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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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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
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Holy Extravagance

“Holy Extravagance” – Rev. Benjamin Wines

When the Lord restored the fortunes of Zion,
We were like those who dream.
Then our mouth was filled with laughter,
And our tongue with shouts of joy;
Then it was said among the nations,
“The Lord has done great things for them.”
The Lord has done great things for us,
And we rejoiced.
Restore our fortunes, O Lord,
Like the watercourses in the Negeb.
May those who sow in tears
Reap with shouts of joy.
Those who go out weeping,
Bearing the seed for sowing,
Shall come home with shouts of joy,
Carrying their sheaves. -from Psalm 126

We invite you to join us at 10:45AM – either in person or via YouTube – for our Morning Worship Service. Rev. Benjamin Wines bring the sermon, “Holy Extravagance”. We will be reading from John 12:1-8.

April 3, 2022 BulletinDownload
Children’s Ministry Resources April 3, 2022Download

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Everything Made New

“Everything Made New” – Rev. Benjamin Wines

Happy are those whose transgression is forgiven,
Whose sin is covered.
Happy are those to whom the Lord imputes no iniquity,
And in whose spirit there is no deceit.
While I kept silence, my body wasted away through my groaning all day long.
For day and night Your hand was heavy upon me;
My strength was dried up as by the heat of summer.
Then I acknowledged my sin to You, and I did not hide my iniquity;
I said, “I will confess my transgressions to the Lord,”
And You forgave the guilt of my sin.
Therefore let all who are faithful offer prayer to You;
At a time of distress, the rush of mighty waters shall not reach them.
You are a hiding place for me; You preserve me from trouble;
You surround me with glad cries of deliverance. from Psalm 32

We invite you to join us on this 4th Sunday of Lent. Our scripture passage is 2 Corinthians 5:16-21. Rev. Benjamin Wines brings the message, “Everything Made New”.

Bulletin March 27, 2022Download
Children’s Ministry Resources March 27, 2022Download

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Operation InAsMuch

Brothers and sisters,

I am excited for us to be participating in Operation Inasmuch this year for two reasons. The first is simply that it is nice to do something that feels like “normal” after the last two years. It feels good to be able to take part in a big mission project together. It feels good to work with each other and pull together toward a common goal. It especially feels good to know that we can reach out to people who are in need — whether it is the healthcare workers over at UNC who need to hear how much we appreciate them, those folks experiencing homelessness who need basic supplies to survive, or the children over at Lenox Baker Children’s Hospital.

The other reason I am excited for us to be doing Operation Inasmuch this year is because of some of the memories I have of participating in it as a youth at my home church. I think I have mentioned this before, but I grew up in Goldsboro and was raised at First Baptist, Goldsboro. My home church is a very missions-minded group, always looking for opportunities to help others. So when we first heard about Operation Inasmuch twenty-some years ago, we jumped at the chance to get out and help people! Each year I was inspired by how many people at First Baptist came out to help other people and I was shocked at how many different ways people had thought of to help! Some of us went and did yard work for homebound Goldsboro residents. Some went and built ramps onto houses for people who used wheelchairs. Some stayed at the church and baked cookies for local first responders and wrote them notes. Others sorted through all kinds of donations made to the church that were going to local shelters. And I am sure there were other things we did that I just did not see!

Typically, whenever we did Operation Inasmuch, I would invite my friends to come and participate as well. There was one year in particular that I remember one of them saying, “This is great! I like how everyone is working at different sites, but you’re all working together to help people! It makes it feel like everyone is a team just trying to help.” At its best, that’s what Operation Inasmuch pushes us to do. It pushes us to work together, even if we are separated, in order to accomplish a common goal — helping others. Christ tells us that we are to help our neighbors, to love them as we love ourselves. Operation Inasmuch is such a wonderful expression of that belief. It is a week in which we put actions behind our words.

So, to everyone that is participating in any way, shape, or form, thank you! If you would like to get involved, the most pressing needs we have right now are for new packs of socks and under-wear of all sizes. These will be delivered to Urban Ministries. We will be collecting those through-out the next week, from March 27 through April 3. If you would like to make a blanket for the children over at Lenox Baker, please be sure to contact Barbara Sanders for a kit to get started! And to those of you that have volunteered to bake cookies or write cards for the healthcare workers at UNC, remember that those are due to the church this Sunday, March 27. Again, regardless of how you want to get involved, thank you! This is a wonderful way for all of us to use our time and our talents to provide a blessing to our neighbors here in Durham!

Grace and peace,
Pastor Ben