FBC Raleigh News • November 16, 2021
HANGING OF THE GREENS

We are excited to be back in person again for the annual Hanging of the Greens service on Sunday, December 5 at 6pm. This is a tradition held by our church since 1977, making this the 44th year. With all of the uncertainties that last year brought, we were only able to celebrate it virtually. And while we were nonetheless moved by its beauty and were grateful for our dedicated staff and volunteers, we still longed for the day when we could return to being together. We longed for the day when we might come together to sing and give thanks for the abundance and beauty of God’s blessing and advent of the Light of the World.
 
As we planned toward this year’s service, we recognized that some things were not yet possible or advisable, given the continuing presence of Covid-19, the Thanksgiving holiday gatherings, and the colder temperatures. While in some ways, the service will reflect this reality, most of the service’s music and all of its decoration will be featured along with the opportunity for safely coming together to celebrate with a reception afterward. As with all events in our building, we are asked to be masked. And as on Sunday mornings, seating is limited to every other pew to allow for distancing. We hope you will join us!
BIBLE VERSES FOR DAILY USE
  • Tuesday, November 17, 2021: Psalm 3; Deuteronomy 26:5-10; Hebrews 10:32-39
  • Wednesday, November 17, 2021: Psalm 3; 1 Kings 8:22-30; Mark 13:9-23
  • Thursday, November 18, 2021: Psalm 132:1-12; 2 Kings 22:1-10; Acts 7:54-8:1a
  • Friday, November 19, 2021: Psalm 132:1-12; 2 Kings 22:11-20; 1 Corinthians 15:20-28
  • Saturday, November 20, 2021: Psalm 132:1-12; 2 Kings 23:1-14; John 3:31-36
  • Sunday, November 21, 2021: 2 Samuel 23:1-7 and Psalm 132:1-12, (13-18); Daniel 7:9-10, 13-14 and Psalm 93; Revelation 1:4b-8; John 18:33-37
  • Monday, November 22, 2021: Psalm 63; 2 Kings 23:15-25; Revelation 11:1-14
  • Tuesday, November 23, 2021: Psalm 63; 1 Samuel 17:55-18:5; Revelation 11:15-19
  • Wednesday, November 24, 2021: Psalm 63; 2 Samuel 2:1-7; John 16:25-33
  • Thursday, November 25, 2021: Psalm 25:1-10; Nehemiah 9:6-15; 1 Thessalonians 5:1-11
  • Friday, November 26, 2021: Psalm 25:1-10; Nehemiah 9:16-25; 1 Thessalonians 5:12-22
  • Saturday, November 27, 2021: Psalm 25:1-10; Nehemiah 9:26-31; Luke 21:20-24
  • Sunday, November 28, 2021: Jeremiah 33:14-16; Psalm 25:1-10; 1 Thessalonians 3:9-13; Luke 21:25-36
  • Monday, November 29, 2021: Psalm 90; Numbers 17:1-11; 2 Peter 3:1-18
DEACON ON CALL
November 14-20 Dawn Wade (919-832-7299 h or 919-749-4575 m)
November 21-27 Kent Dickens (919-781-2067 h or 919-601-5631 m)
WEEK AT A GLANCE • NOVEMBER 16-29, 2021
Tuesday, November 16
10am Staff Mtg. (CR)
10:45am WMU Group 2 (Springmoor)
7:30pm Pathfinders SS (Zoom)

Wednesday, November 17
5pm Meal/Church Conference (PL/FH)
6:45pm Handbell Rehearsal (S Balcony)
7:30pm Adult Choir Rehearsal (Choir Rm./S)

Thursday, November 18
7am Band of Brothers (Zoom)
12pm ITC Fall Feast (FH)
7pm Social Committee Mtg. (P)

Saturday November 20
9:30am Christmas Parade (City of Raleigh)

Sunday, November 21
9:45am Sunday School
11am Worship (S/YouTube)
11:15am JBC Worship (Rm. 302)
5pm Youth Choir (Rm. 302)
6pm Youth Supper (FH)
6:30pm Youth Program (FH/Blue Rm.)
Monday, November 22
Weekday Preschool Thanksgiving
Break Begins (thru 11/26)
5:30pm ITC Board Mtg. (CR)
6pm MMIH Rehearsal (S Balcony)

Tuesday, November 23
10am Staff Mtg. (CR)
10:45am WMU Group 2 (Springmoor)
7pm Adult Choir Rehearsal (S)
7:30pm Pathfinders SS (Zoom)

Wednesday, November 24 - Friday, November 26
OFFICE CLOSED - Happy Thanksgiving!

