The
Cross ie
MAGA ZI N E
VOL 3 | ISSUE 3 | MARCH 2019
Two separate journals are available to work your way through Lent. This year there is also a prayer path in the preschool lobby to complement your journal use. Journals will be available by the office, and in the preschool, youth, and children's areas beginning March 6.
Worship Service March 6, 2019 • 6:30 PM Sanctuary
C ON N EC T W ITH U S
SMOK ER I S EB A P T I ST. OR G O UR M INIST E R S
CO N T EN TS
B e c k y C a s w e l l - S p ei gh t Minister to Families with Children rspeight@smokerisebaptist.org 678.533.0546
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From the Pastor
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Worshiping
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Growing
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Serving
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Caring
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Generosity
Jeremy Colliver Minister of Communications, Missions and Youth jcolliver@smokerisebaptist.org 678.533.0551 Kat hy D obbi n s Minister of Spiritual Formation kdobbins@smokerisebaptist.org 678.533.0548 Chris G e o r ge Senior Pastor cgeorge@smokerisebaptist.org 770.469.5856 Bart McNiel Associate Pastor bmcniel@smokerisebaptist.org 678.533.0540 Danny Va n c i l Minister of Music & Worship dvancil@smokerisebaptist.org 678.533.0560
12 Family Ministry 13
Youth
14
Monthly Snapshot
facebook.com/ smokerise
twitter.com/ smokerisebaptist.org SmokeRiseBC
Smoke Rise
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F RO M THE PASTOR
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CA RIN G
Many in our congregation are familiar with the live-streaming of our worship services through our website and on Facebook. Using this technology, more than 150 people worship with us each week, including those in our growing congregation at Park Springs Retirement Community. Jim Smith's ministry and personal experience connect him to the people he serves. When reflecting on his own story Jim said, “One of the things that connects me to visitation ministry at Smoke Rise is my experience with my own parents."
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G EN ERO S ITY
Sunday, March 24, is Pledge Sunday at Smoke Rise. We encourage our members to prayerfully consider what they will give in the coming 2019-2020 fiscal year and to submit pledge cards to the church office beginning now and through pledge Sunday.
A B O UT S M O K E RIS E 5901 Hugh Howell Rd. Stone Mountain, GA 30087 Tel: 770.469.5856 Fax: 770.498.3598 Office Hours M-F 8:30 am - 4:30 pm
Smoke Rise Baptist Church is a loving and caring faith community where people come to grow spiritually, worship communally and serve faithfully. We are committed to fostering authentic relationships and engaging in meaningful ministry in our congregation, our community and around the world. We partner with others in an effort to be about God’s work. We commit to love God with all our hearts, all our souls, all our minds and all our strength and to love our neighbors as we love ourselves. We seek to proclaim the Good News of Christ in all that we say and do.
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FR O M T H E PASTO R
CH RIS G E ORGE - Senior Pastor
In 2019, Smoke Rise Baptist Church celebrates her 50th Anniversary. This year, we will take time to look back with gratitude to those who planted the seeds and formed the foundation of our congregation. We will remember our charter members who started worshipping in the nearby elementary school before building on the current property. These Smoke Rise “pioneers” had the vision to look at undeveloped land on Hugh Howell Road and imagine a church that could meet the needs of a growing community. Inspired by their example, Smoke Rise continues to dream new dreams and to seize new opportunities to meet need in our congregation and community. Most of you are familiar with our redesigned website which serves as the “front door” for those who consider visiting our church and provides an important information hub for members of our congregation. People can find everything from activities to sermon archives, from church newsletters to the Wednesday night dinner menus. In 2019, as we celebrate our 50th Anniversary, we are also launching our first smartphone app. In March, whether your phone is Android or Apple, you can download the Smoke Rise Baptist Church app. On this app, you will be able to livestream our worship services, to give a tithe or offering, and to access information about upcoming events and activities. This new app will provide a great way for Smoke Rise members to stay connected with our church family. Many in our congregation are familiar with the livestreaming of our worship services through our website and on Facebook. Using this technology, more than 150 people worship with us each week including those in our growing congregation at Park Springs Retirement Community. Building upon the success of this ministry, we are launching a new service which promises to enhance and improve the experience for all who are worshiping from afar. Smoke Rise Baptist Church now has a dedicated channel on Roku as well as a channel on Apple TV. These streaming devices connect directly to the television and are available to anyone who has internet access. The images are sharper, the sound is crisper, and the transmission is more consistent and reliable. We will continue to stream our services on the webpage and Facebook, but we will also offer these new ways to improve the worship experience for those who may be watching from home, from a nursing care facility, or from the other side of the world. If you are interested in learning more about this service, please write to Mike Danishek (mdanishek@smokerisebaptist.org). Grateful for those who have gone before us, who looked beyond themselves and saw a future filled with potential, we are boldly following in their footsteps, and through this new technology, imagining a church that can reach beyond our walls and share God’s love with others.
