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Sharing God’s Love in the Heart of the City
First Baptist Church of Silver Spring
9727 Georgia Avenue
▪SilverSpring,MD 20910-1458 ▪301‐754‐1100 ▪www.fbcss.org
Multi-national, -cultural & -generational, united in Christ to worship, grow & serve
Volume 59 No. 3
February 8, 2015
A PRAYER GUIDE FOR THE BUILDING PROJECT – PART TWO
In the last Tie Line, I promised more guidelines. Sadly, the only news we have is that discussions are
moving slowly but steadily toward finalizing costs, plans, contract, and permit application. Hopefully,
there will be heartening news in the next article. The developer still has his eye on February/March as a
possible start time for asbestos abatement.
Let me repeat what was covered in the last article. I urged you to start with Thanksgiving that would
help you see the tremendous progress already made over the past 12 years. They were:
1. Thanks for the churches’ votes to stay in downtown Silver Spring.
2. Thanks for the dream of federating our three churches to do what we couldn’t do alone.
3. Pray for wisdom in forming that Federation.
4. Thanks for a developer who supports our vision and is willing to contribute to make it
happen.
Now, let’s move to our fifth item for prayer. We should definitely give thanks for our architect, John
Rosecrans. John has been doing church architecture for more than 25 years and has pioneered some of
the advances in church building.
A church facility is not a big house; it is not a fancy school; it is not a reshaped theater; it is not a
redesigned store or warehouse. A church’s building is a unique kind of building to handle volumes of
people-traffic within very restrictive fire and safety regulations. It must be designed to house a variety of
functions by multiple age groups. Besides worship, a church also has baptisms, funerals, and weddings
with all the accoutrements needed for each activity. A major part of its program is music with library
space and furniture, clothing storage, practice, and performance. Rooms for practice and performance
have acoustical requirements that are different from a Sunday School classroom or auditoriums used for
speaking. Rooms for education must allow for recreation as well as learning. There must be places for
storing, preparing, cooking, serving, and eating food. And, the church must also plan for its building to
be used by people from the community and other churches who come for meetings and fellowship. This
only touches the surface of how a church’s building is used.
Thankfully, the Lord has sent us an architect who has seen just about everything imaginable for a church
building, as well as what has to be outside, such as the face of the building and the landscaping to give it
“curb appeal.” John has also been blessed by God with a gift for helping churches work through very
The Tie Line ▪ February 8, 2015 ▪ Page 2
difficult questions and problems. We saw this in the way he interviewed people involved in our many
different ministries as well as the way he helped reduce a building in size, but not in function, to fit a
more manageable price for us.
As you thank the Lord for John’s gifts and will to work with us, also pray for him as he grapples with
the knotty issues of what price and what value of materials should be used. That goes all the way down
to screws and nails as well as shingles, siding, flooring, ceiling, and cement composition for different
parts of the buildings and grounds.
Keep praying and keep believing. This is God’s project, too!!
Pastor Mac
CONTRIBUTING TO FIRST BAPTIST CHURCH
Your tax-deductible contributions to the church may be received three ways:
 Placing cash and checks in the offering plate on Sunday morning;
 ONLINE BILL PAY: You may contribute electronically through your
bank’s ONLINE BILL PAY feature.
 CYBER GIVING: You may contribute electronically through the church’s website, FBCSS.org
by clicking the Online Giving button. After setting up your personal profile, you may choose
either to contribute a specific amount on a regular basis or make a one-time contribution.
Building Fund Contributions (as of February 1):
$337,526.68
We need your help. The Tie Line, our church newsletter, is produced twice a month. We thank
Jennifer Martin for her assistance in putting our publication together. We now need someone else to
"step up to the plate" and volunteer in this capacity. See Valeria Foster for more information about this
ministry opportunity.
VOLUNTEER ONCE A MONTH
On the first Thursday of each month (5:30-7:30 p.m.), help us at Shepherd’s Table in downtown
Silver Spring (next duty date: March 5). See Claire Giammaria
([email protected])
Run the PowerPoint slide presentation once a month for the worship service.
See Curdella Forbes.
Once every four weeks, help us distribute food to Montgomery County residents
(10 a.m.-Noon) through our Food Closet, located at Montgomery Hills Baptist
Church. There is currently an urgent need for volunteers on Team B.
See Todd Guise or Jim Reed.
WEEKLY BIBLE STUDY
Mondays
7:00 p.m.
Wednesdays 7:20 p.m.
Fridays
1:30 p.m.
Sundays
10:00 a.m.
