The Baptist Bridge

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, Philippi, WV 26416 April 2011

Inside this issue

From the Pastor…2

ABWM…3

Board of Christian
Ed...3

Board of Missions
& Outreach...3

America for Christ

offering...4

All Jazzed Up About

Art…4

Announcements...5

Getting to know...6

Prayer list…7

Birthdays…7

Anniversaries...7

CATCH US ON THE RADIO LIVE

EVERY SUNDAY MORNING!
10:30a.m.
WQAB 91.3 FM

107 Church Street Philippi, WV 26416 (304) 457-3206 philippibaptist@frontier.com

Jon Villers, Pastor
Lisa Dadisman, Secretary
Christ is Risen! He is Risen Indeed!

In just a few weeks we get to make this proclamation that has withstood the centuries of time! The season of
remembering the suffering Jesus endured on our behalf is drawing to a close. I will be bringing the message for
the Community Lenten Service at noon on April 13th at the Philippi United Methodist Church. I would love to
see you come and share in that service with our other communities of faith here in Barbour County. On April
17th we get to experience again the triumphal entry of Jesus into Jerusalem on Palm Sunday! We all proclaim
together, "Hosanna to the Son of David! Blessed is the one who comes in the name of the Lord!" (Matthew
21:9b) Then we enter into Holy Week, a time for following the Passion of Christ during his final days as a man
here on earth. I want to invite you all to join us for this very special time of the year! It is a great time to invite
your friends and family to come and experience this journey of faith.

At 6pm on Palm Sunday we will gather at Philippi Baptist Church with our sister congregations of the Union
Association. It will be a time of communion and prayer with our brothers and sisters in Christ from across our
tri-county region. At 7:30pm that same evening, there will then be a Concerto Concert with orchestra at A-B
with none other than our own Lindsey Bracey as one of the main features. I then want to highlight three other
Holy Week services that will be a worthwhile experience for you to participate: April 21st at 7pm, we will host
a Maunday-Thursday Service here at Philippi Baptist. Derived from the Latin word mandatum, meaning
"commandment," Maundy refers to the commands Jesus gave his disciples at the Last Supper: to love with hu-
mility by serving one another and to remember his sacrifice. While we focus on Jesus' resurrection three days
later, this service places us at the Last Supper and ultimately reminds us of the betrayal that took place that very
same evening. April 22nd brings us to Good Friday - The Community Lenten Services at Philippi United Meth-
odist Church will meet for its concluding service at noon. That evening, all the Barbour County Community is
invited to a Cross Walk that originates at the Blue and Gray Park. Each of us will have a cross to carry as we
process across the covered bridge to the courthouse gazebo. We then gather for a time of prayer and contempla-
tion. We had over one hundred participants last year and I would encourage each of us to take this walk together
in recognition of the walk our Savior took for us!

Then we get to celebrate Resurrection Sunday up at the college on the back porch of Burbick Hall at 7am on
April 24th! Just as the ladies went early in the morning and found the tomb empty, we get to make that declara-
tion anew again at this time! At 8:30am the diaconate will have an Easter Breakfast prepared for us as we then
prepare for our Easter Morning Worship at Philippi Baptist starting at 10:30am with an Easter Egg Hunt to fol-
low! We get to live out the truth that Jesus died for us so that we could live for Him!

I can't believe this is my second Easter Season at Philippi baptist Church! I count it a privilege to be here in this
community serving alongside you all. We are blessed to have folks that are so willing to share their talents and
gifts for God's Kingdom. Thank you for the continued support you give for the Campus Ministry we help lead at
Alderson-Broaddus College. Now more than ever, we need to help lead and guide these young men and women
to an understanding of God's love and grace in the midst of the world's agenda that works opposite of such prin-
ciples. We are learning that it is difficult sometimes to speak the truth in love but it is what we have been called
here to do! My prayer everyday is the prayer of peace the writer of Hebrews has given us to live by: " Now may
the God of peace, who brought back from the dead our Lord Jesus, the great shepherd of the sheep, by the blood
of the eternal covenant, make you complete in everything good so that you may do his will, working among us
that which is pleasing in his sight, through Jesus Christ, to whom be the glory for ever and ever.
Amen" (Hebrews 13:20-21) May every day be viewed as an opportunity to share the Good News of Jesus to all
that God places in our path.

