In three short months, we will celebrate our church’s 185th birthday. If you let that sink in for a moment, your appreciation for the longevity of ministry in the heart of Griffin cannot help but grow. Our physical doors remain open by the grace of God and thanks to the efforts of many gifted stewards of God’s blessings who have maintained our properties through the years.

   In Dr. Bruce Morgan’s Narratives of Grace, Dr. Bill Hardee acknowledged the nature of the task before us:

Property needs in a church with the sheer size of our physical plant are unending. We clearly needed to develop ways of funding the long-term upkeep on our facilities…Early in his tenure as properties chair, Harry Burkhalter worked with Eddie Jones, our maintenance manager, to create a seven-year plan for property upkeep. They developed a schedule to help us anticipate when equipment might fail and need to be replaced, and placed all anticipated needs — from roofs to HVAC to painting — on a calendar. Each year, if available, funds would be drawn from designated funds to meet the projected property needs for the coming year. Funds would be held in a property reserve account until needed for those projects. (Morgan, 83)

   This year alone, our Properties Committee has been proactive in the care of our church facilities. The committee has overseen aspects of the breezeway conversion to an enclosed gallery, the hard pruning (and some removal) of shrubbery and trees around the church, painting, repair of soffets and facia around the building, repairs to the boiler and HVAC system, carpet cleaning, pressure washing, and countless minor repairs throughout the building.

   We owe our Properties Committee a debt of gratitude for the hours they have dedicated to planning, arranging, overseeing, and inspecting work to keep our facilities in the best working condition we can have. Your contribution to our regular budget makes it possible for the Properties Committee to follow through on its work. Thank you for partnering with us in this ministry to welcome our community into our worship space.

Attendance numbers are averaged for November. Budget numbers represent year-to-date information as of November 30.

Celebration Worship: 182

Connexion Worship: 120

Sunday school: 187

Budget: $1,314.500.00

Received: $1,346,546.50

Expenses: $1,347,285.14

Difference: ($738.64)

If you would like to read more stories like this, we invite you to visit our website to read more: Your Giving in Action

Grace Notes

a weekly blog written by Senior Pastor, Steven Norris

Waging Guerilla Joy-fare

We stretched the toboggans over our ears, wrapped the scarves around our necks, and piled into the church van armed with a stack of lyric sheets and heart full of Christmas cheer. Arriving at the first house, we circled the steps leading up to the front door while a volunteer pressed the doorbell. When the door inched its way open and an unsuspecting grandma peeked around the corner, we broke into our best rendition of the perennial favorite, “Joy to the World.”
Thankfully, we had brought the music minister along to help keep us somewhat close to a common pitch, but the quality of music was overshadowed by the intensity of our joy. For the next ten minutes, we serenaded our neighbor with the story of Christmas — of angels singing, cattle lowing, drummer boys drumming, and wise men journeying. The smiles and laughter were contagious as we traveled from house to house, surprising unsuspecting friends with the joy of the season.
I miss those simple days — days without pretense or elaborate staging. Today, it feels like everything is a production, complete with lights, choreography, fog machines, and backing tracks. Fading are the traditions of the true amateur, popping up in unsuspecting places to sing and make merry for the sole purpose of eliciting smiles of delight and wonder.
The art of the surprise attack has a long history in military history. During the American Revolution, Francis Marion (better known as “Swamp Fox”) was renown for his use of guerrilla warfare tactics to disrupt the British supply lines and wear down their defenses. In the face of an army so vast, these tactics created a way for a ragtag group of passionate soldiers to make an enormous impact on the final outcome of the war.
What would happen if a ragtag group of friends decided that they would engage in some guerrilla joy-fare this week? No elaborate plans. No long nights of rehearsals. No carefully crafted harmonies. I am talking about regular, everyday folks looking for ways to spread joy to someone in an unsuspecting way this week.
Pay for another person’s meal by surprise. Give an extra generous tip for a hard-working server. Wear a gaudy Christmas Sweater and light-up Rudolph nose to work, just to make others smile. Maybe it could look like making a large batch of hot chocolate, filling up enough travel mugs for the whole family, and piling in the car to go look at Christmas lights around town. Maybe it looks like putting on some Christmas favorites from the Rat Pack and choosing to slow dance with your significant other in the light of the Christmas tree. Maybe you could gather with friends and go Christmas caroling through the neighborhood. The possibilities are only limited by your imagination.
The point is this: spreading joy doesn’t have to cost you anything. In a world battling the legion of despair and hopelessness, we can choose to fight back in unsuspecting ways. We can choose to spread joy, laughter, smiles, and good cheer — one surprise Christmas carol at a time.

Caregivers Clothes Closet Needs

The Caregivers Clothes Closet is in need of blue jeans of any size (but especially boys, sizes 4-16 and larger sizes for men), as well as adult-sized book bags. You will find drop boxes in the Welcome Center on the Hill Street side of the church and in the Welcome area on the Family Life Center side of the church. Thank you for supporting this ministry and those who are vulnerable in our community.

Five Loaves & Two Fish Food Pantry

If you would like to be part of this ministry team, or if you would like to donate canned or boxed food goods, please contact the church office. Donation boxes are located in the Welcome Center and in the Family Life Center.

Benevolence Ministry

Our Benevolence Ministry and Caregivers Clothes Closet serves the public each Monday morning from 8:30 a.m. to 10:00 a.m. (with the exception of holidays). If you would like to volunteer for this ministry, then please contact the church office.

Pam Godard has generously donated this handicap ramp to anyone who might have need of it. If you know of someone who would benefit from having this ramp, please contact Bob Long (678-438-6491).

Church Community News

Tis the season to share our joy! Our recap for this week features the FBC staff Christmas party, a gorgeous (double) rainbow that appeared late Thursday afternoon, and a visit from Leila's parents, where she showed them the Chrismons on the Christmas tree in the Sanctuary. (Leila's Dad, Michael Whelchel, cut out the 130 new Chrismon templates our church family decorated this year.)

Rehearsal Schedule

Other News