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Respecting the Spirit

“Respecting the Spirit” – Rev Benjamin Wines

May God be gracious to us and bless us
And make His face to shine upon us,
That Your way may be known upon earth,
Your saving power among all nations.
Let the peoples praise You, O God;
Let all the peoples praise You.
Let the nations be glad and sing for joy,
For You judge the peoples with equity.
Let the peoples praise You, O God;
Let all the peoples praise You.
The earth has yielded its increase;
God, our God, has blessed us.
May God continue to bless us;
Let all the ends of the earth revere Him. – from Psalm 67

Please join us for Worship – in person or via livestream – starting at 11:00AM on Sunday, May 22nd. We will be reading from Acts 16:6-15, and Rev. Benjamin Wines will bring the message, “Respecting the Spirit“.

Children’s Ministry Resources for May 22, 2022Download
Bulletin for May 22, 2022Download
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Eating with Gentiles

“Eating with Gentiles” – Rev. Benjamin Wines

Praise the Lord from the earth,
You sea monsters and all deeps,
Fire and hail, snow and frost,
Stormy wind fulfilling His command!
Mountains and all hills,
Fruit trees and all cedars!
Wild animals and all cattle,
Creeping things and flying birds!
Kings of the earth and all peoples,
Princes and all rulers of the earth!
Young men and women alike,
Old and young together!
Let them praise the Name of the Lord, for His Name is exalted;
His glory is above earth and heaven. from Psalm 148

Please join us for Worship – in person or via livestream – starting at 11:00AM on Sunday, May 15th. We will be reading from Acts 11:1-18, and Rev. Benjamin Wines will bring the message, “Eating with Gentiles“.

Bulletin – May 15, 2022Download
Children’s Ministry Resources – May 15, 2022Download
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“First”

Brothers and sisters,

It is hard to believe it, but my one-year anniversary here at Hope Valley Baptist Church was this past Sunday! My tenure as Senior Pastor began on May 1, 2021, with my first sermon being the very next day! It was a sermon entitled, “First”, and it was based on a reading from 1 John 4:7-21. The theme of the sermon was love (always a good topic!) and we talked about the way that God chooses to love people well and the call for each of us to love people well. I used a tennis analogy to talk about the love of God. I said that the most important part of a tennis player’s serve is the toss—that everything literally hangs in the balance when the ball is in the air. And I said that when God was choosing how to define Godself, everything hung in the balance, and God chose love.

Over this past year, I think we’ve done a good job, as a church, of choosing love. We reached out to McDougald Terrace and helped provide snacks during a time when kids would struggle to stay fed. We have started forming a relationship with teachers at Parkwood Elementary School to remind them that they are appreciated. We created goodie bags for healthcare workers at UNC, donated socks and underwear to Durham Urban Ministries, collected food for the Food Bank of Central and Eastern North Carolina. We’ve continued to house refugees in Hope House and help other people through Families Moving Forward. We’ve introduced new services (like the Service of Lament) in order to meet the needs of our congregation. And we’ve found new and innovative ways to gather together as a church family with Trunk-or-Treat and our Easter Egg Hunt.

It has been a good year and I am looking forward to what the next year has in store for us. I am encouraged by the fact that Covid case numbers continue to go down and so I am hoping that as 2022 continues, we will be able to gather in ways that look a little more normal. I hope that we can continue to reach out to our community, to build relationships with them, and discern God’s will for our church. I hope that we will continue to define ourselves by our love for others. Join me in praying for Hope Valley and the ways that we can remain faithful to God’s call for our church.

Grace and peace,
Pastor Ben

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Show Your Work

“Show Your Work” – Rev. Benjamin Wines

Happy Mother’s Day!

The Lord is my shepherd
I shall not want.
He makes me lie down in green pastures;
He leads me beside still waters;
He restores my soul.
He leads me in right paths for His Name’s sake.
Even though I walk through the darkest valley,
I fear no evil, for You are with me;
Your rod and Your staff — they comfort me.
You prepare a table before me,
In the presence of my enemies;
You anoint my head with oil; my cup overflows.
Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me
All the days of my life.
And I shall dwell in the House of the Lord
My whole life long. – Psalm 23

We invite you to join us for Worship – either in person or on-line – starting at 11:00AM. Today, we will be reading from Acts 9:35-43, as Rev. Benjamin Wines shares the sermon, “Show Your Work”. Our Call to Worship is Psalm 23.

Children’s Ministry Resources May 8, 2022Download
Bulletin May 8, 2022Download
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Brother Saul

“Brother Saul” – Rev. Benjamin Wines

I will extol you, O Lord, for You have drawn me up,
And did not let my foes rejoice over me.
O Lord my God, I cried to You for help,
And You have healed me.
O Lord, You brought up my soul from Sheol,
Restored me to life from those gone down to the Pit.
Sing praises to the Lord, O you His faithful ones,
And give thanks to His Holy Name.
For His anger is but for a moment;
His favor is for a lifetime.
Weeping may linger for the night,
But joy comes with the morning.
You have turned my mourning into dancing;
You have taken off my sackcloth and clothed me with joy,
So that my soul may praise You and not be silent.
O Lord my God, I will give thanks to You forever. – from Psalm 30

We hope that you will join us in Worship – online or in person – starting at 11:00AM, Sunday, May 1st, 2022. Our Call to Worship is from Psalm 30 and our Scripture reading will be from Acts 9:1-20. Rev. Benjamin Wines continues the sermon series, “A Whole New World”.

