B E T H E L B A P T I S T C H U R C H March 2018 Volume 3
Bethel Banner
Schedule of Events
His banner over me is love. Song of Solomon 2:4
March Events
3/3 1st Saturday Gospel Sing-
6:00pm-”Madison Creek”
and “The Virginia Sing-
ers”
3/4 Communion
3/7 AWANA Grand Prix-
Races6:30pm-(No Prayer
Meeting-Come Support
our Children)
3/10 Wild Game Dinner-*FREE*
5:00pm-Donations always
welcomed! See Arden or
Buzz Green to volunteer!
3/11 Annie Armstrong Offering
Ingathering-11:00am
3/11 Time Change-”Spring
forward 1 hour!”
3/11 Vote on Constitution
change-11:00am Service
3/14 Business Meeting-7:00pm
3/17 Spring Craft Show-9:00am
-3:00pm-Outreach Center
3/19 CARE Visits-10:30am
3/24 Easter Egg Hunt-11:00am-
2:00pm-Outreach Center
3/25 Palm Sunday -Bethel’s Choir
Easter Cantata-11:00am
3/26 WOM Meeting-7:00pm
3/28 AWANA Store Night-
6:30pm
3/29 Maundy Thursday Service
7:00pm-Sanctuary
3/30 Good Friday
April Events
4/1 Sunrise Easter Service-
7:00am -On lawn in front
of Sanctuary
Breakfast to follow in
Outreach Center
4/1 Easter Service-11:00am-In
Sanctuary-Communion
4/4 Spring Break-No Church
Activities
4/7 1st Saturday Gospel Sing-
6:00pm-”Rapidan Ridge”
and “The Virginia Sing-
ers”
“WHAT DOES EASTER
MEAN TO YOU?”
May I remind you that Easter Sunday is not
about Easter bunnies, Easter eggs or the giving of
gifts. It is about celebrating the fact that the Lord
Jesus Christ arose from the dead. Let's look at the
events at the tomb of Jesus that day and see what
happened and what it means for you and me!
Matthew records the fact that two women came
that morning. They were sad, defeated and dis-
couraged. They had witnessed the death of Jesus
on the cross and they were coming to perform
one last labor of love for the Lord Jesus. They
came to finished anointing His body for burial.
They wanted to serve Him one last time.
Mark 16:1 Tells us that while the women made
their way to the tomb to finished preparing the
body for burial, one of their concerns was how to
remove the stone. That stone represented the
finality of death. For them, that stone was an
exclamation point at the end of the sentence of
death. That stone said, "He is gone forever!"
Thank God, the Lord took care of that stone! Not
to let Jesus out, He was long gone before that
angel ever arrived on the scene, the stone was
rolled away so that men could look into the tomb
and see that it was forever empty! One of the
obstacles to faith, the stone, was rolled away!
Matt. 27:62-67 tells us that the chief priests and
the Pharisees were concerned that the prophecies
of Jesus might actually come true, and they
wanted a guard to be posted at the tomb. So they
sealed it with Pilate's seal and they posted a com-
pany of guards at the door. That detachment of
soldiers stood as an obstacle between the saints
and their entrance into the tomb of Jesus. How-
ever, when this angel appeared, he made short
work of the soldiers. These battle hardened men
fainted at his feet! Another obstacle to faith, the
guard at the tomb, has been rolled away!
As this angel began to speak to the women that
morning, the greatest obstacle of all was re-
moved - unbelief! His message inspired them to
belief in the resurrection of the Lord Jesus Christ
from the dead!
Now, Jesus had proven that He was Who He had
claimed to be all along. The resurrection should
not have caught them off guard. The crucifixion
should not have taken them by surprise. They
should have been holding worship services out-
side the tomb early that morning! They should
have been there ready to meet Him when He
came out of the tomb.
As they were going to tell the others, Jesus Him-
self met them in the way. He came to give them a
personal word of encouragement and hope. He
came to them personally so that they might know
firsthand that He had indeed risen from the dead.
When they meet Him, they are so overcome with
love and joy that they fall at His feet in worship!
(continued)
That is the natural reaction of those who love
Him! They cannot help but come into His pres-
ence with worship and praise. It is a fact, those
who know the risen Savior have a desire to wor-
ship Him!
When the Lord speaks to these ladies, it is to
comfort their hearts and confirm their mission.
He assures them that all is well and that the time
to be afraid had forever passed. He is alive and
will take care of all that arises in life!