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WOR S H IP I N G AT S M OK E R I SE
DA NNY VA NC IL - Minister of Music
50
St. Paddy’s Day Luncheon Loaded Potato Bar Sponsored by the Summer Youth Music and Missions Team
Sunday, March 17 After 11:00 AM Worship
SAVE SAVE THE THE DATE DATE
Cantorum Wind Quintet Cantorum Wind Quintet CantoruminWind Quintet concert
9 •• 22 •• 2019 9 22 2019 th
9:00 Church-wide 50 AM 9:00 AM --Anniversary Church-wide Open Open House House ̴̴
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10:30 AM Celebration SAVE THE DATE 10:30 AM -- Worship Worship Celebration ̴̴
concert ininconcert Sunday, March 2019 3:30 PM •• Chapel Sunday,March March3,3, 3,2019 2019atat at3:30 3:30PM PM• Chapel Chapel Sunday, This promises to be a delightful concert. This promises to be a delightful concert. This promises be a Farmer delightful concert. Our ownto Kathy is flutist. Our own Kathy Farmer is flutist. Our own Kathy Farmer is flutist.
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9 1:00 • 22 •Lunch 2019 PM 1:00 PM -- Lunch
̴̴ AM - Church-wide Open House ̴̴ 9:00 ̴ Coffee and pastries in Fellowship Hall ̴
10:30 AM - Worship Celebration
̴ Sanctuary ̴ Plans underway for PM - Lunch Plans are are well well1:00 underway for our our church’s church’s 50th 50th Anniversary celebration. If you would like ̴ Lunch at Evergreen Resort, Mountain Anniversary celebration. If Stone you would like̴ to to assist in the execution of this special event, assist inarethe execution of this special event, Plans wellunderway underway for church's 50th Plans arecontact well forour our church’s 50th please Debbie Scott at (770) 633-0494 please contact Debbie Scott at (770) 633-0494 Anniversary Celebration. If you would like to assist into Anniversary celebration. If you would like or email at debbie@debbiescott.com or or by by the email at debbie@debbiescott.com or execution of this special event, please assist in Abner the execution of this special event, Martha at contact Debbie at (770 633-0494 or by email at Martha AbnerScott at mjabner@gmail.com. mjabner@gmail.com. please contact Debbie Scott at (770) 633-0494 debbie@debbiescott.com or Martha Abner at or by email at debbie@debbiescott.com or mjabner@gmail.com. Martha Abner at mjabner@gmail.com.
Sunday, April 14, 7:00 PM Sunday, April 14, 2019 2019 •• 7:00 Sunday, April 14, 2019 • 7:00 PM PM Smoke Rise Baptist Church Sanctuary
Smoke Baptist Church Sanctuary Smoke RiseRise Baptist Church Sanctuary
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GROW IN G AT S M O K E R I SE
K ATHY D OBBIN S - Minister of Spiritual Formation
Ladies Annual Spring Event This year’s event features Bobbie Hicks speaking on Plants of the Bible. She is a 20-year veteran Master Gardener from Rockdale County and is a member of the International Biblical Botanical Garden Society.
Coming in April
April 30, 2019; 6:30 pm in Fellowship Hall Tickets will go on sale beginning March 31. If you would like to host and decorate a table, contact MaryLynn Manley at 770-925-7509. April 28-30, 2019 Hosted by FBC, St. Simons Island Keynote speaker is Dr. Chris George The cost of the retreat is $20 plus meals and lodging. Go to www.cbfga. org/senior-adults to see a list of hotels. Pick up a registration form at the visitor desk in the lower breezeway. Limited transportation is available.
March 24; 6:00 pm to 7:30 pm Childcare 5:30 pm to 8:00 pm Hosts: Graham and Lynne Felton 1853 Chedworth Lane, Stone Mountain Connections is a once-a-month gathering for individuals and couples in their 20’s, 30’s and 40’s. Light snacks and drinks provided. Childcare is provided at the church. Parents can drop off children at the preschool area beginning at 5:30 pm. Please RSVP for children by the previous Wednesday through the church office, (770) 469-5856; mbrock@smokerisebaptist.org.