Chirst is Risen! He is Risen Indeed! - Shalom - Pastor Jon Villers

2
 ABWM BOARD OF CHRISTIAN EDUCATION
April 5 @ 7:00pm
―Weirton Christian Center‖ Family Game night has been temporarily
Jane Digman changed from March 26th to April 2
*** from 6-8. It will include all Easter activities.
May 3 @ 6:00pm People can still feel free to bring games howev-
―Annual Women’s Banquet‖ er Easter games and activities will be provided.
*** It will be an
June 7 @ 9:30am EGG’stra special family game night!
―Election of Officers‖ ***
***
Family Game night will resume its regular
(BIBLE BOOK OF THE MONTH)
Zechariah schedule the last Saturday of the month starting
April 30th from 6-8pm.
***
Announcements
***
On April 13, Pastor Jon will be speaking at noon @ Announcements
(PUMC) Lenten Service. We are asked to bring
(Soup, Sandwiches and Desserts) A-B College hand bells will be part of our
Enough for 100 people. These items should be taken morning worship service on April 10th.
to the United Methodist Church (behind library) by
11:00 a.m. on April 13th. Thanks so much for your ***
help. Church Council will meet April 3rd @
* 7:30p.m.
April 17th-Palm Sunday Community Service @
6p.m. @ Philippi Baptist Church . Speaker Pastor ***
Jon Villers. Quarterly Business Meeting April 10 @
* 7:30p.m.
No mid-week
service on April 20th.
*
April 21st ,Maunday Thursday
Service
―The Last Supper‖ @ 7:00pm .
There will also be Communion.
*
April 22,
 Good Friday Community Services
12:00 noon Lenten Service @ Philippi United-
Methodist Church. Speaker : Pastor Mike
MacAdam.
 Cross Walk-Gather @ Blue & Gray Park @ The Board of Trustees is planning a Spring
5p.m. Cleaning Work Party for the church to be
held on Saturday, April 2nd from 9a.m.-12
*
noon. Linda Howell is the coordinator .
April 24, Easter Sunrise Service
 7:00a.m. Burbick Hall Patio
Please come to the Fellowship Hall to get
 8:30 a.m. Breakfast @ Philippi Baptist Church your assignment. We really need your
Fellowship Hall help with this project. Please keep this day
open for the church

3
 OUR GOAL TO REACH FOR AMERICA FOR CHRIST OFFERING
IS $1,200.
Karen Young Gathering, A New Wave of Leadership
One of the greatest challenges young people face is “fitting in.” But that has begun to change for those who attended
the Karen Youth Conference in Summer 2010 at First Baptist Church, St. Paul, Minn.
More than 600 Karen young people from communities around the nation gathered to share their Christian faith and ex-
periences in adjusting to U.S. life. Some of them had been in America for only three months before the conference.
The Rev. Florence Li, national Asian coordinator, American Baptist Home Mission Societies, led the youth in the Power
Circle, an experiential learning exercise adapted from Eric Law’s book The Bush was Blazing but Not Consumed. Partici-
pants were instructed to link arms in a circle, while two standing outside the circle were to find a creative way to get into it.
Several used great force to break through, while others tried to crawl into the circle or push against it to find the weakest
location.
Participants compared this exercise with their experience of trying to fit in, especially at school. “I tried very hard to get
into the circle but it is not easy,” says 15-year old participant Aug Htoo. “I want to fit in with my friends.”
After the exercise, Participants suggested and discussed ways to fit in without compromising faith or using force.
Karen Communities associate strongly with American Baptists because of the work of the Judsons in Burma more than
300 years ago. American Baptist Home Mission Societies has been actively resettling Karen and other refugees for over
150 years.
Through the America for Christ Offering, your support of the youth conference and other ministry with refugee communities
demonstrates your commitment to continue our legacy of touching lives and transforming people. For more information
about Asian Ministries, please contact the Rev. Florence Li at florence.li@abhms.org or visit www.abhms.org

Our America for Christ Offering 2011-Touching Lives, Transforming people-supports American Baptist home mission that
brings the healing power of Jesus Christ’s caring heart, serving hands, going feet and prophetic voice to churches and
communities across the United States and Puerto Rico. Give generously today! Thank you!

All Jazzed Up About Art”

On Saturday, April 9th, the Barbour County Arts and Humanities Council will be hosting an event ti-
tled, “All Jazzed Up About Art”. It will be held from 6-8p.m. in the commons area at Philip Barbour High
School.

The event is intended to promote the arts in Barbour County.

There will be an art show by students from around the county, artists from
around the county displaying their work, the A-B Jazz Band, door prizes, re-
freshments and more. Several of the artists will have activities such as face
painting, demonstration and hands-on activities for everyone to try as they
mingle and enjoy the evening. Please spread the word and also come out to
support the arts in our county. There is no fee to attend, but donations are
welcome.

4
 Easter Lilly order time

6” single stem …$9.00

8” double stem…$17.50
10” triple stem…$25.00
6” tulips…$7.50
Taking orders until April 15th,2011
***
Inaugural

Leonard LoBello Memorial SPAGHETTI DINNER

Thursday, April 7, 2011
11a.m.-7p.m.
Philippi Baptist Church
107 Church Street, Philippi

Tickets:$7-Adults; $4-Children (12 and under)

Delivery Available between 11a.m. and 4 p.m. and 6p.m.
ALSO, SILENT AUCTION
Sponsored by:
Mountain Hospice and Philippi Main Street

FOR MORE INFORMATION, DELIVERY OR ADVANCE TICKETS,

CALL:
Tammy Stemple@ 304.457.3700-Ext.226
Mike Elza @ 304.823.3922

5
 Living Legend

Everyone knows Dr. Richard Shearer, president of Alderson-

Broaddus College for just short of thirty-three years, the
youngest college president in the country when he began at age
30. Almost everyone knows that during his tenure, the enroll-
ment at A-B more than doubled and all of the buildings were
constructed except for the three present when he arrived, and
all three of those were rebuilt or remodeled. Many people al-
so know that after leaving A-B Dr. Shearer pastored Bridgeport
Baptist Church (twice, for a total of over six years, spent two
and a half years as director of the Foundation of Independent
Colleges, and served the United Hospital Center Foundation for almost two years.

