Join us Sunday morning at 10:30 for our second Banks Academy Day. We will have the opportunity to meet new students and teachers and welcome back those who were at Banks last year. As they start the 2023-2024 school year, it is our privilege to pray over and encourage them!
Flood Recovery Update
We have completed the mitigation phase of recovering from the flood; therefore, those of you who will be coming to Sunday School will be pleased to know that the Welcome Center parking lot and entrance will be available. Here are some things you need to know.
The Welcome Center door will be open from 9:00 to the start of the worship service.
The coded entry system is not working, and there is no way for someone to “buzz you in.”
The lefthand door will be unlocked. Just pull it open and enter. This will be the same door used to exit the building.
We have cleared the hallway allowing you to make your way to the elevator. Yes, the elevator is working.
The Welcome Center stairwell will also be available.
Steeple Removal
We had some more excitement around campus this week as Campbellsville Industries removed the steeple and took it to their shop for repairs. Wednesday night I received a message from one of our neighbors asking if the removal was permanent. He was a student at Huffman Elementary School when the steeple was delivered. He said the kids thought it was a space ship! The steeple should be repaired and returned to its place atop the worship center before the end of the year.
I love the start of a new year. It is a time to reflect upon the past and to prepare for the future. In my post of January 2020, I wrote:
[The new year] is like you are starting a new chapter in a book. More than turning a page. Maybe a little less than starting a new book. The characters are largely the same. But the storyline gets richer. I love the start of a new year. Especially in the church.
For many years now, I have taken the first Sundays of the new year to look back and to look forward. We look back to celebrate what God has done. And we look forward to anticipate what God is going to do. As Isaiah prophesied for the Lord, “Behold, the former things have come to pass, and new things I now declare…. Behold, I am doing a new thing; now it springs forth, do you not perceive it?” (Isaiah 42:9, 43:19).
The Former Things
Huffman Baptist Church has such a rich heritage. Many of our current members remember the days when HBC was one of the largest and most influential churches in Birmingham. In those days, Huffman Baptist was growing numerically. Baptizing hundreds. Building the facilities that we are now charged with stewarding. Those were exciting days. And they still bring out wonderful memories for many of our members.
Of course, not all of the former things bring out happy memories. There are painful memories as well. I will not recount them here. But based on the multiple conversations I have had with church members these past several months, those painful experiences are not forgotten.
Into these past experiences (good and bad) the Lord himself enters saying, “Behold, I am making all things new” (Revelation 21:5). Jesus is working in and through the pleasant and the painful experiences. He is making all things new. He is redeeming what is lost. Repairing what has been broken. Reclaiming his glory in his church!
A New Thing
I believe with all of my heart that Huffman Baptist Church has a rich future. God is not finished with HBC. Jesus is doing a new thing. And we have the privilege of joining him in what he is doing. I am excited about this Next Chapter in the life of HBC. During the month of January I will be sharing with you the vision God has revealed concerning what he is doing. The new thing. The Next Chapter. You will not want to miss a single Sunday!
The next two Sundays, January 8 & 15, I will deliver my fourth “state of the church” address, or as I like to call it: the annual church health report. You will not want to miss either of these Sundays!
Global Impact Celebration
Our third Global Impact Celebration is scheduled for Sunday, January 22, with Dr. Steve Echols bringing a challenge from God’s word. Dr. Echols is the president of Brewton-Parker College, the alma mater of Scott and Carrie Smith. He is also a former pastor having served with Bill Sears at Bethel Baptist in Moody and FBC Pleasant Grove.
We will also be joined that morning by representatives of most of our ministry partners, including those whom we support through The Blessing and our on-campus partners! We will start the morning with a ministry fair in the fellowship hall at 8:45. Our ministry partners will be set up and ready to engage you prior to the Sunday School hour. This is an excellent opportunity for you to put a face with your giving through The Blessing. We will have coffee, juice, and light breakfast items as well. Following the Sunday School hour, our ministry partners will join us for worship.
GIC has become one of our most anticipated worship services. I can’t wait!
