November 6, 2025

REV. BRETT HARRIS TO PREACH AT NORTHMINSTER ON SUNDAY

We will be honored to have a special guest with us on this coming Sunday, November 9. Rev. Brett Harris of the Alliance of Baptists will be our pulpit guest and worship leader on that Sunday. Brett is the Alliance’s Development and Visual Communications Manager. He is an ordained pastor and creator of the podcast God Knows Where, a search for God beyond the beaten paths of our tradition. From 2018-2022, he served Alliance partner congregation University Baptist Church in Hattiesburg, Mississippi. He has also worked in K-12 and Higher Education in Mississippi. A graduate of Wake Forest University (BA) and the Candler School of Theology at Emory University (MDiv), Brett lives in Laurel, Mississippi, with his wife, Biz, and their two sons.

During the Sunday School hour on Sunday, we will also plan for Brett to make a brief presentation about the Alliance of Baptists and to answer questions about it. That will occur in our sanctuary.

The Alliance of Baptists has been Northminster’s denominational home since our founding in 1989. There are about 140 churches and a few thousand people affiliated with the Alliance. The Alliance has been our important connection with other like-minded progressive Christians of the Baptist persuasion from all over the United States. Two of our folks, Rev. Dr. Welton Gaddy and Craig Henry, have previously served as president of the Alliance. Jo Ann Alley, Priscilla Asbury and D. H. Clark have served on the Alliance board. So, Northminster has been an important part of providing leadership for the organization. Our 31-year partnership with Iglesia Bautista Enmanuel in Ciego de Avila, Cuba, is because of our Alliance connection. Currently, there are about 30 such partnerships between Alliance churches and churches affiliated with the Fraternity of Cuban Baptist Churches.

Please plan to be in worship on Sunday as we welcome Brett to Northminster and celebrate our partnership with the Alliance of Baptists.

November 9 at 10:45 am

Rev. Brett Harris of the Alliance of Baptists Preaching

It's Been a Year

Haggai 2:1-9

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The Opening Hymn: All My Hope on God is Founded - British composer Herbert Howells studied with Charles V. Stanford at the Royal College of Music in London and later taught there. The tune was composed for an English school and was named for Howells' son, who died in childhood.

The Middle Hymn: In Solitude - Ruth Duck has commented that "these words were inspired by a penatonic melody which came to me as I taught myself to play the mandolin." They are an expression of her "deep-rooted" southern spirituality."

The Anthem: Can We Sing the Darkness to Light? by Kyle Pederson.

The Communion Anthem: Alleluia by Jan Reese.

The Closing Hymn: My Hope is Built on Nothing Less - William Bradbury met great success by composing hymn tunes and religious songs in a lively, popular style. He also helped establish music programs in New York public schools, served a church, and co-founded a piano company.

Theology is the study of God and His ways. For all we know, dung beetles may study man and his ways and call it humanology. If so, we would probably be more touched and amused than irritated. One hopes that God feels likewise.

-From "Listening to Your Life" by Frederick Buechner

Edmond Abadie (7th)

Jimmy Curry (9th)

Howard Brentlinger (11th)

Mel Mobley (17th)

WELCOME NEW CHORAL SCHOLAR!

Landon Morris joins us as a choir choral scholar in the bass section. Landon is 22 years old and a graduating Accounting Major at ULM. Landon has been involved in choir and music since his youth and is extremely excited to bring his voice to Northminster Church and sing praises to the Lord.

ULM Professor Emeritus Dr. John Carr receives lifetime achievement award for turtle conservation

CAPTION: Dr. John Carr received the Pritchard Turtle Conservation Lifetime Achievement Award from Turtle Survival Alliance. Photo courtesy of Turtle Survival Alliance.

ULM Professor Emeritus of Biology Dr. John Carr has received the Pritchard Turtle Conservation Lifetime Achievement Award from Turtle Survival Alliance. Carr was one of four recipients of the award for 2025. Turtle Survival Alliance stated that Carr was recognized “for his long-term work on Latin American Wood Turtles and Alligator Snapping Turtles, and for his dedication to teaching and mentoring many students.” 

“It wouldn’t have happened without the freedom to pursue my interests and develop expertise over the

years while at ULM, with the continual aid and helpful hands of many graduate students along the way,” said Carr. 

John Carr worked for Conservation International as a research scientist and later became managing editor of Conservation Biology Publications. He went on to teach biology at the ULM, focusing on anatomy, herpetology, and field biology, while directing 30+ thesis projects in Louisiana and Colombia. Upon his retirement from ULM in 2021, he was named Professor Emeritus of Biology. 

