First Baptist Family of Asheboro, NC

In John 10 we saw that Jesus is the Good Shepherd who cares for us.  Jesus as the good Shepherd examines us and gives us all we need to live life to the fullest.  Jesus is going to show us how he treats his friends.  Jesus’ friend Lazarus gets sick and his sisters, Mary and Martha, send for Jesus.  They tell Jesus if he had only been there they know their brother wouldn’t have died.  People are grieving.  Lazarus’ death is real to them.  Jesus is grieving for his friend.  Jesus demonstrates He is the resurrection and the life.  Jesus has power over the grave.  Jesus tells the people to open the tomb.  Concern is expressed that the body will smell bad because it’s been in there a few days, but Jesus orders Lazarus to come out!  Lazarus walks out of the tomb and demonstrates the power Jesus has against whatever comes against us.  God has the power to act.  People were overwhelmed at experiencing Lazarus being raised from the dead, overwhelmed at Jesus’ power.  There were two respo

Pictured is the Royal Feast Pizza by Sir Pizza One couple shared they were thinking about people they knew may feel isolated and less likely to venture out to the store or for a take out meal.  They started thinking about what safe act of kindness that could may bring a spark of being cared for and thought about.  They decided to call three families and told them they would like to treat them to a lunch from Sir Pizza.  They said, "Just tell us what kind of pizza you like, we will pick it up and bring it to you door between 12:30 and 1."   The families were delighted.  The couple ordered the desired pizza for each of the families, picked up the pizza and delivered it to the door steps of the families.  This act of kindness showed the families they were thinking about them and reminded them they are loved and not forgotten.  After this experience, they are already thinking about duplicating the same thing this week on Friday. For more ideas like this one on what you

The student ministry at First Baptist Church of Asheboro, NC already has a rhythm to bless their community every Wednesday night.  Wednesdays are the "Send" arm of a three prong student ministry strategy of, "Win, Equip, Send," developed by Mark Hall, skilled student pastor for over thirty years.  Mark's group normally volunteers once a week with community organizations like CUOC, Habitat for Humanity, Your Choices Randolph and helping shut ins.  Last night the student ministry team gathered once again to do what feels normal to them:  packing federal food assistance boxes.  Together, they packed 135 boxes. The team has been doing this for years so the students know what to do when they arrive.  They're a well-oiled machine!  CUOC depends on this group monthly to get the boxes packed and ready to distribute to the community.  In these times the group will be at CUOC almost weekly to help ready the pantry for the community. When pastoral staff at Fi

3/31/20Update on Mask Sewing Ministry:  There are 5 women and 1 man sewing to provide masks for local health care workers.  Seven agencies have been served so far.  All are local agencies except fr one in Mocksville.  Over 200 masks have been sewn and donated so far.  Requests are still coming in and they'll continue to sew until the need no longer exists.  Needs: Financial support for the purchase of thread and machine needles, men's polo knit shirts, tight weave and NO NYLON.   We've also added a sign on the containers the masks are in.   How all of this started: When church member, Penny Rose, who works in a certified nursing facility, called church member Janet Myers asking about the possibility of sewing masks for their staff, Janet gladly accepted the task!  Janet is also working with a liaison at Randolph Health and Moses Cone to sew masks and face shields.   The great thing about fabric masks is they can be laundered and reused.  Volunteers are needed to he

I want to praise God and to share a time He has worked in my life. The experience shows how God used my emotional pain for my growth and answered my prayers only when I was ready and in a way that was best for me. My first wife and I came to Asheboro so I could work with Thad Moser and Wes Moser in their law firm, starting February 1, 1976. The office was in the Trollinger Building on Worth Street in Asheboro . My father died May 27, 1976. The funeral was at First United Methodist Church in Asheboro . He was buried in Asheboro . I helped mother as much as possible. I handled the estate. I missed Daddy’s advice and common sense. I did not deal fully with his death for years, not being able to cry or talk fully about it when I needed so much to do so. The senior partner in our firm, Thad Moser, died February 14, 1977. He was at his desk in the office when he slumped over. There was some confusion as to what to do. He was rushed to the hospital and cared for

Here's some of the group caroling at their 2nd facility, Crossroads Church member, Alison Hargett has led a group to minister in a local assisted living center.   They've led Bible School for the residents for a few years now and this has turned into a monthly Bible Study for residents with her, her daughters and some other moms and their daughters as well.  In this season of social distancing and lockdown for assisted living facilites, Alison's group got creative and went, "Corona Caroling" last week.  They sang outside the windows to the residents.  The windows couldn't be opened but they sang loud and the residents loved it!  They did a couple of songs with American Sign Language and brought smiles to faces.  They've made plans with another facility for this coming week and look forward to doing this again.  "We can't do our normal Bible Study but we figured out a way to bring them a little joy anyways!" said Hargett. Af

We’ve been working our way through Genesis; God created all there is.  God rescued people like Noah and his family.  John 10 is about how Jesus rescues all of us, how God steps into our lives and rescues us.  God cares for us and is the Good Shepherd.  He is the One that truly cares for our souls.  We can pull away from the noise and hear from God in the coming weeks. Counterfeit soul care is widespread.                         When Jesus arrived in this moment in John 10, beforehand, he had an encounter with the Pharisees when Jesus helped someone that was blind.  Jesus told the Pharisees they are blind.  Jesus is concerned when people need soul care.  The Pharisees are the people who should have been caring for other people but instead they were pushing people farther away from God.  There’s an analogy here of the shepherd and the sheep.  Here’s a group of people pretending to care.  How do we know who to trust?  1“Truly, truly, I say to you, he who does not enter th

The Crucifixion of St. Andrew I had a friend who became a Christian in his adulthood.   I asked him what made him change his mind and accept Jesus. He was scornful of the Bible during his college years, but having married a Christian, he noticed she behaved differently given the stresses in life.   He said the most convincing argument came not from the Gospel message at first, but how it affected those who believed it.   He was interested in history, so he did some research into the lives of the apostles. He found the following: Peter, Andrew, Jude and Simon were crucified. Matthew was impaled into the ground and beheaded. Bartholomew was whipped to death. Thomas died of a spear wound. Phillip was hung like a side of beef with hooks in his heels. James the son of Zebedee was beheaded by King Herod. Mattias was stoned and beheaded. James the half-brother of Jesus and James the Less were dropped from the temple. Paul was beheaded. John, the beloved disciple, died of