TONIGHT: The only activity tonight is the Christmas Party that the Youth are hosting at the Rescue Mission. Please meet at the church at 5:00 PM. We should return to the church by 7:30 PM. Enjoy your Wednesday night!

Poinsettia Honorariums & Memorials

We want to thank everyone who purchased a poinsettia in honor or memory of loved ones in order to decorate our sanctuary this Christmas! Please click here for this year's list of honorariums and memorials. You are welcome to take your poinsettia home after worship on Sunday, December 29th.

This Sunday @ VBC:

The Fourth Sunday of Advent

We hope to see you in Sunday School at 9:15 AM and in Morning Worship at 10:30 AM this Sunday, when we will celebrate LOVE this Advent season! We are back to our regular order of worship, including the Children's Sermon and Children's Worship. Travis' message is "Baptism," and the scripture is Mark 1:1-8. This weekend's service will also feature the Jubilate Handbell Choir.

Please note that we will have a Called Business Meeting at the conclusion of worship this Sunday in order to vote on the proposed members of our Children's Minister Search Committee, as discussed at our most recent Ministry Matters meeting: Holly Graham (Human Resources representative), Ann Cranwell, Heather Jones, Christina Epperly, and Ken Williamson (Deacon representative).

If you can't join us in person for morning worship, livestream is available through the Vinton Baptist Church app, at www.vintonbaptistchurch.org, and through our Facebook page.

Pancakes & Pajamas Party Tomorrow!

Fun & the Son will host a Pancakes & Pajamas Party tomorrow morning from 10 AM until 11:30 AM for all newborn - PreK children and their adults. Join us to celebrate the most important birthday of the year with pancakes, games, a craft, a jingle bell hunt, and a happy birthday wish to Jesus! Wear your Christmas jammies for some festive fun! See Betty Jo Overstreet with questions.

Family Christmas Tree

Our Family Christmas Tree includes an ornament representing each family in our church. If you are new to our church this year or have never donated an ornament representing your family, please bring one and place it on our tree between now and December 24th.

Christmas Eve Worship

Please plan to join us at 5 PM on December 24th for our annual Christmas Eve Worship service. Let us celebrate the birth of Christ together! Please note that there will no nursery; your children are welcome in worship. There will be a "fussy baby room" available if needed.

Sunday, December 29th

On Sunday, December 29th we will NOT have Sunday School. We will have only the 10:30 AM Morning Worship service, and there will be NO nursery available. Our Sunday School teachers and officers, as well as our nursery workers, are offered a Sabbath rest the last Sunday of the year. Your children are welcome in worship.

Wednesday Women Bible Study

The Wednesday Women Bible Study will resume January 15th and run through February 26th, 10:00 AM - 12:00 PM in the Disciple Center. Our topic is "The Chosen 4: God's Goodness for the Chosen." You can purchase the Interactive Bible Study Book on Amazon, Christianbook, etc. Please sign up in the church office so that we will know how many to plan for. If you have questions, call Susan Jones at 540-580-8559.

Soup for Seniors

The annual LOA Soup for Seniors Drive, sponsored by the JOY Seniors, will take place the entire month of January. Thousands of seniors in our community live at or below the poverty line. Help provide a hot meal on a cold day and remind seniors in need that we have not forgotten them. The items that are most needed include low-salt, nutritious items such as soup, peanut butter, canned meats, canned fruit, canned vegetables, crackers, oatmeal, and Boost/Ensure. Collection boxes will be available in January in the Welcome Center and by the elevator in the New Ministries Building. Thank you in advance for helping meet this need.

India Missions Trip Interest Meeting

At 4:00 PM on Sunday, January 12th we will have an interest meeting for the proposed India Missions Trip to be taken October of 2025. Please join us in the library if you have any interest in joining us on this trip, or if you simply have questions or want to know more.

Anita Reynolds

c/o Star City Rehab.

1047 Mecca Street NE Apt. 212

Roanoke VA 24012

Sunday, December 15, 2024

Sunday School: 194

10:30 AM Worship

• in person: 418
• online: 526

Christian sympathy is extended to Devan & Joanna Harman and family in the death of his grandfather, Harless Shortridge, December 10th; to Shirley Leffell and Lynette Jobe in the death of son and brother Jeff Leffell December 15th; and to Jan-Michael Cox and family in the death of his father, Wayne Cox.

