Chancel Choir Rehearsal

The Chancel Choir will rehearse TONIGHT at 7:00 PM.

A Higher Note

As I have talked with children and youth this week, I sense a spark of excitement to return to school and fall schedules at church. Fall is certainly on my mind. Children’s choirs have been a vital part of the music ministry of VBC for more than 80 years. Our Wednesday night choir program will resume on September 11. We need some helpers for the children’s choirs. We meet on Wednesday evenings 6:15-7:15 PM. You do not have to know music to assist with the choirs. Some of the duties are checking the children in, crowd control, craft projects, setting up snacks, encouraging the children to participate, playing games, cleaning up and keeping the evening moving along. We ask the volunteers to be here at 6:00 PM and plan to stay until 7:30 PM (some come early and some parents run late).

There is also an opening in our steel drum band this fall. We will meet on Tuesday evenings at 6:00- 6:45 PM. If you are a music reader and have a bit of rhythm, we need you. It is the most joyful 45 minutes of my week (most of the time). Consider being a part of Vinton’s very first steel drum band- Pandemonium.

Finally, we always are glad to have new choir members in our Chancel Choir. We will be joining with Melrose Baptist for a combined concert of choral favorites on September 29. The program contains some favorite selections of the conductors: “Wonderful Grace of Jesus,” “Light Shine,” “When I Survey,” “The Majesty and Glory of Your Name," “Mary Did You Know,” “Down to the River to Pray,” “Amazing Love,” Because He Lives,” “Jesus Paid it All,” “At the Name of Jesus,” and “We Will Be Your Church.” Mark it on your calendar or, better yet, come sing with us. There will be 2 rehearsals dedicated to the program Thursday evening, September 26 at 7:00 PM and Sunday, September 29 at 4:00 PM, dinner at 5:30 PM and concert at 6:30 PM.

-- Chris

This Sunday @ VBC

August 11th is Sunday School Promotion Sunday. Children's and youth Sunday School classes will promote to the next level for the new school year; Sunday School is at 9:15 AM. If you're an adult and you're not actively involved in a Sunday School class, now is a great time to visit Sunday School or to try a new class. A greeter will be happy to help you find a new class this Sunday morning, or give us a call in the church office this week at 540-343-7685 and we can help you decide on a class to visit this week.

We'll also have our annual Blessing of the Backpacks during morning worship at 10:30 AM. All of our children and teens are invited to bring their backpacks to worship this week. If you are a teacher, bus driver, cafeteria staff, administrator, or in any other way associated with our schools, feel free to bring whatever bag you usually carry to work with you. We want to spend time praying over you and blessing you and your work for this 2024-25 school year. Travis' message is "Apostles Speak," and the scripture is Acts 4:13-21. If you cannot join us in person, livestream is available through our app (search Vinton Baptist Church VA through your app store), at www.vintonbaptistchurch.org, and through our Facebook page.

Thursday Morning Small Group Meetings

Travis' Thursday morning small group will meet TOMORROW at 10:00 AM in the small dining room. We'll move to lunch at Pok-E-Joe's around 11:00 AM. Our regular weekly meetings will resume September 12th and run through November 21st before we take a break for the holidays. All adults are welcome to join us for engaging conversations!

JOY Seniors Schedule

We will enjoy the Sunflower Festival at Sinkland Farms, followed by dinner at Cracker Barrel, on Saturday, August 10th. We will depart VBC at 2:00 PM and return between 7:30 and 8:00 PM. The cost is $11 plus your meal. Please sign up ASAP!

Mark your calendar and sign up for our August 27th JOY Senior Luncheon. Lunch will come from Bellacino's and will include an individual 8" pizza (cheese or pepperoni), salad (various dressings), cookie, and water. The cost is $12. The program is on fall prevention. Did you know that 1 out of 4 older adults falls annually, resulting in about 3 million ER visits per year? Our speaker will present on Bingocize and a Matter of Balance. Both have proven to help reduce falls in those who participate.

Sight & Sound (Daniel), guided tour of Philadelphia, Independence National Park, city tour of Baltimore, National Aquarium, Baltimore Harbor lunch cruise, all meals except lunch on day of departure and day of return . . . these are a few of the events that you will enjoy on the JOY Senior trip September 24th - 26th. See the sign-up table for details on cost, etc. The deadline for sign-up and payment is Tuesday, August 20th.

We will ride the Alleghany Special on the Virginia Scenic Railroad as it ventures westward from historic Staunton through the beautiful farmland of the Shenandoah Valley on Saturday, November 2nd. We will enjoy a catered lunch on the way through the George Washington and Jefferson National Forests. The cost of this trip is $130/person. The deadline to sign up and pay is Sunday, September 1st. See more details about this 3-hour train ride at the JOY Senior table.

Plan to join us for a lunch/theater trip to Wohlfahrt Haus for the viewing of "Christmas in the Park" on Saturday, November 9th. The cost of this trip is $70/person and includes dinner, the play, and a tip. The deadline to sign up and pay is Sunday, October 6th. When signing up, please indicate whether you are riding the bus or driving.