If Jesus was really alive from the dead, then the
Jews had a real problem! It meant that He was
right and they were wrong! It meant that their
system of worship was dead and that Jesus,
alone, was the path to salvation! They had to find
a way to silence the disciples and to counteract
what had happened at the garden tomb early that
morning. They were terrified!
By the way, all religious systems in the world are
bothered by the empty tomb! You see, you can
travel to China, find the tomb of Buddha, and it
will say "Occupied" over the door. You can
travel to the Middle East and find the tomb of
Mohammed, and it will say, "Occupied" over the
door. Travel to Russia and look at the body of
Lenin in his glass coffin and the sign should say,
"Occupied." But, travel with me to Palestine.
Let's go to an old tomb hewn out of a rock. The
tomb where they tell us the body of Jesus once
lay. What does the sign over the door say,
"Vacant!" That empty tomb sounds the death
knell for every other religious system on the face
of the earth! There is one risen Savior and His
name is Jesus! There is one Way to Heaven and
His name is Jesus. There is only One who de-
scended into the depths of death and came to life
again the eternal Victor over death for all who
believe in Him, and His name is Jesus!
Let me again remind you that Easter Sunday is
not about Easter bunnies, Easter eggs or the giv-
ing of gifts! Because He lives, those who place
their faith in Him will live too! Those in the
graves will come forth one day and those who
are alive when He comes will never taste of
death. Because when He died He tasted death for
us! Thank God for that day when death lost the
battle with Life forever! Thank God for the day
the battle was forever won for you and me!
Thank God for that first resurrection day!
God Bless each of you!
Pastor Gary
_______________________________________
Do We have your e-mail? We want to communicate with you!
Please take a moment to send us
your e-mail address to:
Be sure to include your name!
Thank you!
From the Pastor’s Desk
Page 2
Bethel Banner
Nursery Bethel Baptist Upcoming Events...
March 4, 2018 Missy & Bruce Sullivan
March 11, 2018 Mike and Shannon Carter
March 18, 2018
Jennifer Hamm & Gusty McIntyre
March 25, 2018
Crystal & Hannah Loving
Children's Church
Counting Committee
March 4, 2018
Sandy Jett, Nancy Galyen & Bootsie Bullock
March 11, 2018 Crystal Loving, Carol Jarrett
& Harry Bradshaw
March 18, 2018 Carla Cooper, Pennie
Walker & Bobby Samuels
March 25, 2018
Joanie DeShazo, Tammy DeJean & Mike Short
From the Mailbox
March 4, 2018 Jennifer Hamm &
Ashley Jones
March 11, 2018 Crystal & Hannah Loving
March 18, 2018 Gina Bullock & Kim Noel
March 25, 2018
Becky & Johnny Wright
Discover the Joy of Missions!
Get involved in our missions projects...
This month we are collecting for
Empower HouseLaundry Detergent, cleaning supplies
and paper towels
12th Annual
Bethel Baptist Church WILD GAME DINNER
*FREE*
*Donations always welcomed!
Saturday, March 10th
5:00 PM - 7:00 PM
Doors open at 4:45 PM
Guest Speaker-Monte Clift
Music by “The Virginia Singers”
See Pastor Gary for sign up!
Please join us for our
Spring Craft ShowSaturday, March 17, 2017
9:00am-3:00pm
Snack Bar and Door PrizesLots of Handcrafted Items
For more Information Please Call
Annie Armstrong
Ingathering Love Offering
Sunday March 11th
11:00 Worship Service
Our Goal $850
Saturday, March 24th, 201811:00 am - 1:00 pm
Don’t forget to bring a basket!
Palm Sunday ~ April 9th
Easter Cantata “The Tomb Is Empty Now” at 11:00 am
EASTER CANTATAPALM SUNDAY
March 25TH AT 11:00 AM
COMMUNION SERVICE
March 29th at 7:00 pm
7h ANNUAL OPEN CAR, TRUCK AND BIKE SHOWBETHEL BAPTIST CHURCH
APRIL 21, 2018
9:00AM-3:00PM
FOR MORE INFO: CALL 540-371-2180
Preregister at www.bethelbaptistva.org
ALL proceeds benefit Youth Missions
Spectators are **FREE**
Door Prizes*Bake Sale*50/50 Raffle
Food and Refreshments*Children’s Activities
See Crystal Loving to Volunteer to help or donate!