The Lottie Moon Post Office

& Christmas Offering

Please be sure to check the Lottie Moon Post Office at the Missions Tables for any mail that you may have received. All cards are organized by last name.

If you would like to "mail" cards through the Lottie Moon Post Office, please do so by Sunday. You can send Christmas cards to VBC members and regular attenders by paying 25 cents/card and placing your cards alphabetically (by last name) in the appropriate post office slots. There is an envelope in the lower right corner of the box for your money. All proceeds go to the Lottie Moon Foreign Missions Offering.

The Lottie Moon Christmas Offering goal for our church is $5,200. There are special envelopes in your box of envelopes and in the pews. Your assistance in helping our church reach this goal will be appreciated.

Church Counseling

Just a reminder that we have individual adult and youth, family, and marriage counseling available at no charge for church members and their families. This ministry is offered by Cathy Abraham, LPC. If you, or someone you know, is interested, please call the church office at 540-343-7685 for more information. Days and times are flexible.

Blessing Box Needs

The following items are needed for the Blessing Box: tuna, Hamburger Helper meals, fruit of any kind (cans or fruit cups), and soups/chili of any kind. Containers that do not require a can opener are particularly helpful for our homeless friends. Donations can be dropped off in the marked bin at the Missions Tables. Thank you!

Bible Reading Plan

I hope that you are following along in Revelation. I am finding the readings interesting, but they tend to generate lots of questions that I can't answer.

The truth is, the apocalyptic genre of Revelation simply makes this book very difficult to understand. Scholars have been trying to unravel the mysteries of Revelation for nearly two thousand years. There are numerous explanations of this book, some dealing with its historical context and others looking to the future. However, that doesn't mean that we can't (or shouldn't) try to understand as much as possible. Because this issue of The Witness is the last for this year, and because of the complexity of Revelation, I am going to turn to The BibleProject to help explain the book further.

The BibleProject attempts to decipher Revelation through two videos. The first video covers Revelation 1-11. The second video addresses the remainder of the book. These videos consider various explanations of Revelation and will hopefully provide you with enough information to also do some study on your own.

We are putting the finishing touches on the 2025 Bible Reading Plan and will have it available soon. If you have any feedback on Revelation or on the current reading plan, I would love to hear it. You can reach me at kim@vintonbaptistchurch.org. God bless you, and thank you for walking through our Bible Reading Plan with me over the past two years!

Church Office Holiday Schedule

Please note that The Witness will NOT be published Wednesday, December 25th or Wednesday, January 1st because of the holidays. The next issue will be January 8th. The church office will close at noon on Christmas Eve and will be closed Wednesday and Thursday, December 25th and 26th. We will also be closed Wednesday, January 1st.

To My Church Family,

Thank you so much for all the beautiful cards and phone calls, but most of all your prayers during my recuperation! I'm getting stronger and look forward to being back with my friends and family at Vinton Baptist Church! Thanks,

Alice Lackey

Thank you for the peace lily that you sent on Frankie's passing. No more pain, suffering, and bad news. He is truly at peace now.

Carol Meadows

Thank you, church family, for the peace lily you sent for our beloved wife and mother. Also, thank you for all the cards, care packages, love, and support you gave Sandra during her stay at Our Lady of the Valley. Your kindness was appreciated. Sincerely,

Larry Bowyer & Carrie Robertson

Thank you to my church family for sending the lovely peace lily for Bob's funeral. Sincerely,

Melba Tomlin

A HUGE thank you to all who helped decorate our sanctuary for Christmas over the Thanksgiving weekend, as well as everyone who helped pick up and place the poinsettias last week: Billy Butterworth; Helen Foster; Devan Harman; Frank & Laura Lea Harris; Hootie Kelley; Phillip Leffell; Phillip Leffell, Jr.; Tyler Lyon; Ron Martin; Billy Meador; Mark & Kelly Olsen; Bruce Pelish; Wayne Sink; Kathryn Sowers; Mark & Donna Thomas; Buddy Thurman; and Ken & Jennifer Williamson. Please take a moment to tell them how much we appreciate their help in preparing our sanctuary - as well as the entire church building - for the Advent and Christmas season.