Upcoming Youth Events

PLEASE NOTE: there will be NO Senior Send-off tonight; our seniors are unavailable due to college activities.

Back-to-School Lock-in- August 9th - 10th (this Friday - Saturday) - Come out for our annual fun and games! 7 PM - 7 AM. The cost is $30. Click here to sign up!

We're looking forward to fall events:

• Wednesday Night Missions resumes September 11th at 6:15 PM.
• Youth Choir returns at 11:45 AM Sunday, September 15th. There will also be a Fall Parent/Student Kickoff meeting at 6:00 PM that night.
• Youth Dinner & Extreme starts at 5:00 PM September 22nd.
• And save the dates for Fall Retreat: November 8th-10th!

Fall Schedule @ VBC

We're gearing up for the start of the school year. Please see the August calendar available through the link below. Following are a few dates of interest for September:

9/11 - Wednesday night activities (Children's Choirs, Weeknight Worship, Youth Missions, and Chancel Choir) resume.

9/15 - Youth Choir resumes (11:45 AM), along with Art from the Heart/Mission Kids (5 PM), and Youth Dinner/Extreme (6 PM). We will also have a Ministry Matters meeting (5 PM) in the gym. But FIRST, we'll have a church-wide Ice Cream Social at 4:15 PM!

Budget Committee

The Budget Committee will meet Thursday, August 15th at 6:00 PM in the small dining room. If you submitted a budget request form, you are welcome to attend.

Upcoming Youth Choir Fundraisers

Please mark your calendars for the following lunch fundraisers for the 2024-25 Youth Choir Mission Tour:

• September 8th - hamburgers, baked beans, & macaroni salad
• October 6th - salad bar and potato bar with all the fixings
• November 3rd - chili and potato soup with crackers

The cost of each meal is $10/person, and we will begin serving immediately following morning worship. Plan to join us for food and fellowship in the gym; takeout will not be offered. A signup sheet will soon be available at the Welcome Center for the September 8th event. Thanks in advance for supporting our Youth Choir!

Jean M. Thurman

Harmony Independent Living Apt. 61

4428 Pheasant Ridge Road

Roanoke VA 24014

Sunday, August 4, 2024

Sunday School: 197

10:30 AM Worship

• 343 in person
• 174 online

Thank you to the Fellowship/Berean class for their donation to the General Budget.

Thank you to the Open Door Sunday School class for their donation to the Maintenance & Improvement Budget.

Attention: Golfers

The Agape Center Vinton/Roanoke is located at 1568 Granby Street NE in Roanoke and is a resource for folks experiencing food insecurity or in need of clothing or other household items. They are hosting a golf tournament October 5th at Ashley Plantation to raise funds for this important ministry. Visit www.agapevinton.org for more info. If you don't golf, but you're interested in volunteer opportunities with this organization, you can find those details on their website, as well.

Bible Reading Plan

Over the next week, we will continue in Acts and see the gospel ministry of the disciples fan out from Jerusalem to Judea, then to Samaria, and then to the Gentiles through the salvation of Cornelius and his family and friends in Luke 10-11. Following is a passage from Fee & Stuart that deals with the first six chapters of Acts and provides some scriptural framework:

"Be looking also for two things that carry over from the last chapter of Luke's Gospel: (1) The disciples' ministry is primarily in the temple courts ... and (2) everything in this section is seen as fulfillment of very cardinal moments from the Old Testament story: the end-time gift of the Spirit promised by Joel (Acts 2:16-21); the resurrection of Jesus, as David's true heir (2:24-32); the present exaltation of Jesus as the exalted Lord of Psalm 110:1 (2:33-35); that the Messiah would suffer (3:17-23); that the promise to Abraham that he would bless the nations is about to be fulfilled (3:25); that the rejected Jesus is the rejected cornerstone of Psalm 118:22 (4:11) and the Messiah against whom the nations rage (4:25-26). Be on the watch for this motif as you continue through the rest of Acts.

Happy reading!

From the Human Resources Committee:

VBC has an immediate opening for a paid nursery worker. If you are interested in more details, please see Terry Hough or email her at mthough@cox.net.

Blessing Box Donations

The following are currently needed for the Blessing Box: Vienna sausage, oatmeal/grits, Pop Tarts, corn bread mix, and boxes of saltine crackers. If you can help, please place your donations in the Blessing Box bin at the Missions Tables. Thanks!

Support the Roanoke Rescue Mission

We are collecting shampoo and body wash for the Roanoke Rescue Mission. Please drop off your donations in the marked bin at the Missions Tables by August 21st. Thank you!

The following books have been added to the church library. "Check them out!"

• Just Once by Karen Kingsbury
• Un-Named: The Search for Sarah Miller by Sonya Womack-Miranda

Dear Vinton Baptist,

Thank you so very much for the beautiful flower arrangement that you sent for Velma Kendrick's funeral. We are so grateful!

Thank you, The Kendrick Family and Bruce & Martha Pelish