It is hard to believe that we are nearing the end of 2022! What a year it has been. A year of transitions. A year of change. Truthfully, every year should be a year of transition when we are following Christ. As Henry Blackaby taught us in Experiencing God, “We look to see where God is working and join Him.” You can’t join God and stay where you are!
I spent some time this week reading blogposts from the past year. Remembering all that God has done. It was a helpful exercise for me. It’s almost like we started the year with a run-oriented, ground-and-pound offense. And we are closing the year with Mike Leach’s wide-open, Air Raid.
The bottom line is that we are getting the ball across the goal! It’s been exciting to have our young families leading us in Advent celebrations during our worship services. At the start of this year, we didn’t have any active young families. And how about our first baptism in almost four years!
Lives are being changed!
The Best Laid Plans
I remember the day that Bill walked into my office. He had been here only a few weeks. I think it was a Monday morning. A Monday after a dreary, cold Sunday. The heat wasn’t working in the worship center. Attendance was down. Bill asked, “What excites you about this place?” After a long pause… honestly, at that moment I wasn’t too excited… I answered, “The potential. I don’t think God is finished with Huffman Baptist Church. Yes, that’s it. It’s the potential!”
Just a few weeks later, God opened our eyes to what that potential could be. You see, at the start of 2022 we made a bold commitment to reach The Next Generation in Northeast Birmingham. I specifically prayed for God to send us one family from the next generation who could then help us reach more families in our neighborhood. In my February blogpost I wrote, “I prayed for one family. And God said, ‘Yeah, your prayer is a bit too small!’ Instead of one family, he is sending us dozens of families among the students, faculty, and staff of Banks Academy.”
In his book, The Purpose Driven Church, pastor Rich Warren challenged us to think about “the church” in terms that exceed those who attend. He wrote about the Core (key leaders); the Committed (members who are heavily involved); the Congregation (active members); and the community (people engaged in or served by the ministries of the church). Based on that definition, HBC’s ministry footprint has expanded exponentially in the past twelve months with the addition of Banks Academy and Urban Young Life and the expansion of Elevate Birmingham!
Our job is to continually engage this expanded community and to move people from the community and towards the core… To make disciples who make disciples.
Finishing Strong
As we finish this year, I am thankful for all that God is doing through Huffman Baptist Church. He has greatly expanded our community of faith. He has given us opportunities to make Jesus known by literally bringing people into our house! And we are responding. Shortly after the first of the year, we will baptize a number of students from Banks Academy and begin to disciple them!
For so many years, we operated in survival mode. To use our opening analogy. We were not playing any offense. Just defense. But not anymore. To help us finish the year strong so that we can enter 2023 ready to see God do even more than we could ever imagine in the lives he has entrusted to us, would you consider making a year-end gift to Huffman Baptist Church? The easiest way to give is through our online, secure portal at https://huffmanbaptist.churchcenter.com/giving. If you are receiving this post via email, you can login using the email address where you received this post.
Just a reminder that we will be on a holiday schedule after Sunday, December 18th. Worship on Christmas and New Year’s Day will be at 11:00 AM with no Sunday School either day. And we will have no Wednesday activities the last two weeks of December. We will resume all normal activities on January 4th. The church office will be closed Friday, December 23; Monday, December 26; and Monday, January 2. For those wishing to bring a year-end contribution to the church, the church office will be OPEN on Friday, December 30 until 4:30.
Give thanks to the Lord, for he is good! His faithful love endures forever (1 Chronicles 16:34 NLT).
Last week I had the opportunity to spend some time with someone who used to be a part of the HBC staff. As I walked him around the campus showing him all that God is doing, he became a bit emotional. Seeing his reaction caused me to really think about all that we have seen God do. Yes, over the past ten months. But even beyond that. As I shared with the couples who participated in our Discover Huffman membership class this past Sunday, this is simply the Next Chapter in the long story of Huffman Baptist Church that God has been writing for over 114 years. We give thanks to the Lord, for he is good!