Not everyone knows that Richard Shearer was the youngest of five children, two of whom
died in infancy/childhood. His parents, from Mill Run in the hills of Pennsylvania, were
farmers, his father later becoming a builder and a master of decorative painting.

Raised on a rented farm in Poplar Grove, a small town near Connellsville, young Richard’s
first job was the delivery of milk to neighbors. ―On the second day after Thanksgiving,‖ he
reports, ―we always butchered two hogs, and we raised and preserved all of our own food ex-
cept for sugar and flour. We loved and honored the land.‖

His Christian faith came naturally, for his parents ―loved the Lord,‖ he explains. ―They
worked out their grief over losing two children—Carl to diphtheria and Merlene to meningi-
tis--by helping neighbors and nurturing their remaining three.‖

After attending a two-room school for his first eight years, he went on to Connellsville High
School, where he met Ruth Mansberger, who was to become his wife and the mother of Dr.
Shearer’s three offspring and his colleague at Alderson-Broaddus. Several years after Ruth’s
tragic death, he married Marilyn Erdman, whom he had met at the American Baptist Confer-
ence Center at Green Lake, Wisconsin.

Recruiting students and developing church relationships for A-B meant that President Shearer
had to be away from Philippi many week ends. ―We did everything we could, however, to
encourage students and faculty to attend local churches. At one time I asked our minister—
Paul Cook—how many students were actively involved with Philippi Baptist Church, and he
estimated three hundred. Of course, that was before so many commuted and before they all
had cars. Students back then just walked down the hill for church and then walked back up.‖

In his entry in Who’s Who in American Education, Dr. Shearer stated his philosophy:
―Education gives power, but it takes good religion to give it direction.‖ His long leadership
of Alderson-Broaddus was living proof of that belief.

6
 Born in april
A-B College faculty, staff and students, 2- Christian Stull
Albert Carman, 2–Allison Villers
Rev. Chester Bird, 2–Jody Sperry
Blaine Corder, 4- Brenda Price
Bertsel Cathell, 6-Sarah Caprio
Audrey Cross 6-Shirley Thorne
The Family of Becky & Mike Elmore, 8-Walter Whitman
Jim Friend, 12-Valerie Minor
Otilia Franke, 12-Anna Caldwell
Carl Gant, 13-George Sommer
Jane Gibbons, 13-Tia Stevens
Joyce Kerr, 13-Tom Ketchem
Greg , Kasey and Violet Mouser, 15-Morgan Armstrong
Brenda & Gary Price, 18-Bryan DeLong
Jacob Scheick, 24-Lisa Dadisman
Dr. Richard Shearer, 24-Mike Wells
Dorothy Shaffer, 25-Susan Markwood
Vangie Shaffer, 27-George Davis
Major Kris Wood, 27-Tom Sites
28-Kim Klaus
28- Darlene
Unspoken requests for family members, un- Waddell
saved, person and community concerns,
those with job and home loss, financial diffi-
culties. Our national, state, and country
leaders and officials. Victims, the families
and friends of crime, war and violence
throughout our country. Military personnel
and their families throughout the world. Rel-
atives and friends of those serving our
10-Glenn&Jan Sweet
country: Amanda Howard,
Tim Jenkins, 16-Ken&Darlene Waddell
Chris Mossburg 17-Tim&Beth Miller
Taylor Smith 17-Randy&Michele Moore
20-Bill&Jeannie Mozley
25-Jim&Wanda Steele

7
Philippi Baptist Church
107 Church Street Nonprofit Organization
Philippi, West Virginia 26416 U.S. POSTAGE
Permit NO. 36
Philippi, WV 26416

Philippi Baptist's Adopt-A-Highway volunteers will participate in the Statewide cleanup effort
which is planned for Saturday, April 30, 2011. We will meet in the church basement at 9:00
AM that morning, and should have our 2.2 miles of highway completed by about 10:30
AM. For those who haven't participated in the past, please come in at 8:30 AM to view the
instructional video. It is suggested that you wear work boots, long pants, a hat, jacket and sun
glasses as appropriate. Work gloves and blaze orange vests are provided. Children under 18
must be accompanied by an adult. Children must be at least 12 years old to participate. Free
gifts will be provided to all volunteers. Please see Craig Cobb, or call him at
457-467 if you have any questions.

Thanks!!
Craig Cobb