Bi-Weekly Bible Study
10755 McGregor Dr., Columbia
301-307-0021
Led by Don Keuch, Bill Kreitlow, Bob Holt
Online Bible Study (using Google Hangout)
9727 Georgia Ave. (Montgomery Hills Baptist) 301-221-2607
Led by Sharon Husic, Rayness Mayne
@ Takoma Park Community Center
Friday, February 13 7:00 p.m. led by Clemon Joseph
11303 Amherst Avenue, #4, Wheaton 240-460-7532
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2014 FBC CONTRIBUTION STATEMENTS
The statements of contributions to FBCSS in 2014 were mailed to givers of record during the week of
January 18, 2015. If you did not receive your statement or if you have questions about your record of
contributions, please contact the church office (301-754-1100) as soon as possible.
HEALTH CARE COVERAGE
Open Enrollment ENDS February 15, 2015
For most people access to health care services is predicated on access to health insurance. During the
past year, we have seen a 26-percent drop in the number of uninsured in the nation--a remarkable
achievement for those individuals and families. Yet there are 32 million Americans who lack this
security. Right now, however, you can obtain affordable coverage through www.HealthCare.gov.
If you have not already enrolled, you can obtain affordable, quality health insurance coverage through
the Health Insurance Marketplace before the February 15, 2015 deadline.
AFRICAN AMERICAN PIONEERS IN AVIATION FAMILY DAY
SATURDAY, FEBRUARY 21
10:00 AM – 3:00 PM
AIR AND SPACE MUSEUM
Each February, the Museum celebrates the significant contributions African Americans
have made to flight and space exploration despite the overwhelming obstacles they had to
overcome. Visitors enjoy presentations, hands-on activities, and stories, and may have
the opportunity to meet astronauts, fighter pilots, and others who will share stories of
their challenges and accomplishments. They also learn about inspiring historic figures
like Bessie Coleman through reenactments or story times. Admission is free. For more information,
visit http://airandspace.si.edu/events/heritage-days/african-american/.
LYRICAL RHYTHMS: THE SOUNDS OF FREEDOM
SATURDAY, FEBRUARY 28
Josiah Henson Park
3:00 PM – 4:00 PM
North Bethesda
Close out Montgomery County’s Black History Month celebration with our annual poetry event. Create
and share your own "sounds of freedom" in the form of original poetry. Only self-guided tours are
offered during the program. A reception with light refreshments immediately follows.
GET HELP APPLYING FOR FINANCIAL AID
TUESDAY, FEBRUARY 10
2:00 PM – 4:00 PM
College-bound students and their families can get professional assistance filling out the Free Application
for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA) form at College Goal Maryland events, which will be held on two
different Montgomery College campuses. The first event will take place on February 10 from 2-4 p.m. at
the Takoma Park/Silver Spring Campus in the Charlene R. Nunley Student Services Center, 7625
Fenton Street, Silver Spring, Md.
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Darrell Verner
Roxanne Desir
Sally George
Elizabeth Tandski
Elvie Smith
William A L Smith II
Lucille Haney
William Smith
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Virginia Garcia
Ethel Kennedy
Angela Spencer
Benita Bocar
Lizzie Graham
Asini Lindor-Taka
Monique Harris
FEBRUARY 2015
MONDAY, FEBRUARY 9
7:00 p.m.
Bible Study @ 10775 McGregor Dr., Columbia
WEDNESDAY, FEBRUARY 11
7:20 p.m.
Online Bible Study (using Google Hangout)
THURSDAY, FEBRUARY 12 @MHBC
6:00 p.m.
Handbells
7:00 p.m.
Choir Rehearsal
FRIDAY, FEBRUARY 13
1:30 p.m.
Bible Study @ MHBC
7:00 p.m.
Bi-Weekly Bible Study @ 11303 Amherst Ave., #4
SATURDAY, FEBRUARY 14 @ MHBC
10:00 a.m.-Noon
Food Closet (Team C)
SUNDAY, FEBRUARY 15
@ Takoma Park Community Center
10:00 a.m.-11:00 a.m.
Adult Bible Study
11:00 a.m.-12:15 p.m.
Worship Service
11:30 a.m.-12:30 p.m.
Children’s Bible Study
WEDNESDAY, FEBRUARY 18 @MHBC
7:00 p.m.
Ash Wednesday Service
THURSDAY, FEBRUARY 19
7:00 p.m.
Church Council/Trustees
SATURDAY, FEBRUARY 21 @MHBC
10:00 a.m.–Noon
Food Closet (Team D)
10:00 a.m.
Women in Action
Ministers and Staff
Duncan McIntosh, Proclamation
Gareth Murray, Associate Pastor
Valeria Foster, Worship & Administration,
Jerry Orrell, Administrative Assistant, TL Editor
Barbara Williams, Webmaster, Media Center
Eric Walters, Associate Pastor
Gerald Piercey, Organist
Rosemary Piercey, Celebration Ringers
Jennifer Martin, The Tie Line
Bill Smith, Listserve Moderator