Give Thanks for Leadership
This past Sunday the church elected twelve men to serve a one-year term as active deacons beginning January 1, 2023:
Steve Burks
Stan Corson
Mike Duvall
Winston Each
Reginald Gardiner
Lamar Hawkins
Bernard Leach
Charlie Noyes
Pat Ray
Richard Rogers
J. P. Thomas
Harry Williams
Give Thanks for His Provision
Last month I issued a challenge for us to meet our fourth quarter stewardship goals. God continues to pour out his blessings with a strong October:
We need $116,481 in November and December to reach our $202,272 goal for our ministry budget.
We need $40,624 in November and December to reach our $68,700 goal for The Blessing.
Thank you, church family, for allowing the Lord to use you!
Give Thanks for Ministry Opportunities
On Tuesday, November 8th, we will once again welcome our neighbors onto our campus as they exercise their right to vote. And once again we are planning to greet them and to offer them a bottle of water. Let us know if you are able to serve:
ELECTION VOLUNTEER SIGNUP
Tuesday, November 5th is election day! Help us serve our neighbors as they come onto our campus to vote. We will serve cold, bottled water and share words of encouragement.
God has always had one way for his people. Forward. Forward out of Egypt. Forward through the Red Sea. Forward through the wilderness. Forward across the Jordan. In each of these scenarios, the Ark of the Covenant led the way, and the people followed. Forward. Jesus called his disciples, “Follow me!” He led. They followed. Forward. His last words to the church were to “Go and make disciples.” Going implies forward motion. Forward!
Our pastoral leadership team has adopted “Forward” as our word for 2023. But as we move into this final quarter of 2022, I believe we need to start using it now. We have seen God making a way, leading us forward. Let’s don’t lose any momentum!
Forward to The Next Generation
This past Sunday was a pretty awesome day for Huffman Baptist Church. For the first time in many years, we started a new Sunday morning small group. And this wasn’t just any small group. It’s a small group for parents of children and preschoolers. And we started with a bang! Eight adults. Two younger youth. Five Children. Six preschoolers. There’s an ancient Hebrew word for what happened Sunday: “Wow!”
Sunday was a great start, but it can not be the end. We must continue to move forward to reach the next generation. What can you do? I’m glad you asked:
You can pray. Every morning, when you pray for Huffman Baptist Church at 7:00, pray for these young families.
You can serve. Jesus said, “The harvest is plentiful, but the laborers are few; therefore pray earnestly to the Lord of the harvest to send out laborers into his harvest” (Matthew 9:27-28). Sometimes you may be an answer to your own prayer. We have specific needs in the preschool and children’s ministry for workers during the Sunday School and Worship hours.
You can give.
Forward in Financial Stewardship
After years of operating in survival mode, we have begun to Emerge from our Cocoon. And as I shared in last month’s post, emerging from our cocoon is not without cost. Moving forward is not without cost. In October of 2019 I challenged our membership to meet our quarterly giving goal for the 2019 ministry budget and to meet the annual goal for our missions and evangelism budget, which we call The Blessing. In January of 2020 I announced that we did not meet either of those goals. In fact, we exceeded them!
As we continue to move forward, I want to reissue that same challenge. Let’s finish 2022 stronger than ever so that we will be ready to experience God’s blessings in 2023. I believe with all of my heart that what we experienced this past Sunday was just the tip of the proverbial iceberg. God has great things in store for his people at 700 Huffman Road. He is not finished with us. Let’s finish strong so that we can meet our giving goals during this last quarter:
We need $180,455 to reach our fourth quarter giving goal for the ministry budget of $202,272
We need $41,507 to meet our annual goal for The Blessing of $68,700
Forward in Evangelism & Community Engagement
I hope you will join us for these evangelism and community engagement events coming up:
Pray & Go – This Saturday, October 15, 9:00 at The Ministry Center
Food Distribution – Tuesday, October 18, 11:00 at The Ministry Center
Fall Festival – Sunday, October 30, 3:00 at The Ministry Center
Election Outreach – Tuesday, November 8 (All Day) at The Ministry Center
Forward in Leadership
Don’t forget to submit your nominations to serve a one-year term on our Deacon Council. Online nominations can be found HERE. Nominations must be submitted by NOON on Wednesday, October 19th. Printed nominations forms are available at the Welcome Center.