Sunday, November 28
9:45am Sunday School
11am Worship (S/YouTube)
11:15am JBC Worship (Rm. 302)
5pm Youth Choir (Rm. 302)
6pm Youth Supper (FH)
6:30pm Youth Program (FH/Blue Rm.)

Monday, November 29
6pm MMIH Rehearsal (S Balcony)
ADULT CENTERPOINT
(IN-PERSON & ZOOM)

The Adult Ministries Council has been working on a set of programs for this fall with the theme Celebrating Our Heritage with a View to the Future. Centerpoint will meet each week from 6:15-7:15pm in the fellowship hall, and is also available via Zoom for those who would rather join us
virtually.

• November 17 - Church Conference (zoom link below!)
• November 24 - No Wednesday night dinner/programming - Happy Thanksgiving!
• December 1 - Hanging of the Greens preparation (no zoom option)
• December 8 - Dream Team program with Chris Gambill
• December 15 - Church Conference

Wednesday Night Children's Missions & Music Schedule:
6-6:40pm • Music for children
6:50-7:30pm • Mission Friends/RAs/GAs
For questions about our Wednesday night program offerings for children, please email Lynn Lingafelt.

WEDNESDAY
NIGHT SUPPER

Each week, dinner will continue to be from 5-6pm, tailgating style, in the parking lot. Your family also has the option of coming inside the building and we'll all spread out between the Fellowship Hall, Lewis lobby, and 301/302. Please make reservations for dinner at this link to the page on the church website or by calling the church office.

MENU:
November 17 • Chicken Lo Mein with sauteed Asian vegetables
November 24 • No Wednesday night meal or programming, Happy Thanksgiving!
December 1 • Mexican casserole and corn
December 8 • Ribs, mac-n-cheese, green beans
December 15 • Curried vegetables with rice
CHURCH CONFERENCE TOMORROW NIGHT

Our regularly scheduled Church Conference will be held this Wednesday, November 17, at 6:15pm. The Zoom link is below, as well as a call-in number for those who would rather join via phone. We will send out the needed attachments that normally would be on the tables via email before the meeting. Please note that this is a different Zoom link than our regularly scheduled Wednesday Centerpoint link. We look forward to seeing as many of your faces as possible tomorrow night!

Meeting ID: 850 6201 7518
Passcode: wDefe3

Phone number: (301) 715-8592
Meeting ID: 850 6201 7518
Passcode: 490422
THANKSGIVING OFFICE SCHEDULE

We know that Thanksgiving will continue to be a little different this year. In whatever way your family chooses to celebrate, we hope it is filled with moments of gratitude, and God's abiding love. The church office will be closed November 24-26, and we will not have an edition of the Rose Window Weekly next week. Our next publication will be on November 30. Starting on November 17, please email Jennie Herrick with all announcements and content for the Rose Window Weekly.

As a church staff, we are deeply grateful for each of you. We pray that you feel a sense of God's peace in the midst of this difficult year, and that love finds you where you are. Happy Thanksgiving!
DREAM TEAM CONGREGATIONAL RESPONSES

On August 25, 2021, the congregation gathered around tables in the Fellowship Hall with Center for Congregational Health facilitator, Chris Gambill, to talk about the things that are most meaningful to us at First Baptist and how to carry those forward into the future. Those conversations continued in small groups, such as Bible study and Sunday School classes, and one-on-one conversations. The following is a summary of what we learned from more than 120 conversations. The numbers in parentheses indicate how many responses there were for each theme, and they have been listed in order of importance.
 
Question 1 - Describe a powerful experience you had had during your time at First Baptist Church. 
1. Caring for one another/relationships (57) - Welcome, support, cultivating community, belonging, vulnerability, fellowship, intergenerational
2. Special services/traditions (41) - Hanging of the Greens, community service after 9/11, foot washing, Christmas Eve, Holiday Service of Hope, weddings, funerals, baptisms, deacon ordination, bluegrass mass, combined worship with FBC on Wilmington
3. Serving (34) - Clothing ministry, Sunday school class outreach, family promise, AIDS ministry, Toy Joy, food truck, Helen Wright Center, Touching Raleigh with Love, Mission trips  
4. Youth ministry (32) - Mission trips, retreats, Bible study, worship leadership, spiritual growth, fellowship, strong connections, chaperoning 
5. Spiritual Formation (23) - Sermons, Sunday school lessons, learning, teaching, Bible studies
6. Music (15) - Children/youth choir, adult choir, instruments, meaningful worship experiences, special music guests and performances