Smoke Rise Travels: The Ark Encounter and Creation Museum Tour November 11-15, 2019 Pick up a brochure in the lower breezeway
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S ERVIN G ON M I S SI ON
J E R E MY C OLLI V ER - Minister of Communications, Missions and Youth
Your 5th Annual World Mission Offering dollars are at work! Smoke Rise is a generous congregation. When a need is seen, it is met. It continues to amaze me the way that we support our mission endeavors. This year, we met our goal of $40,000 in record time, which means that our mission dollars have already been distributed to our partners. Below are some of the pictures as the checks were delivered by the partnership leaders. We look forward to sharing the stories of how this money continues to build the kingdom of God. Along with the distributions shown below, the 5th Annual World Mission Offering allowed Smoke Rise to send the following funds to help the Kingdom of God continue to grow: $2,000 to Edgewood Church toward the Ministry Center; $5,200 to HOI (formerly Honduras Outreach, Inc.) to purchase 400 chickens as part of the OneEgg initiative; and $5,000 to Centro Shalom to help fund the purchase of property for a residence for the pastor and his family. The generosity of the people of Smoke Rise Baptist Church, allows us to fund these and other projects as determined by the Mission Committee throughout the year.
Brian Bollinger and Rudy Wilson at Friends of Refugees
Family Heritage Foundation with Bennett Ekandem and Mary Wilson
NETWorks with David Fisher and Martha Holt
MAY 19 - 25
MEN'S APPALACHIA TRIP
J U L Y 1 3- 2 0
NEW YORK MISSION TRIP
$300
$300 plus airfare
JULY 13 - 20
TIJUANA MISSION TRIP $500 plus airfare
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CA RIN G AT S M O KE R I SE
BART McN IE L - Associate Pastor
In January 2019 we welcomed Dr. James “Jim” Smith as a part-time pastoral care associate at Smoke Rise to assist with pastoral care and visitation of church members in home or facility care. “As the scope of day-to-day responsibilities broadens among our fulltime ministry staff, we continue to experience a growing need for personal touch with members who can no longer be with us in Sunday school or worship,” said Dr. George. “We are grateful that Jim is willing to serve in a part-time role in order to help us keep our commitment to pastoral care across generations, and especially to members and loved ones who are in home or facility care.” Jim holds a BA from Oklahoma Baptist University, a Master of Arts in Counseling with specialization in grief support and completed special studies at Princeton as part of his doctoral program at Midwestern Seminary. Jim has been a pastor and denominational executive for over 30 years, serving churches in over 20 interim pastorates in Oklahoma, Texas and Missouri. Jim has also served on several short-term mission projects and teams, including in China, South Korea, and Mexico City. Jim also served as adjunct faculty at Minsk Baptist Theological seminary in Belarus, a former Soviet state. Jim is married to Debra DaVee Smith who is also a member at Smoke Rise. Jim and Debra both grew up in Oklahoma and met as high school sweethearts. They have two children, a son and a daughter, and five grandchildren. Jim’s ministry and personal experience connects him to the people he serves. When reflecting on his own story Jim said, “One of the things that connects me to visitation ministry at Smoke Rise is my experience with my own parents. My mother died first, leaving my 91-year-old father. And Debra and I also walked with her parents through times of change. Because I have been with my loved ones through times of transition, grief and need, there are personal points of reference that connect me to other people as they share their stories. These experiences inform my personal sense of calling and have helped to prepare me for this kind of supportive ministry.” “At a time when so many churches are abandoning traditional congregational care ministry models, our ministry team remains committed to work alongside church members, deacons, Sunday school leaders and other volunteers as we form together a family of faith. We can help each other by raising awareness of needs that we become aware of among us,” Dr. George said. “As the need for personal touch with members at home or in facility care grows at this time in the life of our church, Jim’s part-time commitment to assist out ministry team with home and facility care is already bearing much fruit.” -Bart McNiel
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GENEROS I T Y
From the Stewardship Committee At Smoke Rise, we express our commitment to Remember Tomorrow by entering into a covenant with each other to worship, learn, care, serve and give to the shared ministry and mission of our church. Sunday, March 24, is Pledge Sunday at Smoke Rise. We encourage our members to prayerfully consider what they will give in the coming 2019-20 fiscal year and to submit pledge cards to the church office beginning now and through pledge Sunday. In the newsletter pages that follow you will find a narrative summary of our ministry plan that seeks to capture a snapshot of the broad categories of ministry, mission and work that our giving supports at Smoke Rise. You will also find a more traditional ledger summary of our budget by category. As we consider what to pledge for giving this year, we encourage members to think holistically and practically about what it really takes for our church to operate. Help us Remember Tomorrow by pledging a regular and recurring tithe or offering in support of the life and work of our church. As we celebrate 50 years, may God continue to join us hand-in-hand, across generations present and generations to come. We look forward to receiving your pledge cards as we Remember Tomorrow with renewed faith and commitment to God’s work at Smoke Rise. Chris Allison Chair of Stewardship
MONTH OF JANUARY Amount Given $123,684.88
Amount Spent $154,849.50
Negative Balance ($31,164.62)
REFRESH REPORT Pledged $1,346,104.00
Received Current Balance $1,019,082.76 $249,396.51
FISCAL YEAR-TO-DATE (APRIL 1, 2018 - JANUARY 31, 2019)
Amount Given $1,778,559.40
Amount Spent $1,818,956.73
Negative Balance ($40,397.33)
CURRENT PROJECT Office Renovation
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GENER OS I T Y Equipping for Ministry and Service (23.9%) $541,146 Providing our leaders and congregation with the resources necessary for our church to carry out its work and mission. Making and Growing Disciples (16%) $362,245 Our church supports Christian education, discipleship, and spiritual formation for all ages. The leadership, time, talent, and resources invested in these ministries foster life-long discipleship. Sharing the Good News (12.1%) $273,027 We are called to “be” the church and not simply to “go” to church. 8.5% of total giving is dedicated for missions, along with other funds in support of Christ’s call to love others and make disciples.