Our Fall Family Meeting is scheduled for Sunday, October 23rd at 3:00 PM. We will hear reports and discuss the 2023 proposed Financial Plan for Ministries (Budget). The Deacon Council will meet at 1:00 in the Founder’s Room.
“Dying churches don’t have these problems!” I’ve heard those words from Pastor Bill at least a dozen times over the past couple of months as we continue to emerge from the cocoon of our existence of the past several years. As the writer of Ecclesiastes reminds us:
For everything there is a season, and a time for every matter under the heaven: a time to be born, and a time to die; a time to plant, and a time to pluck up what is planted…; a time to break down, and a time to build up (Ecclesiastes 1:1-3).
For the past several years, Huffman Baptist Church operated in survival mode. We did not believe it was our time to die. So we cautiously and carefully planted here and there. We broke down the structures that needed to be changed. We prayed for a new birth of mission and ministry. And now we stand ready to experience the revitalization of HBC.
It’s time to emerge from our cocoon. On the outside, a cocoon appears to be lifeless. But nothing could be further from reality. The cocoon is a safe place. A place where transformation is taking place. A place where life is being made beautiful. It is a place where caterpillars leave their cumbersome, crawly legs and embrace wings that allow them to fly!
Next Generation Improvements
Over the past several years, we have shut down buildings and deferred maintenance. It was the right thing to do. This time last year, we were using about 25% of our total space. Today, we are using more than 90% of this massive church campus. Now that we are using the space we are also addressing maintenance and building infrastructure issues to fit our space to current needs.
Over the past three months we have updated our exterior signage to reflect our current church logo and clearly communicate that we are working in partnership with other ministries. We have also upgraded our technology with fiberoptic internet, wifi throughout the building, and newer computers that allow our staff to work in today’s environment. We have repaired and replaced HVAC units, repaired roof leaks, and retrofitted 275 of the 926 light fixtures throughout the campus with energy efficient LED adapters and bulbs. To date these projects have cost just under $100,000. Just remember, “Dying churches don’t have these problems!” If we were not using the space, we would have no need to address maintenance or other issues.
Staffing for the Future
I remember the conversation well. We were talking to our former facility manager about the status of the job he held. We were changing it from full-time to part-time. We were in our cocoon. We were using 25% of our space. It was hard to justify a full-time position. As I explained, over the past ten years almost every staff position in the church had gone from full-time to part-time, and if things didn’t change the remaining positions would become part-time as well.
Well, things have changed. God has brought the stirring of new life onto the campus at 700 Huffman Road. And we are beginning to staff for the future. Earlier this year, we brought Bill Sears on as our Executive Pastor. Bill handles the day-to-day operations of the church, manages the church staff, coordinates our partnerships, and leads our educational ministries. In last month’s edition of The Source, we announced changes in responsibilities for Richard Metts (Worship & Senior Adult Pastor) and Larry Smith (Minister of Member Care & Campus Operations). Suzy Metts is serving as part-time ministry assistant in the area of worship and senior adult ministries, and Scott Smith is working with the Lead and Executive Pastors.
Family Pastor
I am thrilled to announce that the Personnel Team has hired a part-time Family (Next Generation) Pastor who will start later in September. Over the past several months, Bill and I have had conversations with several potential candidates for this crucial position. They all had one thing in common. A lack of experience. Therefore, it became obvious that whoever we brought on would need someone to mentor them. And as we talked about possible mentors, one person stood out.
Darreon, Averee, Calvin, Caleb, Banner, and Mollie Sears
Caleb Sears, Bill and Myrna’s son, had built a cross-cultural student ministry at First Baptist Pleasant Grove. He understands the culture. His family reflects diversity. He is working in a missional business that is doing cross-cultural ministry. He would be the ideal mentor! Then it hit me. Would Caleb be interested in taking on the Family Pastor role? If he would be an ideal mentor, he would also be an ideal Family Pastor.