Question 2 - What was meaningful to you about this past experience that you would like to carry forward into the future life of the congregation?
1. Caring for one another/relationships (81)- Welcome, support, cultivating community, belonging, vulnerability, fellowship, intergenerational relationships, diversity
2. Serving (30) - Clothing ministry, Sunday school class outreach, family promise, AIDS ministry, Toy Joy, food truck, Helen Wright Center, Touching Raleigh with Love, Mission trips 
3. Youth ministry (17) - Mission trips, retreats, Bible study, worship leadership, spiritual growth, fellowship, strong connections, chaperoning, college ministry
4. Children’s ministry (14) - Sunday school, retreats, VBS
5. Strong ministerial staff (13) 
6. Spiritual Formation (12) - Sermons, Sunday school lessons, learning, teaching, Bible studies 
7. Sharing and following Christ (8) - Shared sense of purpose and mission
8. Special services/traditions (7) - Hanging of the Greens, community service after 9/11, foot washing, Christmas Eve, Holiday Service of Hope, weddings, funerals, baptisms, deacon ordination, bluegrass mass, combined worship with FBC on Wilmington, celebrating our history
9. Music (7) - Children/youth choir, adult choir, instruments, meaningful worship experiences, special music guests and performances 

We hope you will make plans to join us for our next congregational exercise with the Center for Congregational Health on Wednesday, December 8!
MATERNITY LEAVE DETAILS

As you all know, our Minister with Community, Leah Reed is expecting her first child due in early December! She will be taking 12 weeks of leave starting whenever baby boy Reed decides to make his entrance into the world. Leah will begin working from home on Monday, November 22, but you may still get in touch with her via email or cell phone. We thought it might be helpful to list the main lay leaders, ministers, and staff that will be taking over her ministerial duties while she is away. During her maternity leave, she will be checking email sporadically, so please reach out to the following people first with specific questions or concerns that need timely answers. We are waiting with prayerful, hopeful anticipation as Leah and Chad prepare for their journey as parents!

Clothing Ministry - Sabrina Tyndall
Rose Window Weekly - Jennie Herrick
Housing All - Anne Bullard and Courtney Selna
Mike Morris Fellowship Fund - Chris Chapman
First Foundations Magazine - Jen Foster
Social Media (Facebook & Instagram) - Michael Hood
Mass emails to the Church body - Jennie Herrick or Wayne Hager
Website - Wayne Hager
And Also With 'Cue - Rebecca Sasser, Ashley Prather, or David With
Centerpoint zoom - Wayne Hager
Habitat for Humanity - Chris Chapman
SAVE THE DATE

Mark your calendars for Monday, December 6 from 10-12pm, as we host another free covid-19 vaccine clinic in our Fellowship Hall! Hayes Barton Pharmacy will be providing all three booster shots, in addition to first and second doses. They will also have pediatric doses for children ages 5-11, and adolescents ages 12-17. We'll have something available for every person that is eligible to receive a vaccine. This will be open to our broader community, including our guests coming to shop in the Clothing Ministry, so please help us spread the word! A registration link will be included in the next Rose Window Weekly, on November 30. For questions, please email Crystal Bacon.
OUR FIRST FRUITS
STEWARDSHIP CAMPAIGN

Much akin to God’s people arriving back in the promised land, we see glimmers of hope and normalcy after a nearly two-year struggle with the COVID-19 pandemic. Although we are not “out of the wilderness” yet, there is much to celebrate and be thankful for…a return to in-person worship, creating new ways to build connection and community as well as having a full ministerial staff to lead and pastor our church. In Deuteronomy 26 we find the Hebrews with renewed hope as they continue their journey to the Promised Land. God calls people to bring the first fruits from their harvest as an offering. Not only is this an act of obedience and reverence to God; it also shows that they trust God to provide enough crops to feed their families especially in uncertain times.
 
Farmers then and now work and toil over their land in hopes of a great harvest. They carefully prepare the soil, wait patiently for the final frost, sow the seeds, carefully fertilize, water and weed, until at last, their work finally pays off with a healthy crop. As we enter this season of harvest, stewardship, and hope, we invite you to present your “first fruits” in celebration of all that the Lord has done for us this year. 
 
Our finance committee proposes a 4.8% increase for the 2022 budget. This budget reflects what we anticipate 2022 to be – a year coming out of the wilderness - fully staffed and returning to a semblance of normalcy with in-person fellowship and worship.
 
During this time of stewardship, we ask you to:
  • Recognize with gratitude the gifts God has given. Our gratitude motivates us to return our first fruits to God.
  • Prayerfully consider your gift to FBC Raleigh and how God may use you in our ministries this year.
  • Give from your first and best. The idea of first fruits challenges us to give intentionally from our first and best, rather than our leftovers. This means setting our intentions in advance of the year to come.
 