Easter Sunday ~ April 1st
Easter Sunrise Service at 7:00 am
with breakfast to follow in the Outreach Center
Coffee Fellowship at 9:30 am
Sunday School at 10:00 am
Easter Worship Service at 11:00 am
Sermon Title: “Witnessing the Resurrection”
Wednesday Night Service
and Bible StudyJoin us as we study the bible and lift up
those in need of prayer.
7:00 pm every Wednesday in Sanctuary
Volume 3
What’s Happening
Page 3
From the Mailbox
March 4, 2018
Rudy Griffith William Hicks
Keegan McIntyre Steve Smith
“CJ” Jones
March 11, 2018
Bruce Sullivan Troy Kirtley
Brian Pellegrino Taylor Wood
John Lightner
March 18, 2018
March 25, 2018
Rudy Griffith William Hicks
Keegan McIntyre Steve Smith
“CJ” Jones
March 4, 2018
Rudy Griffith 540-373-1447
March 11, 2018
Steve Smith 540-429-6289
March 18, 2018
“CJ” Jones 912-409-7199
March 25, 2018
John Chance 540-538-4800
Brandon Short Mike Short
Wardlow Trainor Chris Lynn
Buddy Beard Alex Barlas
March 2018 Sun Mon Tue Wed Thu Fri Sat
1 2 3 First Satur-day Gospel
4 Communion
5 6 7AWANA Grand Prix Race
8 9 10 Wild Game Dinner
11 Annie Armstrong Daylight
12 13 14Business Meeting
15 16 17Spring Craft Show White Oak
18 19 CARE Visits
20 21 22 23 24Easter Egg Hunt
25 Cantata Palm Sunday
26 WOM Meet-ing
27 28AWANA Store Night
29 Maundy Thursday Service 7pm
30 Good Friday
31
Hello Bethel Families!!
We are moving along at what feels like lightning speed this year! We had a great February…we
finished up our segment in Children’s Church on Bible art, we bounced at Kd’z Kidzworld, we had
crazy hair at AWANA, and the list goes on and on. March is no different as we are getting close to
Easter. In Children’s Church, we are working on a 4 week segment called pizza party. At the end of
this, I will be treating the children to a pizza party. This will take place during children’s church on
March 18. Please let me know if your children will attend by March 11. (sign-up sheet is right out-
side of children’s church) On March 7, we are having the AWANA Grand Prix. All are welcome to
attend to cheer on our clubbers as they race each other. On March 24, we will be having our annual
Easter Egg Hunt from 11 – 2. There will be lunch and games and a visit from the big bunny him-
self! Looking forward to a great month as we head closer to celebrating our Lord’s greatest sacri-
fice and resurrection. Thank you for sharing your children with us!!
Many Blessings,
Shannon Carter
Dear Bethel Family,
I’d like to take a moment to thank you all for the love and encouragement I have received during my
time here at Bethel. As some of you may have heard by now, I will be resigning from my position as
Director of Music at the end of the month. Although I have immensely enjoyed working with you, I
have chosen to vacate my position in order to focus on my family at this time. Despite my decision
to leave I am grateful for the support you have provided me in allowing me to learn and grow with
you. I am very proud of all the choir and praise team have accomplished and pray that they continue
to grow together in the ministry. To those who have allowed me to “volun-told” you into singing
and/or playing for us, I want to thank you for always being so accommodating and I hope you con-
tinue to share your gifts. It has been an honor to both serve and worship with you.
In Christ,
Elena
Bethel Banner
3/7 Fried Chicken, Mashed Potatoes, Green Beans
3/14 Sloppy Joes, Baked Beans
3/21 Hamburgers
3/28 Meatloaf, Mashed Potatoes, Peas, Bread
Adults $4.00/ Children $3.00/Children under 3-*FREE*
1193 White Oak Road (Route 218)
Fredericksburg, VA 22405
Phone: 540-371-3650
www.bethelbaptistva.org
Return Service Requested
NON-PROFIT ORG
U.S. POSTAGE PAID
PERMIT NO. 223
Fredericksburg, VA
«Courtesy Title» «First Name» «Last Name»
«Address 1»
«City», «State» «Postal Code»
Sunday
9:00 AM Praise Team Practice
9:15 AM Deacon Prayer Ministry
9:30 AM Coffee Fellowship
10:00 AM Sunday School
11:00 AM Worship Service
Wednesday
5:45 PM Dinner-Outreach Center
6:30 PM Awana-Old Fellowship Hall
6:30 PM Youth Group-Youth Room
7:00 PM Service and Bible Study
8:00 PM Choir Rehearsal-Sanctuary
WEEKLY SCHEDULE