Caring for Congregation and Community (8.6%) $94,704 Caring for our congregation and community is a team effort at Smoke Rise that begins with pastoral leadership and care that is personal. Worshiping and Glorifying God (18.3%) $414,505 Worship is the heart of our church as we express our faith through music, liturgy, prayer, communion, scripture, testimony, and preaching that draws us closer to God and each other. Cherishing Our Sacred Space (21.1%) $478,730 We have been blessed with facilities that are conveniently located for nearby residents and commuters. Our facilities, grounds, furnishings, and equipment are vital to the daily work of our church.
Questions about the Budget? First Q & A Budget Session Wednesday, March 6 5:30 – 6:15 pm: Room 223 Second Q & A Budget Session Wednesday, March 13 5:30 – 6:30 pm: Room 223 Our finance chair and a minister will be present at each session to answer questions about the proposed ministry plan and budget. As we seek to pledge support to our budget, we are grateful to our finance and stewardship committees, our staff, and our membership for working together to be good stewards of what is given.
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GENEROS I T Y Funding God’s Mission and Work Among Us The Fiscal 2019 Ministry Plan – by the numbers Fiscal 2019 Ministry Plan Summary Fiscal 2019 4/1/19 - 3/31/20
Category
Amount
Facilities (vehicle maintenance, water, electricity, gas, insurance, sanitation, custodian expense, etc.) Administrative Expense (telephone, postage, audit, office machines, copier supplies, IT service, marketing)
% of total
$
362,900
16.0%
$
150,700
6.7%
Personnel (salary)
$
961,400
42.5%
Personnel (benefits, expenses, administrative costs)
$
318,495
14.1%
$
93,800
4.1%
Education (nursery, children, youth, adults, women)
$
100,632
4.4%
Other (conventions, offering envelopes, Baptist Today, recreation, outreach)
$
35,380
1.6%
$
177,000
7.8%
$
61,000
2.7%
$
3,050
0.1%
$
2,264,357
Ministries Worship (music, ordinances)
1
2
Missions Capital Expenditures (facility repair reserve, grounds improvements) Equipment (computer hardware, maintenance, audio/video etc.) Total
1 Ministries Worship: includes 50th Anniversary Church Celebration and Minister of Music Sabbatical 2 Missions budget is set at 8.5% of actual giving. $177,000 is our best forecast, based on projected receipts, and it could increase or decrease based on actual giving.
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FA M ILY M I N I ST RY AT SM OK E R I SE Since the Rev. Bart McNiel joined our ministry staff as associate pastor, we have been blessed with his ministry gifts in many areas. One special blessing that came with him and Stacey is in the persons of their two daughters, Mattie and Evie. They are ministers in their own right, as their joyful spirits and warm personalities have helped us feel like “honorary grandparents” in their family. Both have been involved in the life of the church through Sunday school, their choirs, mission activities, and the Academy of Arts lessons and productions. Both have participated in the performances of “The Lion King,” “Peter Pan,” and “The Little Mermaid;” and Mattie appeared in the recent performance of “Willy Wonka.” Beyond church life, Mattie is a member of her school’s Honor Chorus as well as the regular school chorus, while Evie is honing her skills at horseback riding and ballet. To say that they are active and busy girls is an understatement. When asked what they like most about our church life, they both said the Family Mission Trip. Why? “Because we get to be together with friends and do things that help others.” What makes them so special to us is that whenever they see us, they make us feel that it has made their day. Needless to say, they make our day with that spirit of love and acceptance. They help us remember how important it is in a family – especially a church family – to reflect that kind of spirit. - Colin and Faye Harris
March 8-10
FAMILY MISSION TRIP Pray for our families serving the Irene Wortham Center in Asheville, NC
ADOPT-A-BOOK HELP SRBC CHILDREN EXPLORE MORE WITH BOOKS!