In this role, Caleb will begin to develop relationships with students from Banks Academy, Elevate, and Young Life and will work with our ministry partners to develop a discipleship strategy to reach students and their families. He shared with the Personnel Team that he wants to start small and build the ministry on a solid foundation. I am convinced that Caleb is the right person to lead our emerging ministry to families!
Financial Resources
Emerging from our cocoon is not without cost. But remember, “Dying churches don’t have these problems.” Still, God provides. Whenever his people are committed to doing his work in his way, God provides. He is providing through our members who continue to faithfully and sacrificially give so that we can make Jesus known across the street and around the world. He is providing through our ministry partners who are reimbursing us $11,300 per month for ministry costs. And he has provided through the accumulation of reserves that we are using to help us as we emerge from our cocoon.
For everything there is a season, and a time for every matter under the heaven: a time to be born, and a time to die; a time to plant, and a time to pluck up what is planted…; a time to break down, and a time to build up (Ecclesiastes 1:1-3).
Now is not the time to die. Now is the time to build up!
It’s August, and that can mean only one thing. It’s time for back to school! This year, that statement has special meaning for us at Huffman Baptist Church. On August 15th, we will welcome nearly 100 students along with the faculty and staff of Banks Academy into their new home on our campus. We prayed for God to send us one family. In his divine will he sent us an entire high school!
Would you join me right now in praying for these scholars, teachers, staff members, and their families. Pray that God would accomplish his will in each of their lives during the 2022-2023 school year. Pray that he might use us to accomplish his purposes.
Banks Academy Open House
You are invited to help Banks celebrate their new home with an Open House on Tuesday, September 13 from 5:30 to 7:00 PM. You will have an opportunity to see the facility and meet teachers, student ambassadors, and Banks Board members. They have asked that we RSVP to: bhart@banksacademy.org
Banks Academy Day at HBC
We want to begin our partnership with Banks Academy by inviting students, faculty, staff, board members, and families to join us for worship on Sunday, August 21 at 10:30 AM. This will be an incredible opportunity for us to set the spiritual direction of our partnership. If you are in town and well, please make your plans to join us for worship!
Updates from Quarterly Family Meeting
We heard several reports at our Family Meeting on August 31. The sale of the North Parking Lot is moving forward with an anticipated closing date in late 2022 or early 2023. Also, we are continuing to accomplish facility improvements in preparation for our Next Generation partnerships. These improvements include installation of fiber optic, high speed internet with WiFi capability throughout the building, updated and improved outside signage, updating and improving restroom facilities, and repairs and replacements to HVAC systems.
As we continue to position ourselves to reach the Next Generation, the personnel team has approved several staffing changes effective August 1:
Richard Metts has added Senior Adult Pastor to his responsibilities and has given up responsibilities as our Facility Manager.
Larry Smith is now our Minister of Member Care and Campus Operations (PT ¾).
Suzy Metts has been employed as Worship and Senior Adult Ministry Assistant (PT).
Scott Smith has been assigned as Ministry Assistant to Pastors Rob and Bill.
We are continuing to look for and pray about other staff positions, including a Next Generation Pastor (PT) and a Student Minister (PT).
Bible Reading Plan
As we read we are asking God to show us if there is a…
Like many of you, I celebrated Independence Day with family. We ate. We laughed. We watched fireworks and patriotic presentations from The United States Military Academy and from our nation’s capitol. As a friend of mine posted on Facebook:
My Country is like my family, my friends…and, frankly, me; full of all the flaws and imperfections of humanity and human institutions, yet gifted with delights and blessings that bring joy, pride, sustenance, and great enthusiasm for history and hope for the future.
Birthdays are the time to don a hat, light another candle, offer gifts of affection and aplomb, and sing with gusto. Happy Birthday, these United States of America, “with liberty and justice for ALL!”
Mart Gray
As we move into July, let me encourage you to take a moment to exhale. Exhale and celebrate a really impactful June! Here’s a summary:
We served and engaged hundreds of our neighbors as they came onto our campus to vote in the primary and runoff elections in late-May and June.
