday as we celebrate Epiphany! 

The FBW Nominating Committee,
Carla Thomas, chair
Debbie Boling
Chris Furr
Mike Hartzler
Mary Kane
Katherine Megginson
Alan Melton