Today’s sermon from Dr. Tony Neal is titled It’s All About Perspective and is based on Isa 40:21-31

The Deacons held their retreat on January 21, 2012 in our Hospitality Center. It was a wonderful time of planning and fellowship. The following is a part of what I shared with our Deacons regarding the State of Walnut Hills. Your feedback is appreciated.

Walnut Hills is a healthy, vibrant church. Such a statement does not imply we are perfect, rather it states we are well, strong, and active. Here are few of the reasons I make this declaration.

First, we are seeking to know God’s future for us.

We are asking the proper questions: Lord, who you want us to be? and Lord, what do you want us to do? And for almost two years, we have been faithfully praying and seeking to answer these questions. Pursuing Missional Faithfulness has been a quest to discern God’s leadership and direction for Walnut Hills. We are still early in the journey but, as we have heard during the month of January, the vision from the Leadership Team is that God wants us to focus outward toward our community, with a hope that at some point in the future there will be a Community Center that provides a variety of needed services here in Williamsburg. Please do not misunderstand this vision. For WHBC to focus on our community and eventually, a Community Center, does not imply we have been wrong in our focus or actions in the past. It also does not mean that the things we value regarding Walnut Hills being a loving, caring, and growing community at 1014 Jamestown Rd will disappear. Hopefully, a renewed focus upon our community will lead to new growth and vitality in our current context. Our focus upon the community is in its most basic form a statement of direction.

Secondly, Walnut Hills continues to be a church on mission.

Women on Mission and the Missions & Evangelism Council continue to connect WHBC with diverse needs and opportunities. We have again sent folks to go in God’s service to the ends of the earth, places like Ghana, the Ukraine, Haiti, and more. Mission teams went to Philadelphia and Dallas and Tennessee and Standing Rock. We worked with local ministries such as FISH, Avalon, United Way, Salvation Army, Faith in Action, Eastover and many more. We staged another Stop Hunger Now event preparing thousands of meals for the hungry around the world. We filled backpacks to feed hungry families here in Williamsburg. The Outreach Committee saw over five hundred people come to second annual Free for All Yard Sale give away. And we added some meaningful new ministries this summer such as reaching out to International Students in our midst through our Pineapple Inn ministry with J-1 Visa students and adopting a family in the Grove Community following a tornado. Walnut Hills continues to follow God’s lead in reaching out with good news of God’s great love in a variety of ways.

Thirdly, in conjunction with our mission enterprise, Walnut Hills continues to demonstrate the meaning of stewardship through the giving of time, talent, and financial resources.

Our church has a rich pool of talented people who give of themselves faithfully to teach Bible study and Discipleship classes, to serve on committees and as officers of our church, to sing and work with children, youth, and families. And, in the midst of a down economy, your faithful support of our churches ministry saw our gifts to our operating budget total $643,460 which exceeded our budget by $3,000 and our actual expenses by $17,000. Thank you for showing your support in such a meaningful fashion and for demonstrating your faith and trust and commitment via your stewardship of life.

I hope these words encourage you regarding God’s leadership and work in our midst. God’s church is still emerging and it will require our best efforts to continue our journey with God. 2012 will be filled with many opportunities we have consistently supported. There
will be many new opportunities of service as well. With so many good things happening, lets continue to be open to all God places before us.

See you Sunday, if not before.

Tony

On February 12 we will begin our newest discipleship class, Financial Peace University, by Dave Ramsey. This 13-week DVD study, facilitated by David and Tammy Jenner, will meet weekly in the Agape classroom from 5:00-7:00 PM. The DVDs will feature a teaching session by Dave Ramsey on such topics as “Dumping Debt”, “Cash Flow Planning”, and “Pay off Home Mortgage”.

If you would like to take this course, it is important that you contact the church office so we can order your Financial Peace University Member Kit. The cost when ordering through a church sponsored class is $99.50, half the regular price when ordering as an individual. We are excited about being able to offer this class, and we want as many people as are interested to be able to participate.

Plans are now well underway for our Lenten season. The following opportunities are being sponsored by the Adult Christian Education team:

Tuesday Lenten Lunches: Light lunch will be served from 12:00 noon-12:30 PM each Tuesday beginning February 28. This will be an informal time of fellowship as we journey together toward Easter. At 12:30 PM one of our members will offer a brief (7-10 minute) devotion to help us center our thoughts on this important season. Consider inviting a friend or co-worker who is not involved in a church to join us as our guest. (A basket will be available for member who would like to make a contribution toward the cost of the meal.)

Lenten Devotional Booklet (Following Jesus: Our Journey of Ministry): Our booklet will provide a devotion for each of the six weeks of Lent. In addition to the devotion, with questions for reflection and suggested areas for prayer, the booklet will also highlight a member of our church family who is involved in some community ministry.

