All Wednesday activities will take place as usual tonight.

A Higher Note

The Chancel Choir will be leading this Sunday in an Easter musical entitled, “Love Divine.” The musical focuses on the great love God has demonstrated toward us in sending Jesus to become one of us. The triumphal entry into Jerusalem, remembering our Lord’s words at the table, Jesus' prayer of anguish in the garden, the arrest, a request by the thief, and Jesus' final words on the cross, "It is Finished," will be presented in cantata-like fashion. The score calls for a very small ensemble of seven instruments to accompany the choir and readings. Plan to be present for this special service.

The Youth Choir will be going on a mission tour June 8-13. The cost of the trip is $240 per person. Members and chaperones are encouraged to pay for the trip by April 12. Financial donations are needed for travel assistance and with some meals. All contributions are so appreciated. 

-- Chris

This Sunday @ VBC

This Sunday is Palm Sunday, which begins Holy Week. Please join us for the musical presented by the Chancel Choir and orchestra. If you cannot join us in person at 10:30 AM, you can livestream at www.vintonbaptistchurch.org and on our Facebook group page. Sunday School will take place at 9:15 AM.

If you ordered Easter eggs through the Preteens fundraiser, THANK YOU for your support! Please plan to pick up your eggs in the kitchen after worship on Sunday.

Wednesday Adult Bible Study/Small Group

Tonight the Wednesday Adult Bible Study/Small Group will provide an introduction to "Parables of the Kingdom," which is based on five parables of Jesus. We will jump into the full study Wednesday, April 3rd. (We will not meet next Wednesday, March 27th; please plan to attend the Stations of the Cross service in the sanctuary instead.) There are no study materials to purchase. You are welcome to join us in the small dining room at 6:30 PM. Questions? Contact Jessie Burgess.

Fun & the Son's Basketful of Fun Party

All newborn - PreK kids and their parents/guardians are invited to join Fun & the Son TOMORROW, March 21st for their Basketful of Fun Party, 9:30 - 11:00 AM! We'll have games, a craft, an Easter egg hunt, and special snacks. See Betty Jo Overstreet with any questions.

Holy Week Schedule

• Sunday, March 24th - Palm Sunday Musical at 10:30 AM.
• Wednesday, March 27th - Stations of the Cross service at 6:30 PM. (There will be NO Weeknight Worship, Children's Choirs, or other activities).
• Saturday, March 30th - Easter Egg Hunt and family activities beginning at 10:30 AM!
• Easter Sunday, March 31st - Celebrate Resurrection Sunday with us at 10:30 AM worship (Sunday School at 9:15 AM, as usual)!

Homebound Easter Packages

If you volunteered to deliver a package to one of our homebound folks, please do so between now and Easter Sunday. Packages are ready for pickup at the Missions Tables in the Welcome Center.

The Dr. Charlie J. Lovelace, III Memorial College Scholarship

The Lovelace Scholarship program, which honors the memory of Jay Lovelace, is awarded each year to a graduating senior who is a member of Vinton Baptist and who will be attending a four-year college or university. The $1,000 scholarship is awarded for the student's first year of school. Applications are available in the church office or by clicking here. Applications are due this Friday, March 22nd.

Easter Egg Hunt

Families with children are invited to our Easter Egg Hunt Saturday, March 30th at 10:30 AM! We'll have several mini-hunts, where children and parents can find eggs together on the playground. We'll also hear the resurrection story, play with bubbles and sidewalk chalk, and have special snacks for everyone!

Passport Kids' Camp

The deadline for registration for this summer's Kids' Camp is Easter Sunday, March 31st. A $100 deposit is due at that time. Kids' Camp is June 12th - 15th. Please see Jessie with questions.

JOY Seniors Activities

Are you ready to welcome Easter with some fantastic music? Join the JOY Seniors for their March luncheon Tuesday, March 26th. We will enjoy music from Achord, a music duo of flute and guitar. Our lunch will be from Three Li'l Pigs BBQ. Sign up at the JOY Senior table. Come early and fellowship. Lunch starts at noon in the gym. Please sign up and pay by this Friday, March 22nd.

Next month we will have a "Senior Break Out" on Tuesday, April 30th. We will travel to Bedford to have lunch at the Blue Lady Restaurant. Departure from VBC is 10:45 AM. Please sign up at the JOY Senior table for your reservation, regardless if you are driving or riding the bus.

