May Is A Time To Remember! What comes to mind when you think of the month of May? College graduations? The reminder that the beginning of summer is fast approaching? Cookouts in the back yard and family get-togethers? Green grass and flowers blooming from those April showers? And of course, Mother’s Day! Don’t forget mama! Did you know that Mother's Day is the third most celebrated holiday of the year after Christmas and Easter? In fact, over 145 million cards are sent, $14.6 billion spent on gifts and dinners, 69% of those gifts are flowers, and more long distance calls will be made on that day than any other day of the year. That’s significant! There’s no doubt that mothering is one of the toughest jobs mom’s will ever have and yet you love almost every minute of it. So, this month, we pause and say “thanks” for all of your hard work! Paul expressed probably one of the greatest “thanks” when he was writing to young Timothy. There is no doubt that Timothy’s mother, and grandmother, had a tremendous influence upon his growing toward faith in Christ! “I have been reminded of your sincere faith, which first lived in your grandmother Lois and in your mother Eunice and, I am persuaded, now lives in you also.” 2 Timothy 1:5 (NIV) Mother’s Day is important for sure, but there’s another important May date to remember. Memorial Day. The very name calls us to remember. This special day started near the end of the Civil War. Within a few years the practice of placing flowers on military graves had spread throughout both the north and south and was being called by almost everyone, “Decoration Day.” After WWI, it became a national holiday dedicated to remembering those who made the ultimate sacrifice for the freedoms that we enjoy. For many of us, the Civil War, the Spanish-American War, WWI, WWII, and the Korean War are ancient history. The Vietnam War is becoming a fading memory for some. But in this modern time, we are still thrust into a position of remembering those who are fighting and dying today. Just recently there was a story that made headlines of a Iraq Veteran being spit upon by a group younger than himself. Have we no respect for those who have put their lives at risk for our nation and our freedoms? The oath taken by every soldier reveals the reason why soldiers do what they do each and every day. They are defenders of the principles that made this country great. They stand as Patriots to defend and protect our land. To the point of ultimate sacrifice. When we look upon a returning soldier from conflict, a disabled veteran, or a grave marker – those words should ring in our minds. “The willingness of America's veterans to sacrifice for our country has earned them our lasting gratitude.” – Jeff Miller This May, remember! Steve May Music Notes We are doing a recruitment for the music ministry. We have Sanctuary Choir (high school through adults) rehearsals on Wednesdays at 6:30 P.M.; Praise Raisers (children) on Sundays at 5:00 P.M.; Handbells on Sundays at 6:00 P.M.; Crossing Boundaries (junior/senior high school) Sundays at 5:00 P.M. We may be starting up again a Praise Team, a performing group as well as a worship leading group. It would also be good to utilize instrumental talent, like guitar, flute, violin and other orchestral instruments. Do YOU fit into any of these categories? It is also vital that YOU keep on praying with the Staff Care (Personnel) Committee as they continue to seek out God's permanent Director of Music Ministries. Buddy Collins, Interim Music Director SBBC Media Library New Books have arrived: Youth: Hardy Boys Series, Nancy Drew series, Little House on the Prairie series, “Million Dollar Throw” and more... Children: “If You Give a Cat a Cupcake”, “Liar, Liar, Pants on Fire” Corduroy Books; Curious George books and many more.... Aults: Books by Charles Swindoll have arrived. These books lay out the lives of people in the Bible. Books on: David, Elijah, Paul, Esther, Jesus and Moses. Please come by and try a new book out. Thank you to everyone who donates to the library. At this time, we are not taking any donations. Our selves are full and not being used. Thank you for your understanding. – Gail Stath, Director Come to W.O.W. Worship Our Way Children’s Church Sunday at 11:00 a.m. For more information, contact Pam Rambo at jprambo@verizon.net. Memory Loss, the Basics: Ask Your Questions Saturday, May 16 - 9:30 a.m.-11:30 a.m. Fellowship Hall Mary Ann Johnson, Program Director for the Greater Richmond Chapter of the Alzheimer's Association, will give an overview of the disease and the resources that are available. There will be a time for questions and discussion. Coffee and pastries will be provided. If you have any questions, please contact Sharon Condrey at 804-590-9305. Young Seniors Luncheon The Young Seniors May Luncheon will be on Thursday, May 21st, at 10:30 a.m. in the Fellowship Hall. Join us for our annual cook out to end our luncheons for the summer. We will have hot dogs and hamburgers cooked on the grill. There will be a devotional and prayer time, music, games, and plenty of fellowship around the table. Bring a covered side dish and don't forget our Gateway project. See you there! Men’s Ministry Fellowship Breakfast The Men's Breakfast will be May 3 at 8:00 a.m. A small donation would be appreciated to cover the cost of the food. Did You Know? God created each of us for a purpose? "Thou art worthy, O Lord, to receive glory and honor and power: for thou hast created all things, and for thy pleasure they are and were created" (Revelation 4:11). God created us for fellowship with himself, as creatures in His own spiritual image. He desired to show His love to those who would receive and it, and who would freely love Him as well. Because of his love for us, God is preparing a wonderful eternal home. This will be a glorious place, where there is no sickness or pain or death and, of course, where there is no sin of any kind. Yet it is a real place; it will be just as real to those who