|
First Baptist Church, Wichita, KS |
||||||||||
216 East Second
|
What
kind of a church is First Baptist?
Good question! We'd love to talk with you in person about our church, but
for now, this should help you get a handle on just what kind of church
we are.
Our
Vision:
Many churches in the U.S., even in Wichita, seem to be on a road to nowhere.
We're not one of them. We're excited about what God is doing among us.
Even though First Baptist has been around for almost 130 years, we don't think
of ourselves as an organization, but as one of God's organisms - living, growing,
and changing. We respect that every person is in the process of change as well. We're all on a spiritual journey, but we also believe we know who God wants us to become.
If we could sum up the mission of First Baptist in a single phrase it would be
this: "To make serious disciples of Jesus Christ united in a
worshiping, missionary community." Let us explain.
Serious
Disciples
The
term "serious" refers to the real commitment we have to
follow Jesus and His teachings. We use the biblical term
"disciple" which means "student, or follower." We have come to
experience God's love, forgiveness and reason for living in the person
of Jesus Christ. He is the center of who we are and what we're about.
United.
. .
Look
around our sanctuary on Sunday mornings, and you'll realize we have a
lot of diversity. The people of First Baptist come from amazingly
diverse backgrounds - a wide range of ages, nationalities,
denominations, cultures, personalities, and incomes. We don't all look
alike - we don't even speak the same language, but we are united in the
person of Jesus Christ and what He's done for us. In light of that,
we're more alike than different. Celebrating diversity is fine, but we'd
rather focus on our unity in Jesus Christ.
in
a Worshiping. . .
Worship
of God is our primary calling. Our time of worship on Sunday mornings is
divided into three sections: We come into the Lord's presence, we hear
from Him, and we respond to Him. Our worship style seeks to balance the
rich heritage of various traditions with meaningful contemporary
expressions of worship. Missionary.
. . We use
the term missionary in two ways. Every Sunday morning there are
two worship services for Internationals, one in Laotian and
English, and one in Mandarin and English. On the first Sunday of
every month we all worship and celebrate the Lord's Supper together in
the Sanctuary. God is doing a great work in bringing a mission field to
us so that our ministry reaches across the globe via those who return
to their home countries and serve the Lord among their people.
Secondly,
we see ourselves as missionaries to America. We have good news to share
and we want to actively share it with the people in our everyday worlds.
Missionaries are not just in the jungles of Africa, they meet on Sunday
mornings at the corner of Second and Broadway.
Community.
. .
We speak often of being family. We seek to be involved in one another's
lives, helping each other live for Jesus Christ, and giving and
receiving from one another. Sure, sometimes we fail - but we are
committed to one another.
An
Invitation to You!
We
know that First Baptist is not God's place for everyone. Neither do we
claim to be perfect. But we're genuinely excited about what God is doing
among us.
Now
that you've heard a little about us, we hope you'll give us the
opportunity to get to know you better. We worship together on Sunday
mornings at 10:45. Check us out - do we really love each other? Will we
really care about you and help you know God? Only you can answer those
questions. We invite you to answer them in relationship with us.
|
|||||||||