Do you remember being a child and enduring the agonizing wait for Christmas – counting down the days until December 25? It always seemed like it just took forever for Christmas to be here. The few days right before Christmas were like the longest days of the year. Now it seems to come more and more quickly, but when we were kids, it was so slow! And the great thing was, no matter how slow it went and no matter how long it seemed to take until we got to Christmas, we always got there. Right? There was the promise of the certainty of Christmas morning.

You may know this, or this may be new information, but for generations, generations, generations—many, many, many generations—there was always a handful of Jewish people who waited every single day for the arrival, not of Santa Claus, but of a Messiah. In every single generation, there was a group of people wondering if this could be the day that the Messiah arrives. But unlike the certainty of our Christmas, this went on for generation after generation after generation and nothing happened; 99.999% of these people who waited and waited and waited for the coming of the Messiah died, and there was no fulfillment of that promise. And they prayed, and they waited, and they remained faithful. And while many of the Jews kind of peeled off into other things, and abandoned their faith, and thought the Messiah must have been a fairy tale and a myth, there was always a group that got up every day and lived as if this could be the day that the Messiah shows up.

This Christmas, we are going to explore the story of people who waited patiently for that first Christmas and discover how they reacted when it happened. In the midst of those stories, we are going to look at our own story and see how this Christmas really can bring back the “Thrill of Hope” to our lives.

Thank you all for giving and stuffing shoe-boxes for Operation Christmas Child this year! All together, we were able to send 276 boxes to children around the world! That is 276 children (and their families) who will not only receive the gifts we packed inside, but also the chance to hear the the Gospel.

Don’t forget to continue to pray for the child who will receive your box. Pray that their hearts will be open to the Gospel. Pray for their families, that they will also be reached with the Good News. Pray for all the volunteers who will work several days, weeks, and months making sure all the boxes reach their destinations.

Thank you!

For a PDF, printable version click here: Holiday Schedule 2011

First Baptist Church Goodlettsville Holiday Schedule 2011

Sunday, November 20
9:00am – Sunday School
10:30am – Combined Worship Service
Yes, Lord Campaign Presentation
Operation Christmas Child Shoebox Dedication
First Grade Bible Presentation
After the Service – Potluck Lunch
6:00pm – Community Thanksgiving Service at Goodlettsville Cumberland Presbyterian
Community Choir will meet at 4:45pm
Please bring a new, unwrapped toy for the Goodlettsville Help Center

Wednesday, November 23
No Midweek Services
FLC Closes at 4:30pm

Thursday and Friday, November 24-25
Offices Closed
FLC Closed on the 24^th, closes at 1:00pm on the 25^th

Sunday, November 27
8:30am – Traditional Worship Service
9:45am – Sunday School
11:00am – Contemporary Worship Service

Wednesday, November 30
4:45pm – Fellowship Meal
5:45pm – Preschool, Children, Youth activities
6:00pm – Discussion regarding Yes, Lord recommendation

Saturday, December 3
10:30am – Coffee and Conversation for Single Moms
1:00pm-6:00pm – Parents’ Afternoon Out

Sunday, December 4
8:30am – Traditional Worship Service
9:45am – Sunday School
11:00am – Contemporary Worship Service
6:00pm – Joyful  Sounds Musical: “O Holy Night”
Angel Tree Deadline

Wednesday, December 7
4:00pm – Bible Study
4:45pm – Fellowship Meal
5:45pm – Preschool and Children’s activities
6:00pm – Youth BIgnite Christmas Party at the Kellys’
6:00pm – Adult Bible Study

Sunday, December 11
8:00am-10:00am – Church-Wide Pancake Breakfast for Lottie Moon, sponsored by the Deacons
8:30am – Traditional Worship Service
9:45am – Sunday School
11:00am – Contemporary Worship Service
1:00pm-3:00pm – Angel Tree Christmas Party
6:00pm – Bridge Ministry Christmas Dinner

Wednesday, December 14
4:00pm – Bible Study
4:45pm – Fellowship Meal
5:45pm – Preschool , Children, and Youth Activities
6:00pm – Adult Bible Study

Sunday, December 18
8:30am – Traditional Worship Service
9:45am – Sunday School
11:00am – Contemporary Worship Service
6:00pm – Celebration Choir Christmas Musical

Wednesday, December 21
4:00pm – Bible Study
4:45pm – Fellowship Meal
5:45pm – Preschool , Children, and Youth Activities
6:00pm – Adult Bible Study

Friday, December 23
Office Closed, FLC will close at 1pm

Saturday, December 24
5:30pm – Christmas Eve Service
FLC Closed

Sunday, December 25
10:30am – Combined Worship Service

Monday, December 26
Office Closed; FLC Regular Hours

Wednesday, December 28
No activities

Sunday, January 1
9:00am – Sunday School
10:30am – Combined Worship Service

Monday, January 2
Office Closed; FLC Open Regular Hours

Our church goal this year is 300. Let’s see if we can make that happen!

For more information what to pack, here’s a guide: http://www.samaritanspurse.org/index.php/OCC/Pack_A_Shoe_Box/

A few tips and tricks not on the website:

• It’s great if you can use a plastic shoebox-sized box. The Dollar Tree has some for only $1. Many kids use the boxes throughout the year for various things, including gathering water, and plastic holds up better than cardboard.
• Ivory soap is the best soap to send because it floats. If your recipient bathes in a river, floating soap is easier to use.
• OCC strongly encourages us to put a note in our boxes. Kids love to know a little about the person and family that gave them their box. If you put your address in, you may even receive a thank you note!
• If you can’t decide on an age group, OCC gets the least amount of boxes for boys, ages 10-14.

