By the grace of God, the Philippi Baptist Church

shall Embrace, Model, and Share the love of God

through Jesus Christ by the power of the Holy Spirit.

Philippi Baptist Church ♦ 107 Church St. ♦Philippi, WV 26416 ♦ (304) 457-3206

Catch us on the radio live every Sunday Morning at 10:30a.m. WQAB 91.3 FM

E-mail: office@pbcwv.net Website: www.pbcwv.net

107 Church Street Philippi, WV 26416(304)457-3206 Jon Villers, Pastor

The Baptist BridgeThe Baptist Bridge

Inside this Issue

Pastor’s Message...2

Birthdays…3

Anniversaries...3

Prayer requests...3

Schedule...3-4

Events….4

Getting to know...5

Sportsman’s

Banquet ...6

October 2012

2

Dear PBC family,

We bring you greetings from your Union Association Churches who consider you a sister church in service. You had

20 other churches in the Union Association last month and now you have 21! We welcome the Long Run Fellowship

Church as our newest member to the Union Association as of September, 30, 2012! Their request to join our association

was unanimously approved at our 208th Annual Gathering that was held at the First Baptist Church of Elkins. I would

ask that you keep Pastor George Murphy, their spiritual leaders and congregation in our prayers. I want to include the

church's address so that we might have an opportunity to welcome them to our family.

1804, 1849, 2012 all carry significance with dates to remember! I have attached a few paragraphs from "West Virginia

Baptist History, The Early Years: 1770-1865" that give you an indication of the importance of the first two dates:

"Undoubtedly, the same reasons were offered for forming the Union Association in the northern areas as for the Green-

brier and other Baptist associations. Those were, of course, the need for fellowship of scattered sister churches, sanction-

ing of pastors and visiting evangelists, doctrinal unity and stability, and fraternal connections with the larger body of

Baptists. Even though there was no national body of American Baptists prior to 1814, minister and lay travelers from

one region to another brought increasing contact between churches and associations. As noted in the early associational

minutes, fraternal representatives bringing greetings from a church or association became a rather common occurrance.

The formation of associations was, by this time, becoming a natural consequence for churches finding themselves

grouped together geographically and, in the case of present West Virginia, those churches were usually separated by a

range of hills and/or mountains......The minutes of the Redstone Association of 1804 state: 'A petition from the church-

es in Virginia to this Association for a separate Association, viz., Simpson Creek, Pricket's Creek, Hopewell, Mount

Zion, Salem, Union, and Sandy Creek Resolved, to be taken under consideration and rest till next Association.' In 1803

the request was granted by the Redstone Association and in 1804 the Union Association met for the first time at Prick-

ett's Creek Church in present Marion County."(pg. 51)

I thank Truett Rogers for providing us a history of where we have come from! The second date comes into significance

as we read a little further in his book:

"PHILIPPI BAPTIST CHURCH, Barbour County -- 1849..... First Services were held in the County Court House and

in the Grange Hall which was leased by the church. The first resident clergyman was Rev. R. M. Strickler, noted as a

Yale University graduate." (pg. 137)

And the last date marks our newest addition to the Union Association. 2012 continues to be a year of growth and health

in God's Kingdom! Here is the address of our new sister church - Long Run Fellowship, 30 Free Will Drive, Fleming-

ton WV 26347 - Pastor George Murphy

We also want to celebrate with the Mt. Vernon Baptist Church who is in the process of ordaining their current Pastor,

Paul Byrd. Pastor Byrd has completed his ordination paper and their church will soon be making a call to all of our

association churches to send deacons and pastors to participate in his Ordination Council. I serve as chairperson for the

Nominating Committee for our association and was privileged to sit down with Paul to hear his heart for ministry and

the calling on his life!!!

We have several opportunities each year to connect with our sister Union Association Churches. I would encourage you

to come and meet your brothers and sisters in Christ as we continue to learn how we can do far more together than we

can apart!!

Shalom,

Pastor Jon

3

C

Men’s Prayer Breakfast

Saturday, October 6

7:30 am

Medallion Restaurant ________________________

SUNDAY, OCTOBER 7TH

A-B Students from the Baptist Campus Ministry are spon-

soring a benefit lunch before the walk in the Fellowship

Hall of Philippi Baptist Church. A love gift for the food

will be accepted. The lunch will start at 11:45am.

Mayor Mouser has scheduled a community wide picnic

from 1-5 that same afternoon. After the walk, it would be

great if our churches would walk over to support that

gathering! They will be using the city lots across from the

BC Bank behind the Presbyterian Church downtown

A-B College, President Creehan

faculty, staff and students

Denny Poling-Bowers

Lee Beuckman

Dan Bryant

Jamie & Jason Burrow

Ralph and Phyllis Crites

Chuck Boyer

Eleanor Ruth Burton

Audrey Cross

Sharon Cross

Becky and Mike Elmore

Melissa Franke’s Aunt Gail

Otilia Franke

Jim & Joni Friend

Jane Gibbons

Joe & Beverly Gouer

Courtney Hill’s grandmother

Anthony & Noah Hinkle

Holly Camacho

Jerry Jones

Brenda Hunt

Christina Maddy

Donal Matthews

Amanda Means

Shane Miller

Donna Moore

Dr. Jennifer Parks

Sara Poling’s family

Brenda & Gary Price

Julanne Roy

Margaret Salimi

Braden Scheick

Tommy

Singley Family

Kaley Sinsel

David Smell

Donna Thorne

Christina Wentz

Elizabeth Wentz

Otilia Franke (Mansfield Place)

Blair & Pearl Marks,

Dr. Shearer,

Mary Tamulitis

Vangie Shaffer: (Mansfield Place)

Germaine & Austin

Whitman,

Unspoken requests for family

members, unsaved people,

community concerns, job and

home loss, financial difficulties.