Bulletin May 1, 2022Download
Children Ministry Resources May 1, 2022Download
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The Mark of the Nails

“The Mark of the Nails” – Rev. Benjamin Wines

Praise the Lord! Praise God in His sanctuary;
Praise Him in His mighty firmament!
Praise Him for His mighty deeds;
Praise Him according to His surpassing greatness!
Praise Him with trumpet sounds;
Praise Him with lute and harp!
Praise Him with tambourine and dance;
Praise Him with strings and pipe!
Praise Him with clanging cymbals;
Praise Him with loud clashing cymbals!
Let everything that breathes praise the Lord!
Praise the Lord! –Psalm 50

We invite you to join us for Worship! We will be reading from John 20:19-31, as we continue our “A Whole New World” Sermon Series. Rev. Benjamin Wines brings the message, “The Mark of the Nails“.

Children’s Ministry Resources for April 24, 2022Download
Bulletin for April 24, 2022Download

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What Are You Looking For? Easter 2022

https://youtu.be/lyn0j70o0UEv

O give thanks to the Lord, for He is good;
His steadfast love endures forever!
With the Lord on my side I do not fear.
What can mortals do to me?
The Lord is my strength and my might;
He has become my salvation.
There are glad songs of victory in the tents of the righteous:
“The right hand of the Lord does valiantly;
“The right hand of the Lord is exalted;
“The right hand of the Lord does valiantly.”
I shall not die, but I shall live,
And recount the deeds of the Lord.
I thank You that You have answered me
And have become my salvation.
The stone that the builders rejected
Has become the chief cornerstone.
This is the Lord’s doing;
It is marvelous in our eyes. -from Psalm 118

We invite you to join us for our Easter Service at HVBC! Pastor Benjamin Wines brings the message, “What Are You Looking For?” We will be reading from Luke 24:1-12.

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Good Friday Service

My God, my God, why have You forsaken me?
Why are You so far from helping me, from the words of my groaning?
O my God, I cry by day, but You do not answer;
And by night, but find no rest.
Yet You are holy,
Enthroned on the praises of Israel.
In You our ancestors trusted;
They trusted, and You delivered them.
To You they cried, and were saved;
In You they trusted, and were not put to shame.
I am poured out like water,
And all my bones are out of joint;
My heart is like wax;
It is melted within my breast;
My mouth is dried up like a potsherd, and my tongue sticks to my jaws;
You lay me in the dust of death.
But You, O Lord, do not be far away!
O my Help, come quickly to my aid! from Psalm 22

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Services This Week

This is the last Illuminator before our joyous celebration of the resurrection and so I want-ed to be sure to write a little bit about the special services we have coming up.

The first is Palm Sunday—this Sunday—at 11:00 AM in the sanctuary. You are invited to join us in worship as we celebrate and commemorate the triumphal entry of Jesus into Jerusalem. We will celebrate Christ’s arrival as the arrival of a different kind of king, one who will bring true peace to his people.

Our second special service will be on Wednesday, April 13th at 6:30 PM in our sanctuary. This will be our hand-washing service where we will seek to imitate our Savior by washing each other’s hands as an act of love and service. We will make sure to perform the hand-washing in a Covid-conscious manner that is safe for all involved.

Our third special service will be on Good Friday, April 15th at 7:00 in our sanctuary. At this service we will read through and ponder the crucifixion, death, and burial of Jesus. It is a more somber service as the Christ light will be extinguished, the altar will be stripped of all decoration, and the service itself will end in silence and darkness. It should be a powerful service that re-minds us all of the tremendous faith and courage of Jesus.

Finally, please be sure to make plans to be with us on Sunday, April 17th at 11:00 for our Easter Sunday celebration! The good news of the Gospel is that while Jesus may get laid in a tomb on Friday, he doesn’t stay there long! Come as we celebrate the resurrection of the Lord and declare that Christ has risen!

Make plans to be here with us for as many of these services as you can! I look forward to seeing you all throughout this coming week!

Grace and peace,
Pastor Ben

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Colts and Stones

Colts and Stones – Rev. Benjamin Wines

O give thanks to the Lord, for He is good;
His steadfast love endures forever!
I thank You that You have answered me
And have become my Salvation.
The Stone that the builders rejected
Has become the Chief Cornerstone.
This is the Lord’s doing;
It is marvelous in our eyes.
This is the day that the Lord has made;
Let us rejoice and be glad in it.
Save us, we beseech You, O Lord!
O Lord, we beseech You, give us success!
Blessed is the one who comes in the Name of the Lord.
We bless you from the House of the Lord.
You are my God, and I will give thanks to You;
You are my God, I will extol You.
O give thanks to the Lord, for He is good,
For His steadfast love endures forever! – from Psalm 118

We hope you will join us for our Palm Sunday service! We will be reading from Luke 19:28-40, and Pastor Benjamin Wines brings the message entitled, “Colds and Stones”.

Bulletin Palm Sunday 2022Download
Children’s Ministry Resources for Palm Sunday 2022Download