are there as this present world is to us now. "And God shall wipe away all tears from their eyes; and there shall be no more death, neither sorrow, nor crying, neither shall there be any more pain: for the former things are passed away" (Revelation 21:4). All mysteries will be cleared away, and His people will be perfectly united with Him forever. "But as it is written, Eye hath not seen, nor ear heard, neither have entered into the heart of man, the things which God hath prepared for them that love Him" (I Corinthians 2:9). "(God) hath raised us up together, and made us sit together in heavenly places in Christ Jesus: That in the ages to come He might show the exceeding riches of His grace in His kindness toward us through Christ Jesus" (Ephesians 2:6,7). This life is a time, in which we are given freedom to choose and to show whether or not we desire and would enjoy that fellowship with our Maker for which we were created “I call heaven and earth to witness against you today, that I have set before you life and death, the blessing and the curse. So choose life in order that you may live”(Deut. 30: 19) Answer to last month's question; Who told Jesus, "Never shall You wash my feet!"? Peter (John 13:8) This month's question; Jesus said, "I am the true vine." Who is the vinedresser? God bless and I'll see you at church. MJ W.M.U. Thank you for your faithfulness in giving to the 2015 Annie Armstrong Easter Offering for North American Missions. Our total was $4,334.00. SBBC feed the Homeless on March 30th distributed 50 hygiene bags . We have 100 more to distribute in May and June. WMU will focus on supporting Standing Rock Indian Reservation and Project Ruth mission trip to Romania in May and June. These projects are mission opportunities through our WMUV.org . Items needed are washcloths, colorful cotton fabric, tooth brush covers, small combs, socks and underwear for children ages k-12 grade. If you sew we have a project to sew the washcloth into a holder for Standing Rock and Romania. For more information please contact Rita Boykin -ritaboykin@me.com 790-1367 or Brenda Kyle brendagkyle@msn.com 804-6397297. Join us for the WMU meeting at 6:30 p.m. on Monday, May 11th. Along with prayer and fellowship we will work on Missions initiatives. Continue living in his presence. Hebrew 13:16—Do not neglect to do good and to share what you have, for such sacrifices are pleasing to God. As May approaches, we are getting ever closer to VBS, and the excitement continues to build! We have several critical positions left to fill, and we are CONFIDENT that God will call many of YOU to fill them. We need a leader for the “Deep into the Word” adult class, a leader for the Takin’ It Home Parents’ class, positions on the Security Team, positions on the Prayer Team, positions on the Connection Team, positions on the Craft Team, positions on the Decorating Team, and most importantly to our current position on our time line, many positions on our Promotion Team. Please contact Ellen Stephenson at jasfem1952@verizon.net or 921-0518 as soon as possible to join our fabulous team! Sunday, May 17th is the National Day of Prayer for Vacation Bible School. We would love to cover the ministry and outreach opportunities that VBS will provide with a 24-hour prayer vigil. A sign-up link will be sent out soon. We will provide prayer guides, and you may either come to the Sanctuary to pray, or pray from the comfort of your home. We know that God has big plans for us this year, and we want to honor that which He has entrusted to us! If you have not joined our VBS Shutterfly web page, please email Kelly Harris at dkejharris@verizon.net to be added to this informational site and to stay on top of all that’s happening. In order for us to take our VBS to the next level, we will have our first mandatory Leader Workshop on Sunday, May 17th from 3:30-5:30 p.m. While we realize that Sunday is Worship and family day, this was the time slot that worked out best. At this meeting, we will discuss options for other days and times. Please contact us to volunteer, ask questions, or to make any suggestions. We are ALL striving to make this the best VBS ever! Joyfully Serving, Ellen, Kelly, and Tricia SBBC May Happenings 12217 Second Branch Road Regular SUNDAY Activities Men’s Breakfast (1st Sun. Sept.– May) Prayer Warriors Media Library Open Sunday School W.O.W. - Worship Our Way (Children’s Church) Worship Service Hearts & Hands Puppet Ministry (Sept.- June) Praise Raisers (1st-6th grade) Deacon’s Meeting (2nd Sun.) Youth Building Open (7th-12 Grades) Belles of The Branch RA’s & GA’s B.A.S.I.C. Youth Bible Study (7th –12th Grades) Building & Grounds Mtg. (as announced) 8:00 a.m. 9:15 a.m. 9:10 a.m. 9:45 a.m. 11:00 a.m. 11:00 a.m. 4:00 p.m. 5:00 p.m. 5:00 p.m. 5:32 p.m. 6:00 p.m. 6:00 p.m. 6:18 p.m. 6:00 p.m. MONDAY Activities Women on Mission/WMU (2nd Mon. Sept.- May) (2nd Mon. June- Aug.) Stewardship Meeting (Monthly) 6:30 p.m. 7:00 p.m. 7:00 p.m. Regular TUESDAY Activities Alzheimer’s Support Group (1st Tues. each month) God’s Patchworkers (3rd Tues.) (not in January or February) The King’s Daughters (2nd & 4th Tues.) Regular WEDNESDAY Activities Music Library Staff Wednesday Night Dinner (1st Wed. Sept.- May) Sanctuary Choir Prayer Meeting Regular THURSDAY Activities Men’s Biblical Study Young Seniors of SBBC (3rd Thurs. Sept.- May) Worship Service (in the Fellowship Hall) Production Team 10:30 a.m. 6:00 p.m. 6:15 p.m. 1:00 p.m. 5:45 p.m.– 6:45 p.m. 6:30 p.m. 6:45 p.m. 6:00 a.m. 10:30 a.m. 7:00 p.m. As Announced. Chesterfield, VA 23838 (804) 739-3460 Rev. C. Steven Vaughan Pastor steve@secondbranch.org Rev. Brian S. Jones Minister to Youth/Associate Pastor brian@secondbranch.org Mr. Temple (Buddy) Collins Pianist/Interim Music Director Bettie Little Secretary secretary@secondbranch.org facebook.com/secondbranch A monthly publication of Second Branch Baptist Church. “Stay Connected” by subscribing at www.secondbranch.org
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