Also, in need of prayer: Our

national, state, and country lead-

ers and officials. Please pray for

Victims of crime, war and

violence throughout our coun-

try.

Pray for protection for military

personnel and their families

throughout the world and those

serving our country:

Tim Jenkins,

Chris Mossburg,

Major Kris Wood and

Captain Aaron Cross

1– Jordan Price

5– Eric Wolfe

Tom Kines

14 - Bob Byrne

17– Pete Ferguson

18– Austin Whitman

20– Stephen Lewis

22– Joan Hill

23– Carla Campbell

25– Eli Campbell

27– Pastor Jon Villers

28– Jim Kines

28– Mary Tamulitis

29– Georgeann Davis

Bill Klaus

6– Danny & Melissa Franke

11– Ross & Molly Campbell

4

Children’s Volunteer Watch and Teach Calendar for October

CHILDREN’S RALLY

WVBC Children’s Rally (kindergarten – 5th grade) is Saturday, November 3rd from 9am-3pm at

Parchment Valley Conference Center in Ripley, W. The theme is “God’s Olympics: Running the

Christian Race”. Cost is $12 per person, which the church will pay. If interested in going, please let

Koreen know by October 14. Transportation will be provided also. Theme t-shirts are available

for $10, which you must prepay by October 14th.

We are beginning our 2012 World Mission Offering . You will find information

in the bulletin and newsletter. The theme is “Hear the Call”. The gifts received

from this effort will help IM to call a new generation of missionaries into service,

will provide continued support for current missionaries and help support crucial ministries of the partners

with whom they serve.

COME SEE WHAT ABW HAS TO OFFER

Who: Women of the Church

Where: Fellowship Hall

When: Tuesday, October 2nd 7:00pm

Program: Shaped and Molded—Presented by Koreen Villers

Bible Book of the Month - II Samuel

We will be collecting Campbell’s Soup labels and Box Tops for Education throughout the year.

October 7 October 14 October 21 October 28

Nursery Wanda Steele

James Steele

Christie Allen

Need Volunteer

Rebekah

Hicks

Cheryl Wolfe

Allison Villers

Wee

Church

Cheryl and

Abby Blankenship

Koreen Villers

Bobby Villers

Tom Dadisman

Pete Ferguson

Heather Cottrill

Hayden Cottrill

Junior

Church

Sarah Ferguson

Pete Ferguson

Kelly Bracey

Lindsay Bracey

Chuck Ervin

Carol Ervin

Sara Poling

Eddy Poling

5

Craig Cobb is currently serving as the Treasurer for Philippi Baptist Church, but he has also served as Financial

Secretary, member of the Diaconate, Church Moderator, Sunday School Superintendent, and chair of the Every

Member Canvass (for the past ten years!).

He smiles as he reports that in his home town, Hinckley, Ohio, he was raised Lutheran by Methodist parents. His

smile broadens as he adds, “My wife, Sarah, was raised Methodist by Lutheran parents.” How did they wind up

being American Baptists? It seems that after they moved to Philippi, Sarah began teaching at the Junior Elemen-

tary School where Priscilla Wonkka taught music. Priscilla, then organist at Philippi Baptist Church, invited the

Cobbs to visit. “We immediately felt right at home,” Craig says, “and we’ve been here ever since. This church is

the foundation for everything else we do, whether in our family or in the community—wherever.”

As for community, Craig has served on the Barbour County Solid Waste Authority, and he has coached youth

soccer. He was the president of the Barbour County Swim Team Association for 3 years; and he has served as

the secretary of the City Planning Commission for the City of Philippi, for the past 14 years.

Craig earned his Bachelor of Science degree in Civil Engineering from Ohio University and later his Master of

Science in Environmental Engineering from the University of Cincinnati. In between, he spent almost three

years on active duty in the U.S. Army, stationed at Ft. Meade, Maryland, where he worked for the US Army En-

vironmental Hygiene Agency. When he finished his master’s degree, he landed an engineering position with the

WV Bureau for Public Health’s Environmental Engineering Division, which just happened to have a field office

here in Philippi. That’s what brought him and Sarah to Philippi back in 1978. He still works for the Bureau for

Public Health as the supervising district engineer in a 14-county district here in north-central West Virginia.

“It was all divine guidance,” he now says, “meeting Sarah through her father, who was the chairman of the Civil

and Environmental Engineering Graduate Program at the University of Cincinnati; making contact with the di-

rector of the Office of Environmental Health Services in West Virginia, a retired Army colonel, and former com-

manding officer for the U.S. Army Environmental Hygiene Agency; finding a job in West Virginia, which was

Sarah’s parents’ home state; and locating a church home here at Philippi Baptist.—“ He gestures with both

hands. “The Good Lord put all the pieces together, and here we are, the result of His divine guidance.”

6

SPORTSMAN’S BANQUET

Friday, November 2

6:00 p.m. Junior Volunteer Fire Department

$8.00 Each (covers admission and meal)

Speaker: Bill Morlan

GIVEAWAYS Must be present to be awarded any prizes

Tickets are available at the Church Office

Sponsored by Barbour Outreach