Lenten Ministry Projects: We have several special projects planned for the Lenten season. They will be posted on the Ministry Wall and listed in the bulletin as we get closer to the start of Lent. Watch for more details.

We are also reserving the Sanctuary on Tuesdays from 11:00 AM-1:00 PM for those who would like to spend some quiet time there in prayer and reflection.

Just as Baptist have grown to appreciate the value of Advent in helping us prepare for Christmas, so many churches are discovering that the season of Lent can be of equal value in helping us prepare for Easter. I hope you will plan to take advantage of these and other opportunities that will enrich your walk of faith as you follow Jesus through this Lenten season.

Linda

Upcoming dates on the Calendar

Sunday February 19th
– Pancake Dinner Fundraiser for Stop Hunger Now

The youth & children’s families have been asked to host a pancake dinner to help raise funds for Stop Hunger Now. Last year we made 22,000 meals but this year we want to double that number. I’ll be putting together a volunteer team later this month to help coordinate this.

Sunday April 1st – Palm Sunday and Seder Meal hosted by Jews for Jesus

SHW Parent Particulars 2012
(Fri-Sun, March 9 – 11, 2012)
For 9th – 12th grade youth

Spring Break Retreat – Garden City Beach,
SC (Mon-Thu, April 2 – 5)
For all youth grades 6th – 12th

Children’s Musical,
“Donkey Tales” (Sun, May 20)

M-Fuge Philadelphia
Youth Mission Trip (Mon-Sat, July 9 – 14)
For all youth grades 6th – 12th

SonRise National Park VBS
(Mon-Fri, July 23 – 27)

The Adult Choir has just recently begun rehearsals for their Easter music “Never Thirst Again”. Three simple words spoken by a weary Nazarene teacher one afternoon as He stopped by a Samaritan well for a drink. He encountered a woman there who had many secrets and many regrets. Although He initially asked her for a drink, it was she who received the promise of living water from this stranger – a stranger who knew everything about her dark past and yet only spoke forgiveness. She would later learn the full measure of His redemptive love at the foot of the cross and the doorway of an empty tomb. You will not want to miss this musical. Please make plans now to attend Sunday, April 1st (Palm Sunday) at 10:30am and Monday, April 2nd at 7:00pm. The Adult Choir rehearses every Wednesday at 7:00pm in the choir room. This is an excellent time to join the choir as they are just beginning the Easter season preparations.

Our Children’s Choir has just begun working on their spring musical “Donkey Tales” on Sunday afternoons at 5:00pm in the choir room. The musical will be presented in the spring. If your children or grandchildren are interested in participating, please see John Thompson, Graham Cheek or Jean Haywood

The Music Ministry offers musical opportunities through several ensembles. The Ladies’ ensemble generally rehearses every first and third Wednesday. The Men’s ensemble generally rehearses every second and fourth Wednesday, and the Handbell choir rehearses Sun.
afternoons at 5pm in the Hospitality Center beginning Jan. 29. These ensembles are open to everyone. Interested individuals should contact John Thompson.

The February ensemble rehearsal schedule:

• Ladies’ Ensemble Wednesday, February 1, 6:15 PM
• Men’s Ensemble Wednesday, February 8, 6:15 PM
• Ladies’ Ensemble Wednesday, February 22, 6:15 PM
• Men’s Ensemble Wednesday, February 29, 6:15 PM

2012-2013 registration is off to a great start, but we’re still searching for a few more bright, energetic preschoolers! If you, or someone you know, is looking for a warm Christian preschool, be sure to tell them all about us! You will find registration information on the Ministry Wall, and of course, in the Learning Center. Call 220-5903 for more information.

A huge thanks to all of you who came out to support the Learning Center on our Chick-Fil-A Spirit Night! Everyone had a great time, especially all the children who got to play in the indoor playground! Thank you to Michele Delaney for organizing the event and to all of you for showing school spirit!

In January, our school collected a truck load of warm winter wear to donate to F.I.S.H. This month, we’re making Valentine’s cards for patients at the Veteran’s Hospital in Newport News. Our preschoolers LOVE sharing God’s LOVE with others!

Dates to Remember:

• Don’t forget Valentine’s Day on February 14th! Love will be in the air at the LC, as we will be having parties in our classrooms.
• Our LOVE-ly February Chapel Service is Wednesday, the 15th at 9:30. Everyone is welcome!
• We will host our second Story Night on February 16th at 6:00 in the Hospitality Center. There will be food, stories, and a special gift for all the children who attend! You are sure to LOVE it!