We prayed for our neighbors in the Huffman neighborhood during our summer Pray & Go outreach event. And we welcomed our first guest who attended a worship service because we left a door-hanger letting her know we prayed for her!
Two busloads of middle and high school students from Elevate and Young Life left our campus on Sunday, June 10th headed for Young Life Camps in North Carolina (high school) and Florida (middle school). It was our pleasure to send five of the seventeen Elevate students. And while we are still awaiting a final update from camp, we know that six students from Elevate made professions of faith!
Vacation Bible School was a huge success as we engaged nearly forty children with the gospel. The children were engaged and challenged. The gospel was shared. And we gave $929.50 to Send Relief to assist in the International Mission Board’s work with Ukrainian refugees!
There is much to celebrate! Please pray for us as we continue to assemble a Next Generation Discipleship team to work alongside our partners at Elevate, Young Life, Banks Academy, and Kingdom Family Christian Fellowship. “The harvest is plentiful, but the workers are few. Pray to the Lord of the harvest!”
Community Engagement
Community engagement is one of the keys to our success in being a neighborhood church for northeast Birmingham. This month we have the opportunity to serve our neighbors through our monthly food box distribution on Tuesday, July 19 from 11:00 AM to 12:30 PM. Make plans to join us!
Summer Family Meeting
Our Summer Family Meeting will take place on July 31 at 3:00 PM. We have a lot of exciting news to report, so you will not want to miss this opportunity to celebrate all that God is doing through HBC and our ministry partners as we make Jesus known across the street and around the world.
Our deacons will meet in the fellowship hall at 3:00.
Summer Preaching & Bible Study
During the month of July we will continue the Great Chapters of the Bible series. This past Sunday (July 3), Danny Brister brought a prophetic message from Psalm 51. We will also hear messages from 1 Corinthians 15; Luke 15; Isaiah 55; and Colossians 1 during the month.
The Wednesday, mid-day lunch and Bible study is a hit! We resumed Wednesday, July 6th, with our Revelation bible study. Make sure to register for lunch each week by Noon on Monday. You can register and pay online at huffmanbaptist.org
Daily Prayer & Bible Reading
1. Pray – Every morning at 7:00 AM we are praying for Huffman Baptist Church.
2. Read the Bible – We are reading one chapter (or one portion of one chapter) from the Old Testament every day (Monday – Friday).
As we read we are asking God to show us if there is a…
Wow. I am still just blown away by the response to Homecoming ’22. I am so thankful for the ladies and gentlemen who planned and executed the plan with perfection. The fellowship hall has never looked better. The fellowship was amazing. And the worship service culminating in the partnership discussion was inspirational! Now, it’s time to turn our attention to a packed summer… A Summer to Remember!
Great Chapters of the Bible
I am excited to kickoff the summer with a new sermon series based on Spurgeon’s Commentary on Great Chapters of the Bible. Each Sunday morning we will explore one of these monumental chapters. Chapters like Hebrews 11; Psalm 51; Acts 2; Colossians 1; Isaiah 53; and others. We will get it all started this coming Sunday with Ephesians 1, a chapter which Spurgeon called the pinnacle of Paul’s writing. You will not want to miss a week of this series!
Midweek Lunch & Bible Study
With choir taking the summer off, we thought it would be a good time to try something new. Starting this Wednesday – June 1 – our adult Wednesday activities will shift from 4:30 in the evening to 11:30 in the morning. We will start with lunch followed by Bible study. After a lot of consideration, I have decided to tackle an extended study of The Revelation. Deadline to register is Noon on Monday, so shoot us an email. Leave Scott a voicemail. Or register and pay by clicking HERE.
Vacation Bible School
Sunday, June 5, is VBS training following the morning worship service. Lunch will be provided. VBS is scheduled June 26-29 from 5:00 – 8:00. We have needs in preschool, children, and middle school. If you are interested, or think you may be interested, plan to join us Sunday for a free lunch and training. You can register by shooting us an email. Leaving Scott or Carrie a voicemail. Or by clicking HERE.