If you don’t have time to put together a shoebox, you can still help out! The cost for the shoeboxes to get to their location averages out to be about $7 per box. Many of those putting together shoeboxes will include the money, but it is optional. Therefore, some boxes need some help. Click here to donate directly to OCC or any of the projects Samaritan’s Purse has going on.

Finally, OCC has started a cool program where, if you donate your $7 and print your label online, you can “Follow Your Box.” Basically, this means you’ll get an email with the country of your shoebox’s final destination. It’s great for kids; they can learn about a new country while following their box! Follow Your Box here.

Thank you for giving to this ministry! Through your donations, kids will not only learn of the love of Jesus through the gifts you give, but they’ll learn of the ultimate gift and the ultimate love of Jesus–that he died so they might live.

5pm-6pm:
Worship Choir (child care available)

6pm-7pm:
Men’s Bible Study–Game Plan for Life by Joe Gibbs
Take a tour of the Joe Gibbs Racing facility as you journey with Coach Gibbs through a six-week experience designed to help you win in the game of life. Three-time Super Bowl champion, NFL Hall of Fame inductee, and three-time NASCAR champion Joe Gibbs has assembled a team of experts to tackle the key areas of life a man needs to grasp in order to be victorious.

Women’s Bible Study–The Prodigal God by Timothy Keller
Taking his trademark intellectual approach to understanding Christianity, Keller uncovers the essential message of Jesus, locked inside his most familiar parable. Within that parable Jesus reveals God’s prodigal grace toward both the irreligious and the moralistic. This book will challenge both the devout and skeptics to see Christianity in a whole new way.

Coed Bible Study–Read the Bible for Life: Your Guide to Understanding and Living God’s Word by George Guthrie
Created and preserved by the hand of God, the Bible was written over a period of 1,500 years by at least 39 different authors. Its 66 books include a variety of literary types. Yet in spite of its dicersity, the Bible is unified by one story–the story of God’s persistent love for sinful people and His passionate desire to redeem them as his own. Read the Bible for Life will help you grasp this grand story of Scripture.

Youth Girls–A Daughter’s Worth by Ava Sturgeon
A Daughter’s Worth is a 12-week, interactive Bible study for teenaged girls, written in a fresh, approachable way without ever backing down from God’s truth. Each topic deals frankly with modern struggles, many of them uniquely female: realizing self-worth; dealing with emotions; dating with confidence; and handling the pressures of comparison. The study also focuses on universal concerns, such as finding good friends; living peacefully with family; sharing beliefs; and following God’s direction.

Youth Guys–The Barbarian Way by Erwin McManus
2000 years later, the call to follow Christ has been repackaged to be smooth and trouble-free, filled with opportunity and promise but lacking risk, passion, and sacrifice. Is this really what Jesus died for? If He chose the way of the cross, where would He hesitate leading us? Is it possible that following Jesus means choosing the barbarian way? To give your heart to the only One who can make you fully alive; to love Him with simplicity and intensity; to unleash the untamed faith within; to be consumed by the presence of a passionate and compassionate God; to go where He sends you, no matter the cost–this is the barbarian way.

6pm-7:15pm:
“Mom to Mom” for moms with children at home
Mom to Mom is a Biblically-based parenting program designed around the Titus 2:4 concept of older women teaching and encouraging younger women in their relationship with their husbands and children. Through small group interaction led by “Titus 2″ Leaders, growth occurs not only in parenting skills, but also in our wholeness as women–intellectually, relationally, and spiritually. This study is relevant for a mom who has an infant or a mom who has a senior in high school and every mom in between.

Children’s Bible Study for 1st-5th graders
Sunday nights with kids will be a time of fun, fellowship, reviewing our Sunday School and wednesday.kids lessons, and most of all, studying the Bible!

“Fun with Preschoolers” for 3s through Kindergarten
Learning with Mrs. Ginny and Mr. Landry about the Bible in fun ways.

Childcare will be provided for babies-2s.

Youth: Ignite in the Attic from 5:45-7pm. We’ll worship with a full band tonight, so “Funky Chicken” will happen. Also, a game called “Stuff Yo Pants” and the finale of “The Band.” We’ll close out the Rhythm series with a look at how being in rhythm with others affects our lives.

Kids: wednesday.kids in the (dot)kids room from 5:45-7pm. Parents, don’t forget to pick them up at 7! We’ll continue to learn about the new covenant with games, crafts, music, and missions! This week’s Question and Answer: How did Israel depart from Yahweh? Israel abandoned their love of Yahweh to worship the false gods of their neighbors.

Preschoolers: TeamKid from 5:45-6:15pm, then choir from 6:15-7pm.

Adult Bible Studies will be at 4pm and 6pm. Tonight’s topic: The Biblical Understanding on the Reality of Hell.

Please call 615-859-1346 ext. 241 to make or cancel reservations by Tuesday before the meal.

Cornbread, Potato, Broccoli, and Fruit Salads

Carrot Cake

Please call 615-859-1346 ext. 241 to make or cancel reservations by Tuesday before the meal.