Newsletter for September 17, 2025

Make plans to join us as we continue our sermon series,
"Unshakable: Lessons from the Prophets."

Start your Wednesday evening with a delicious supper at 6:00 PM, followed by a powerful lesson on finding strength in God during life's trials. We will offer a special breakout class for young people, allowing the whole family to participate.
Come discover how to stand firm, no matter what.

Taco Casserole, Chips & Salsa,
and Libby’s Famous Cookies

First Baptist Church is honored to host a Retirement Celebration for Michael Gibbs of the Turner Baptist Association. Join us on Sunday, September 28th in the Fellowship Hall as we celebrate his years of faithful service.

If you would like to help by preparing finger foods for the reception, please contact Vickie Brown.

Once again, we will be collecting items for the Georgia Baptist Children’s Home in Baxley. The trailer will be loaded on Sunday, October 12th during the Turner Baptist Association Meeting at Bethel.

If you are unable to take your donations to Bethel, please place them on the round table in the Fellowship Hall entrance, and we will make sure they are delivered.

Items Needed: Gift cards, Canned fruit, Cans of Sweet peas,
Paper towels, Paper plates, 16 oz Plastic cups, 
Toilet paper, Kitchen & Bathroom cleaner, 
Snacks, Cookies, and Chips

We are excited to begin collecting items for Operation Christmas Child Shoeboxes!
For the month of September, we are focusing on toys and school supplies.

Suggested Toys: Small dolls, stuffed animals, jump ropes, balls, cars, puzzles, card games, musical toys (like harmonicas or recorders).

Suggested School Supplies:
Crayons, markers, colored pencils, small notebooks, rulers, erasers,
or pencil sharpeners

 Please Do Not Include:
Toy guns or weapons of any kind
War-related toys

 Drop-off boxes are located outside the church office.

Let’s join together to bless children around the world with the love of Christ through a simple shoebox gift!

Get ready to cook! We are thrilled to share that our new church cookbook is coming soon, filled with over 200 beloved recipes submitted by our own First Baptist members. To help us get an accurate count, please let us know how many you would like to purchase. The cost is $10 per book, and they'll be available for you to pick up starting December 3rd. You may purchase more or less; this is to help us get a count. 

Don’t miss Brother David’s Mid-Week Devotions in Psalms!
New messages are posted every Wednesday on our media page—take a midweek moment to be encouraged and refreshed in God’s Word.

Budget for 2025 . . . . . . . .  $329,624.00
Tithes Needed to Date . . . . $234,753.53
Received to Date . . . . . . . . $197,819.91      
Needed for weekly budget . . . $6,344.69
Tithes Received this week . .  . $4,322.95

Have you ever gone to the store to buy a tool, maybe a drill or a wrench, and decided to buy the cheaper version? You convince yourself that it will get the job done, but it doesn’t always work out that way. Before you know it, the tool breaks, and you realize you could have done the job so much faster with a higher-quality one. In the end, a cheaper option almost always costs you more.

In the 1930s, the German theologian Dietrich Bonhoeffer warned Christians against something he called "cheap grace." He argued that God's grace in Christ is free, but it is never cheap. Grace is costly, for God gave up His own Son for our sins. Yet, Bonhoeffer was burdened that many in the church were treating it as if it were a bargain. This "cheap grace" says we can accept Christ as Savior but not follow Him as Lord. It promises the forgiveness of sins without the commitment to do what Jesus says. It suggests we can have all the benefits of faith, prosperity, and comfort without any sacrifice.

Jesus, however, calls us to a life of costly discipleship. In Luke 9:23, Jesus outlines the three requirements for anyone who wants to follow him. First, we must deny ourselves, which means giving up our personal agendas to follow God's plan for our lives. Second, we must take up our cross daily. The cross was a symbol of public suffering and death, and to take it up is to be willing to endure sacrifice and rejection for your beliefs. We can’t ignore the word daily. This means this isn’t a one-time decision but a constant, daily surrender. Finally, we must follow Jesus. That means our hearts and minds are open to His leading, and we live our lives accordingly.

Jesus continues in the passage by stating, “For whoever wants to save their life will lose it, but whoever loses their life for me will save it.” Jesus is teaching that holding onto worldly possessions and selfish desires will ultimately lead to eternal loss. True, eternal life is found only in surrendering our lives to Christ.

What does surrender look like in my life:

• Time and Priorities: Choosing to spend time in prayer and Bible study daily.
• Comfort and Convenience: Volunteering in places that are difficult or unnoticed.
• Reputation: Boldly confessing Christ to friends, family, and coworkers.
• Forgiveness: Choosing to forgive someone who has hurt us deeply.

This is the very essence of costly discipleship. It is a life found not in holding on to our own desires, but in surrendering to Christ completely. What is one area of your life where Jesus is calling you to deny yourself and follow Him more fully?