When pledges have been returned to the church, the budget will be presented again for approval by our congregation. A stewardship packet was mailed out last week which included a budget and a pledge card. The proposed budget is also available in the members-only section of our website. You may also request a copy by calling the church office at (919) 832-4485. You may pledge online here.
CLOTHING MINISTRY VOLUNTEER ORIENTATION

As we wrap up 2021, the Clothing Ministry team would like to invite you to join us for one last volunteer orientation. Not only has our space been fully renovated, but our policies and procedures have also. We are always in need of new volunteers, so we invite you to join us on Wednesday, November 17, at 10am in the Clothing Ministry. Volunteers will be brought up to speed on the newest ways of welcoming our guests into our space, in addition to the new positions we have for serving. Only new volunteers need to come to this session, so if you're currently serving with us, this is not a meeting you need to attend. To sign-up for this orientation, please email Sabrina Tyndall.
CHILDREN'S COATS NEEDED

As we approach colder temperatures, the Clothing Ministry is in dire need of children's coats of all sizes. This includes infants all the way up to youth sizes. You may place your donations in the bin at the back parking lot door, and make sure to take a tax receipt from the wall above the bin. Thank you for giving the gift of warmth to so many families in our community!

Please note that the Clothing Ministry will be closed for guests and donations during the holiday dates listed below. We invite you to bring your donations before or after these dates, saving them for a time when we have volunteers to process new inventory.
November 22 - 29
December 20 - January 3
AAWC THANKSGIVING PREORDERS

And Also With 'Cue is now accepting preorders for Thanksgiving! Skip the long lines at the grocery store, countless hours in the kitchen, and let David With cook for you! All preorders are available on their website, where you can select everything from Boston butt, brisket, ham, and turkey, all smoked to perfection. This year, they're including sides and a homemade dessert. You may pick up your order on Wednesday, November 24, from 10am-2pm in the church parking lot. The last day to place Thanksgiving pre-orders is Monday, November 22!
NOVEMBER MISSION PROJECT

During the month of November, we will be collecting food for the Raleigh branch of the Food Bank of Central and Eastern NC. The Raleigh branch serves the following counties: Duplin, Franklin, Harnett, Halifax, Johnston, Nash, Sampson, Wake, Warren, and Wayne. There are almost 250,000 people currently facing hunger in these counties and that number includes over 81,000 children and almost 70,000 senior adults. During these times of economic instability, we can help families with this need. Your contributions may be placed in the marked drawer of the Lewis Lobby.

We'll be collecting the following four items:
• Granola bars
• Cereal
• Juice boxes
• Canned meat/fish
HONOR A LOVED ONE DURING THE HOLIDAYS

Our sanctuary is so lovely during Advent and Christmas when it is decorated with candles, fresh flowers, and greenery. This holiday “dress” transformation will certainly be different this year. However, we have determined a way for our church family to be a part of safely adding the elements that bring us such joy during the season. Watch for future issues of the Rose Window Weekly to learn more about our virtual Hanging of the Greens and how you can participate. Once again, you are invited to honor a loved one by making a donation toward the decorations for the service. With $15 for each honorific or memorial gift, all monies will help defray the cost of the trees, wreaths, fresh flowers, and greenery for the service. An insert in the December 12 worship order will list the names of all for whom gifts were given. Please submit your request here. Checks or electronic payments should be received no later than Friday, December 3. Forms are also available in Sunday School boxes. Mail checks to: Financial Administrator, 99 N. Salisbury St., Raleigh, NC 27603; please write “Holiday Greenery” on the memo line.
AAWC'S WEEKLY SCHEDULE

Each week, we post And Also With 'Cue's weekly schedule here in Rose Window Weekly as well as on our Facebook page to let you know our lunch schedule and if there will be outside events on the weekend for you to attend.

Come eat with us this week,
November 16-18!

Lunch
Wednesday • Precision Wells Company
Thursday and Friday • church parking lot (11-1:30pm)

Dinner
Wednesday • Lake Johnson Mews Neighborhood (5-7pm)
Thursday • Williamsburg Manor Cary (5-7pm)
AMONG OUR FAMILY

A link to the entire prayer list may be found below.
Please use your church directory for mailing addresses.

THE RECORD WE WROTE
Week as of November 11, 2021
Current Week Revenue: $23,771.98
Month-to-Date Revenue: $65,286.73
Year-to-Date Revenue: $1,116,917.57
Month-to-Date Expenses: $47,307.31
Year-to-Date Expenses: $1,146,593.34
NC Missions: $8,100.00
SUBMIT A ROSE WINDOW WEEKLY ANNOUNCEMENT

Do you have an announcement that you would like to include in the Rose Window Weekly? All information must be submitted by Thursday at noon, to be included in the following Tuesday's edition. Just fill out the Google form in the link below, and we'll make sure to include it in next week's publication. For any questions concerning the Rose Window Weekly, contact Leah Reed. Email Leah here.