HOW?
We have an ever-growing list of books we would love to have in our library for our ministry. Working alongside Karen Bates and the Church Library, we are working to grow our collection. To help, you can speak with Harrison or Becky. You can pick titles off of our list to "adopt," or you can write a check and we will select them for you!
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YOU TH AT S M O KE R I SE
J E R E M Y C OLLI V ER - Minister of Communications, Missions and Youth
Show Me the Money! In the classic scene from Jerry Maguire, Tom Cruise’s character, Jerry, is trying to retain his client, Rod. Rod has the infamous line, “Show me the money!” as his personal motto and wants Jerry to repeat it back to him with as much vigor as possible. Jerry ends up yelling as loud as he can, “SHOW ME THE MONEY!” to the point that the entire office can hear what Jerry is saying. We all want to be shown the money, but we are less willing to give our money away. Throughout the month of January, Beth Smith taught our Youth about money management with the hopes that we would be able to be more generous with our money. She shared personal finance strategies and how to set goals, all with the idea that we would be able to be more generous to the kingdom of God with our money. After our discussion, the Youth decided on two group goals for the upcoming year and they would like to challenge you to participate in these goals as well: • Giving 10% of the money they receive to the ministries of the church. • Spending at least 10% of our time together ministering in the community. Will you join us in this challenge? Imagine how the Kingdom of God could be transformed if we were more generous. As you join us in this challenge, we would like to hear the stories of how your giving has blessed others and we will do the same. -Jeremy
Over the second weekend of February, some of our high school students were on a leadership retreat to discover how they can become better leaders in the youth group and in the community. There were six questions that they answered about themselves and, in turn, how their answers affect how they lead. The six questions were: How do I view God? What gifts do I have? How do I identify myself? Who is my community? Where do I come from? When do I act? Each of these questions had a corresponding session and an action statement to go with it. The next phase of the leadership program is for these students to put into practice what they have discovered about themselves.
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APRIL 13 - 14
Say it ain't so MIDDLE SCHOOL RETREAT
Sunday Schedule 9:00 AM Worship in the Chapel 9:45 AM Sunday school in the basement 11:00 AM Worship in the Sanctuary 5:00 PM Choir in the Choir Suite 5:45 PM Dinner 6:00 PM Vespers in the basement Wednesday Schedule 5:00 PM Dinner 6:00 PM Youth in the basement
MO N TH LY S N A P S HOT
CH ILI COOK- OFF
WEE K LY S C H E DUL E
MA RCH DATES
Sunday 9:00 AM - Worship in the Chapel 9:45 AM - Sunday school for all ages 11:00 AM - Worship in the Sanctuary 4:00 PM - Liturgical Dance 5:00 PM - Youth Choir 5:45 PM - Youth Dinner 6:00 PM - Youth Vespers
4 Grief Support Group
Wednesday 4:45 PM - Dinner in the Fellowship Hall 6:00 PM - Journeys, Children's Activities, Youth in the basement 7:00 PM - Sanctuary Choir
24 Connections
6 Ash Wednesday Service 8-10 Family Mission Trip 17 St. Paddy’s Loaded Potato Bar 22 Drama Performance
26 Tribute to the Grand Ole Opry
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A Tribute to the Grand Ole Opry
The Best of Country Music from Nashville’s Historic Country Music Stage Featuring Smoke Rise Singers!
March 26 – 6:00 pm
March 26 - 6:00 PM
Tickets go on sale beginning February 24, $10.00, Tickets go onDeadline sale beginning February includes dinner. is March 18. 24, $10.00, which includes dinner. Deadline is March 18.
To reserve a whole table contact MaryLynn Manley at 770-925-7509; bunnydog55@comcast.net. To reserve a whole table, contact MaryLynn Manley at 770.925.7509 or bunnydog55@comcast.net.
Sunday Evening , April 28 - Tuesday Noon, April 30 Hosted by First Baptist Church, St. Simons Island Retreat Cost: $20* that includes Monday lunch, two evening fellowships, and snacks *Retreat Cost does not include lodging and other meals Pastor Chris George will be the keynote speaker
Address Correction Requested