Looking ahead: We are also planning a trip to see the Rock Churches of Buffalo Mountain on Saturday, June 29th. We will see about six churches and be able to go in two of them, tour the J. Sidna Allen House, tour the Hillsville Courthouse, have lunch at Meadows of Dan, and enjoy Christmas in June at the Dinwiddle Church. This trip also includes a tour guide. The cost is $60, including lunch. Please sign up by May 31st at the JOY Senior table.

Grief Group

A Grief Group is scheduled to begin in April (exact date TBD). It will take place on Wednesday nights at 6:30 PM in the Fellowship/Berean Sunday School classroom. It is expected to last 6-8 weeks. If you are interested in signing up, please call the church office at 540-343-7685.

Joyce Keaton

1536 Gordon Avenue

Roanoke VA 24014

Wednesday, March 13, 2024

Weeknight Worship: 44

Sunday, March 17, 2024

Sunday School: 225

10:30 AM Worship:

• 362 in person
• 295 online

Thank you to the Pete Creasy Sunday School class for their donation to the Community Assistance Fund.

Thank you to the Open Door Sunday School class for their donation to the Food Pantry.

Easter Offerings

There are two options for giving special Easter offerings (beyond your usual giving to the General Budget):

1. The Vinton Baptist Church Easter Offering has been designated for LOA's Meals on Wheels program. All proceeds will go to help feed seniors in need. Please use the envelope (in your box of envelopes) that simply says "Easter Offering" or notate "VBC Easter Offering" on your gift.
2. The Annie Armstrong Easter Offering is used to fund evangelism efforts in North America. Please use the enveloped marked "Annie Armstrong Easter Offering" or notate your gift for "Annie Armstrong." Our church goal for this offering is $2,450. We are almost halfway to our goal.

Easter Candy Donations

THANK YOU for all the Easter candy donations for our various children's activities this season! You are a blessing!

Bible Reading Plan

We are in the final chapters of Ezekiel, and below is what Fee & Stuart (How to Read the Bible Book by Book) have to say about chapters 40-48:

"In April 573, fourteen years after the fall of Jerusalem, Ezekiel is given his final set of visions, which focus first on the restored temple and priesthood. What he sees is so grand that he includes its extraordinary measurements, thus symbolizing its grandeur and glory. All of the detail is a way of emphasizing the importance of the worship of Yahweh by the restored community of the future. And even if you do not share Ezekiel's own vested interest in the details, do not lose the central point, which Ezekiel himself makes by giving it center place in the vision - the return of Yahweh's presence among his people (42:1-9)! Also important for this great future for God's people is the redistribution of the transformed land (45:1-12), which is what the final two chapters (47-48) are all about. Note especially that the life-giving river is seen as flowing from the temple (47:1-12), the place of God's presence and of the people's worship, imagery that John picks up in his vision of the final city of God in Revelation 22:1-5. So the book ends with a new name for the city: "THE LORD IS THERE" (Ezek 48:35)!"

As of next Monday, our Bible reading schedule has us beginning Daniel. Fee & Stuart note that Daniel's 12 chapters are divided down the middle into two main sections. Chapters 1-6 deal with Daniel and his friends, as well as their relations with God, as they navigate the process of honoring the Hebrew God in the context of Babylonian culture. Chapters 7-12 focus on "... a series of apocalyptic visions about the rise and fall of succeeding empires ...." They also note that chapters 2-7 were originally written in Aramaic, which most people at that time could understand, while chapters 1, 8-12 were originally written in Hebrew, perhaps because they were intended only for a Jewish audience. We'll dive deeper into Daniel next week.

God bless you. Happy reading.

-- Kim

WMU Mission Projects

December 2023 - February 2024

$25.00   Lottie Moon Foreign Mission Offering in honor of shut-in

$30.00   VBC Christmas Food Boxes in honor of shut-ins

$50.00   Soup for Seniors

$50.00   SWVA WMU Mission Trip for needed supplies

$50.00   Keystone Community Center for Easter Food Boxes

Hats, gloves, underwear, and warm items for Samaritan Inn

Visits and cards to shut-ins

Now is the season for giving to the Annie Armstrong Easter Offering for North American Missions. The GOAL for our church is $2,450.00. There are special envelopes in your box of church envelopes, as well as in the church pews. This offering is used to help support missionaries in Canada, the US, and Central and South America. It helps to start new church plants, to provide for college campus ministries, and in various other ways of supporting missions. Please give and help support these missionaries.