Frank and to the Point

So much is going on at First Baptist Nashville this spring. Our Building Bridges Task Force Leadership Team is busy enlisting volunteers for special projects associated with our strategic mission plan to minister and reach out to our city. Please keep them in your prayers.

In our March business meeting, the church voted to pursue a staffing plan that calls for the addition of a Minister of Outreach to be funded by Building Bridges gifts. This person will be instrumental in discovering and cultivating a community of individuals who can connect with First Baptist Nashville.

We also voted to pursue a recommendation that comes from our Personnel Committee to call a Minister to Adults. This position will be funded by our 2007 personnel budget and will be responsible for all of our adult ministries, especially to our younger adults both married and single.

Tom Crow and I visited with adult specialists from LifeWay and have spent hours in conversations with other churches who are utilizing this type of position to meet the growing needs of young adults. Join us for our April 18 business meeting to hear the final recommendation including the job descriptions for these new positions.

The Luis Palau Nashville CityFest happens May 19-20 and we are going to be involved! It’s like a 2-day mission trip in our backyard. Training for decision counselors is available on April 29 during the Personal Evangelism Class I am leading on Sunday nights. I hope you will join us.

Look in this issue of the Evangel for information regarding the Pastor’s Sunday Morning Bible Study. It begins April 15 (the Sunday after Easter) and is open to anyone who is not presently enrolled (or active) in an Adult Sunday School Class. If you know friends who might enjoy the class, please invite them!

See you Sunday!

Pastor’s Sunday Morning Bible Study

If you are not presently a member of an Adult Sunday School Class at First Baptist Nashville, you are invited to join our Pastor, Frank R. Lewis, for the Pastor’s Sunday Morning Bible Study beginning April 15. This four-Sunday class is designed to help answer questions newcomers to First Baptist Nashville may have about our church and some of the core beliefs that we hold as Baptists.

April 15 - What we believe about God the Father, God the Son and God the Holy Spirit: How do you explain a God like ours?

April 22 -What we believe about the Bible: How to get your life into its pages and its pages into your life.

April 29 -What we believe about Salvation: What does it mean to be a follower of Christ?

May 6 -What we believe about the Church: Why church membership is important.

Class Host and Hostess Bill and Sharon Chaney join our Pastor in inviting you to be a part of this new study at First Baptist Nashville. We’ll gather in Fellowship Hall each week from 9:00 until 10:10. If you would like to pre-register, or if you have questions about the class, please call us at 664-6010.

This class is only four weeks long. Because being a part of a small group such as a Sunday School class is important to one’s growth as a Christian, a class will be suggested for those who participate.

How Fast Can You Find Deuteronomy?

On Sunday, March 11, our 4th-6th graders participated in the Church Bible Drill, the first of three competitive Bible Drill events for this spring. The children tested their knowledge of selected Bible verses and key passages for a chance to participate in the Nashville Baptist Association Bible Drill in April. We are so proud of all of them. Our fourth grade drillers include: Will Boling, Caleb Bunn, Mackenzie Carris, Mitchell Dunn, Trevor Greer, Lauren Speer, Carter Tune, Allie Robertson, Lydia Rutter, and Mary Beth White. Fifth grade drillers include: Andrew Cantrell, Emily Hartzell, Carolina Lewis, Abbey Patey, and Mabry Wilson. Our sixth grade driller was Patrick Hall. There are 4 more children who will have a make up drill because they were unable to compete due to illness. Our drillers are now preparing for the next competitive drill, the Associational Bible Drill, April 1 here at First Baptist Nashville.

Building Bridges Prayers

Thank you, Church Family, for the commitment you expressed during the Building Bridges Campaign in October of last year to pray consistently for our Church, our staff and the Building Bridges Challenge.

Please pray for:

• Revival in each of our lives, in our Church and in our City
• Potential additions to our Church staff, including an Outreach Minister
• Participants in Pastor Frank’s Personal Evangelism Training and Prayer Walk Training to be led by Tom Hearon in April
• Luis Palau CityFest in May – a two day “In Town Mission Trip” opportunity for our congregation
• Evangelism/Outreach Leader for Sunday School and other Task Force leadership positions still to be filled
• Boldness, willingness and enthusiasm for each of us as believers seeking to share Christ with our City
• “For God to prepare us for what God is preparing for us”

Crow's Corner

Are you impacting your world for Christ? Easter is the perfect season to do so! People are searching for meaning, relationship, and ultimately for Jesus Christ. Pray today—right now—about the ones God is placing in your path to share Christ with. Then begin to share, invite, discover ways to connect with these friends for Christ. Invite them to Bible study, worship and lunch with you Sunday, April 8!

ANNIE ARMSTRONG MISSION OFFERING—The church’s goal is $25,000. So far, we have collected over $9,000. Thanks for your giving.

WELCOME NEW STAFF—Help me welcome our new Administrative Assistant to the Executive Pastor, Lori Towns. Lori joined First Baptist Nashville in September 2006 and has become a faithful member. She graduated from Southwest Baptist University (Bolivar, MO) with a Bachelor of Science in telecommunications and also holds a Master of Arts degree from Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary. Lori is presently an event coordinator and has experience in ministry with the Baptist Convention of New England.