In Cali, Colombia, he serves as an International Research Associate at the Universidad del Valle in

the Animal Ecology Research Group. He has worked on turtle ecology projects, and on taxonomic studies of geoemydids. He is a long-term member of the IUCN SSC Tortoise and Freshwater Turtle Specialist Group. 

His field studies have included local chelydrids, trionychids, kinosternids, and emydids in Louisiana

and Texas, plus Kinosternon, Chelydra, and Rhinoclemmys in Mexico, Colombia and Ecuador. 

Major collaborative works include the Las Tortugas y los Cocodrilianos de los Países Andinos del Trópico [The Turtles and Crocodilians of the Tropical Andean Countries], Amphibians and Reptiles of Louisiana: An Identification and Reference Guide, and editing of Special Issues of Acta Biológica Colombiana,

Tortugas de Colombia, and the Southeastern Naturalist, Biology and Conservation of Alligator Snapping Turtles (Macrochelys). 

For more information, visit turtlesurvival.org.

REV. ZACH HELTON'S BOOK HITS THE SHELVES!

Rev. Zach Helton’s new book Metta Valley Gospel is officially out as of Tuesday. It is available in print, E-reader, and Audiobook formats. Congratulations Zach! (Former Co-Pastor at Northminster)

The Benevolence Fund:

Extending Care in Times of Need

Our church’s Benevolence Fund is one of the quiet ways we live out our calling to love our neighbors. This fund allows the pastor to respond directly when church members/friends, or community members contact the church office seeking assistance with essentials such as rent, utility bills, groceries, or other urgent needs.

We don’t normally highlight this Fund or even ask you to give to it specifically as it’s part of our Annual Budget, but with SNAP benefits set to end on November 1, I’m anticipating more requests for assistance than we usually have. So, if you’d like to support this ministry, mark your gift “Benevolence Fund” and it will go directly toward helping neighbors in need. 

AGAPE MEAL SIGN-UP TIME

This year, our Agape Meal will be spearheaded by Brandy Keen, and folks will have the option of having the traditional Thanksgiving meal or Gumbo. Please see the sign-up sheet in the hall and write each individual's name beside a number on the sheet and check which type meal they prefer. Tickets per person are $10 with a family cap of $50.

So what exactly does "Agape Meal" mean?

An "agape meal" is a Christian love feast that originated in the early church, combining a fellowship meal with prayer, singing, scripture, and worship. It is a time to celebrate community and goodwill, inspired by the meals Jesus shared with his disciples and symbolizing the highest form of divine love, or agape. The meal can be a simple potluck or a more structured ritual that may include elements like foot washing and is distinct from the sacrament of Holy Communion. 

Key characteristics

• Name: "Agape" is the Greek word for a selfless, divine love. The meal is also known as a "love feast". 
• Purpose: To foster harmony, community, and fellowship, and to express the love of Christ in a practical way. 
• Origin: A practice of the early Christian church, which was later revived by groups like the Moravians, Methodists, and Brethren. 
• Activities: Often includes communal eating, singing hymns, sharing testimonies, scripture readings, prayer, and sometimes symbolic acts like foot washing. 
• Distinction from Communion: It is not the same as Holy Communion, though it may precede or follow it. 

This Sunday

9:00 am - Choir Rehearsal

10:00 am - Sunday School

10:45 am - Preludes

11:00 am - Worship Service



Noon - After Church Fellowship

5:00 pm - Youth

Wednesdays

5:30 pm: Craft and Chat

6:30 pm: Choir rehearsal

Coming Up

Sunday, November 9: Rev. Brett Harris from the Alliance of Baptists preaching

Monday, November 10 at 7pm: NMC hosts Bayou Masterwork's concert

Sunday, November 16 following worship: Racial Justice meeting

Sunday, November 16 at 6pm: Important Business Meeting. NO potluck.

NOVEMBER MISSION EMPHASIS

**We Have Several More Children Who Need Sponsors**

Once again, Northminster will be sponsoring 20 children through the Center for Children and Families Christmas Project. The children's wish lists are on the hall table along with a sign-up sheet to fill in once you pick your child.

• Provide at least one full clothing outfit, shoes, a coat and at least one toy from their wish list. ($100-$150)
• Do not include gift cards.
• Do not wrap gifts. All items are to be placed in a bag with the child's wish list included in the bag.
• DO NOT BRING ITEMS TO THE CHURCH
• Items are due at the Center for Children and Families by Wednesday, December 3. Located at 622 Riverside Dr. in Monroe.

The Floral Offering

Given to the glory of God and in honor of Alexandra Brooks and in memory of

Rosie Dotson, grandmother of Alexandra

Arrangement by Robert Crawford