Would you like to subscribe to the Religious Herald, a bi-weekly newspaper. Included are special issues of the BGAV annual meetings. An e-Version (an electronic duplicate of the Herald) and/or the Front Line e-newsletter (new web site postings) are also available to subscribers at no charge. 25 annual issues of the paper version of the Religious Herald is only $13.50 that’s only .54¢ per issue.

All interested persons please notify the Office Manager, dland@whbconline.org or 220-5900 by February 20th. For the FREE online subscription only, provide name, email address and phone number. Specify whether you’d like the e-Version, Front Line e-newsletter or both.

For the paper version, provide name, address and phone number – if you’d like the e-version and/or Front Line e-newsletter, add your email address. Place your check, write Religious Herald on the memo line, in the offering plate, bring or mail to the Church Office.

If you already subscribe, and want to continue the paper or change your subscription by adding one of the electronic methods or just receive one of the electronic methods, please notify the Office Manager.

Nathan & Dusti Belcher’s Haiti trip, August 2011. (excerpts)

On August 1st, Nathan and I departed for a week long trip in Port-au-Prince, Haiti. For me, this was the second leg of a trip I’d taken in January. This was the first leg for Nathan.

. . . .this trip wasn’t about what we could do, rather, who we’d meet and be blessed to spend our time with. This is a short summary of all we were able to see and do, all thanks to the love and support of good family and friends. -Blessings, Dusti
We were met at the airport on Aug 1 by Pastor Ronel & Bela. He, his wife and son, were in Haiti as part of a team from the Hungarian Baptist Aid. In the afternoon, we went with Bela and three teenagers (all children or friends of the Hungarian pastor also on the team) to the Easy English Club, which is located at Concord Baptist. Youri, the leader, is an amazing 15-year old that Dusti got to know on her first trip. On Tuesday, we had a chance to hang out with Youri for several hours at a computer class, and it was great to talk with him and see the work God was doing in his life.

Our accommodations changed several times during the week, and we ended up staying in a Haitian ‘hotel.’ This turned out to be a blessing, because we met many people in various organizations doing missions work. One such group is called Alex’s House, and is run by Bill Howard. In addition to running an orphanage, the group led worship services in the community near the orphanage. They invited us to join them and we had a great time. It felt like we were a part of their group, even though we had only just met them. As the week progressed, we joined their nightly devotion time and received so much from their worship and sharing time.
Dusti also got close to a woman named Natalie, a teacher from Iowa, who was working/teaching at a school in Haiti during her summer break. Her desire is to develop the school, located in one of the worst slums in Haiti, into a self-sufficient school. Natalie and the young woman she traveled with were very knowledgeable about Haitian society, politics, and even Haitian Creole. Both women had experiences in the Peace Corps, NGO’s, and Haitian non-profits. Not only were they interesting, but they also were a very valuable resource, and just two awesome gals with whom to spend free time!

On Wednesday, we went to help at the orphanage, and we were impressed with how far along the construction was. We worked with members of the Hungarian team to sand the walls and ceiling. This was a hysterical trial and error situation, but it also gave us a chance to get to know the Hungarians.

It was a little sad for Dusti to say goodbye to her Haitian friends so quickly. Overall, we had a great trip. We really appreciated all the things the team did for us. God is truly working in Haiti, and we are thankful we had the opportunity to be a part of His work, confirming Haiti’s place in our hearts.

To read the whole letter, go to Haiti Journal. You’ll also see pictures of their mission trip.

Thanks to each of you who made our World Christmas Offering successful. With the help of our Christmas Post Office we came in way over our $2,500 goal. Bless each of you for your hearts for missions.

Our February Box ministry is in support of Eastern State. They are in need of: large print Bibles, magnifying glasses, puzzles, liquid soap, coloring books and crayons.

Get ready for a great WMU FOCUS Sunday on February 12. Our guest speakers this year are Mark and Pam Grumbles, who are missionaries on furlough from Costa Rica. You will be able to meet and greet them during the Coffee Connection after our Worship service.

The Children’s Ministry Day will be Saturday, February 18 in our Hospitality Center from 9:30am to 11am. Our children will be making cards and cookies to thank our community helpers, the Williamsburg Fire and Police Departments. We will deliver the cards and cookies in our church bus. Please encourage your First to Fifth Graders to participate in this mission opportunity.

February Calendar:

• 8 Mission Vision at 10:30am at Ann Fulford’s home
• 12 WMU FOCUS SUNDAY – guest speakers, Mark and Pam Grumbles
• 14 Annette Hall group will meet at the home of Brenda Bass at 9:30 am.
• 14 Helping Hands group meeting at Jean Harrison’s home at 7 pm. They will sew lap blankets for Eastern State.
• 18 Second Annual Children’s Ministry Day, 9:30am to 11 am in the hospitality center
• 19 Pancake supper to support our March 17th, Stop Hunger Event (time TBA)

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