Ms. Towns is a creative, enthusiastic person with an excellent reputation and history of ministry. You will want to get to know Lori! She may be reached at lori.towns@firstbaptistnashville.org or 664-6001.

RUSSIA MISSION TRIP—A trip is now in the planning stages for Murmansk, KOLA Peninsula, located in European Russia near the border with Finland and Norway for either July 19-29 or July 26-August 5. The team needs about 10 participants and the cost for each member will be approximately $2,500. If you are interested in going please contact me at 615-664-6020 or tom.crow@firstbaptistnashville.org.

Easter Devotional

Look for the Easter devotional guide, “Sounds of the Passion” provided by the Family Enrichment Committee. It will be available on Palm Sunday in the lobby.

Easter Schedule

Sunday morning Worship and Sunday School classes will be held at their regular times. No evening activities will be held at the church.

Luis Palau CityFest

First Baptist Nashville will be participating in the Luis Palau CityFest May 19-20. This city wide block party will take place in and near Riverfront Park. Each evening offers concerts and evangelistic services. Brochures are available in the Welcome Center. Please fill out the response card and return it to Rus Roach or the church office.

Calling All Wild, Praying Women!

In May 2002, three women met together to pray about the way a vacant building owned by First Baptist Nashville could be used to minister to Nashvillians in need. A few weeks later, a dozen women gathered for the same purpose. By the end of the summer, over 200 “wild, praying women” were seeking God’s will for the building then known as the Anchor Home. God answered our prayers and called us to create a ministry that would serve women coming out of incarceration. The building at the corner of 8th Avenue South and Demonbreun is now known as the Downtown Ministry Center and houses The Next Door and Christian Women’s Job Corps-Nashville. The Next Door has served over 280 women since we welcomed our first resident in May 2004. Today the ministry is supported by over three dozen local churches of various denominations and a range of corporate partners, foundations, and local universities, as well as over 200 missions-minded individuals.

Linda Leathers, Executive Director of the Downtown Ministry Center, has issued a call for the wild, praying women to gather once again to prayerfully seek God’s direction for the future of The Next Door and the proposed Freedom Recovery Community. On Tuesday, April 3, all interested prayer warriors - women and men - are invited to gather in the second floor dining room at the Downtown Ministry Center at 7 p.m. to hear an update from Linda and to pray together for this ministry. If you were one of the original wild, praying women or you are someone who is interested in learning more about this ministry, we invite you to join us and bring your friends. We thank God in advance for answering our prayers.

Parents Night Out is April 13

For babies – grade 6

Friday, April 13

6:00 – 10:00 p.m.
$7 per child (payable at time of registration)

Your child must be registered in order to participate. Call 664-6023 to register. Deadline for registration is Wednesday, April 11.

April Staff

BIRTHDAYS

23 – Barbara Sanders, children’s choir coordinator

ANNIVERSARIES

1 – Josh Crosby, 1 year, minister to students

9 – Margi Hawkins, 16 years, recreation/senior adult assistant

15 – Pam Nail, 5 years, children’s ministry assistant

24 – Israel Garcia, 1 year, custodian

Do You Have a Passport?

Do you have a passport? The missions committee is sponsoring a passport drive for three consecutive Sundays be-ginning April 15. You will have the opportunity to pick-up a passport application, have your passport photograph taken, and have your questions answered about the process.

First Baptist Nashville is sending mission teams to Canada, Russia, Poland, and Rio this year. By having a current passport, 
you’ll be prepared to respond when God 
calls you to a mission opportunity outside
the United States.

Personal Evangelism Training

One of the strategic actions in Building Bridges is to train 25% of our adult members to share their faith effectively and with grace in their daily connections. We have already begun implementing this by offering the Personal Evangelism Training Seminar on Sunday evenings at 5 p.m. in Room 370. Remaining sessions include:

April 1, 15, 22—Share Jesus Without Fear, Pastor Frank Lewis

April 29—How to Conduct a Prayer Walk/Luis Palau Training, Tom Hearon and Pastor Frank Lewis

May 6—Outreach Strategies and the Relationship of Prayer and Holiness to Evangelism, Pastor Frank Lewis and Tom Crow

Who Do You Think You Are?

That’s the theme for this year’s “What’s Next In-Town Retreat.” Who am I and what happened to me? Well, who do you think you are? We will spend time in prayer, study God’s Word, and complete a ministry event. I hope you will join me in praying for the singles attending this year’s retreat as God prepares our hearts for His message.

Speaking of the message – I’m excited to announce our speaker is Brent Gambrell. I first met Brent about 5 years ago, and we are truly blessed to have him leading us this year. Brent is a Nashvillian transplanted from Florida who travels the world speaking to college students and single adults. He has a passion for sharing the message of Christ and international missions. He is actively involved in missions to Haiti and travels there two to three times a year.

There are three important details to share about the retreat.

1. It’s FREE !
2. It’s at the home of Charles and Andrea Overby.
3. Save the dates – April 13-14.

I hope you will be able to attend! If you have questions, please contact Kim Williams at kimw5749@bellsouth.net or Cheri Viar at cheri@viar.org.