Pray & Go
Our next Pray & Go will take place on Saturday, June 11, from 9:00 to 11:00. We will start with coffee and light refreshments in the Fellowship Hall before “hitting the streets” and praying for our neighbors and inviting folks to Vacation Bible School. Those who are not able to walk across the street will have the opportunity to pray over parts of the Children’s Building in anticipation of VBS and the start of school for Banks! You can let us know you are coming by shooting us an email. Leaving a voicemail. Or by clicking HERE.
Community Engagement
We will have two additional opportunities in June to serve our neighbors. The first will be hosting our neighbors for the 2022 State Primary Runoff Election on June 21. Be looking for more information as the date approaches. We are also planning Community Food Distribution during the month of June, although the date has yet to be finalized.
Daily Bible Reading
As we read a chapter a day (Monday-Friday), we are asking God to show us if there is a…
Sin that we need to confess.
Promise that we need to claim.
Attitude that we need to adjust.
Commandment that we need to obey.
Example that we need to follow.
Here is the reading plan for the next few weeks. Week of…
It’s almost here. Homecoming ’22 is going to be an amazing time for us to reconnect with old friends to celebrate what God has done and what God is doing in this place. The morning will start at 9:00 with “Meet, Greet, and Eat” in the Fellowship Hall. There will be plenty of breakfast food and lots of stories to tell!
At 10:10, those who are planning to sing in the “Reunion Choir” will rehearse in the choir room. Former choir members are invited to join the Reunion Choir singing two songs during our worship service. We ask that choir members also complete registration for the Reunion Choir. To register click CHOIR
It’s going to be an incredible day that culminates in worship. I can’t wait to praise God for all that he has done. I can’t wait to celebrate what God is doing.
Registration is not required, but is encouraged. It’s not too late to let us know you are coming or to invite others. To register click HOMECOMING ’22
RECLAIMING GLORY
In preparation for that day of celebration, we are starting a new sermon mini-series from the book of Haggai, Reclaiming Glory. When the children of Israel first returned from the Exile, they set themselves to the task of rebuilding the Temple with hopes that God’s glory would return to Jerusalem. Over time, they grew weary and turned their attention to other pursuits. After decades of neglect, the word of the Lord came to Haggai who called the people to work on the house of the Lord of hosts, their God. The people obeyed, and God promised, “The latter glory of this house shall be greater than the former…. And in this place I will give peace.” What an incredible and timely word for Huffman Baptist Church!
A LOOK AT WHAT ELSE IS HAPPENING IN MAY
GRADUATE RECOGNITION | May 15, 9:00 in the Parlor. Stop by on your way to Sunday School and congratulate Ella Dannel as she celebrates this milestone in her life.
COMMUNITY FOOD BOX DISTRIBUTION | May 17, 11:00 in the HBC Ministry Center (formerly Rec Center) parking lot. This is a fun way to engage our community with the gospel by meeting a practical need.
STUDENT SPRING FLING | May 18, 4:00 to 8:00 PM at the HBC Ministry Center. This will be a fun evening for HBC, Elevate, Young Life, and Banks Academy middle and high school students to celebrate the end of the school year. We will have food, games, and a time of worship with the presentation of the gospel. Volunteers are needed to host.
ALABAMA PRIMARY ELECTION | May 24 at the HBC Ministry Center. Once again we will welcome our neighbors onto our campus and serve them by providing bottled water starting at 8:30 AM.
ELECTION VOLUNTEER SIGNUP
Tuesday, November 5th is election day! Help us serve our neighbors as they come onto our campus to vote. We will serve cold, bottled water and share words of encouragement.
We have also upgraded our technology with fiberoptic internet, wifi throughout the building, and newer computers that allow our staff to work in today’s environment. We have repaired and replaced HVAC units, repaired roof leaks, and retrofitted 275 of the 926 light fixtures throughout the campus with energy efficient LED adapters and bulbs. To date these projects have cost just under $100,000. Just remember, “Dying churches don’t have these problems!” If we were not using the space, we would have no need to address maintenance or other issues.
