Our Ministries
Our Purpose is to advance the Kingdom of Jesus Christ. We
do this in four main ways: Worship, Christian Education, Fellowship,
and Outreach.
Worship
Our ministry of worship is intended to invite people into
the presence of God, in order to be inspired by God's influence
and will in our lives.
Since 1816, the First Baptist Church in Wickford has been
a place of worship. Our Sunday morning worship service is
a traditional Protestant service. It is organized around
a
twenty minute sermon, which is given by the minister and
based on the morning's Bible reading, three hymns, morning
prayers
and special music by our choir. The entire service is one
hour in length. On the first Sunday of the month, we add
Communion,
which is a symbolic sharing of the wine and the bread representing
Christ's Body and Blood, started by Jesus at his last Supper
with the disciples. Worshippers pass the bread and the cup
to each other as we believe the first disciples did. Baptism
and Infant Dedications are also held on occasion as part
of
Sunday morning worship.
Christian Education
Our ministry of Christian education is intended to share
knowledge and wisdom from the Holy Bible, in order to apply
it to our daily lives.
Our Sunday School, held weekly in the hour before Worship,
provides classes for children and Youth from infancy through
High School age. Classes are also held weekly for adults.
All classes are Bible based, and provide for learning and
discussion.
The Sunday School only meets during the school year.
Fellowship
Our ministry of Fellowship is intended to build relationships
among our members and friends. These relationships are encouraged
in order to stimulate spiritual and emotional health and growth.
Activities and events occur throughout the year around different
seasons and themes. Our church has become a main attraction
during the Annual Wickford Art Festival. During this annual
weekend in July, our church provides several refreshment stands
for visitors to the village. We are famous for our clamcakes
and chowder, and also for our strawberry shortcake. Church
dinners are held quite regularly, often on Wednesday evenings.
These are followed by Bible Study for adults and monthly children
and youth activities. Our choir extends warm fellowship to
all who join for weekly rehearsal.
Outreach
Our ministry of Outreach serves to provide service and support
to persons who serve the Lord in places where we may not personally
travel, as well as local mission work.
Some of our member families over the years have become foreign
missionaries. We raise an annual portion of our budget (around
10%) for American Baptist International Missions, which supports
missionaries in Europe, Africa, Asia, and Central and South
America. We also support American Baptists National Ministries,
which provides leadership and administrative support to thousands
of churches containing over one million members and friends.
Our Regional ministries cover almost every city and state
in the United States, including Alaska and Hawaii. Our American
Baptist Website is found at www.abc-usa.org.
Locally, our members and friends are involved in local agencies
that feed the hungry, and provide assistance for those in
special need. Our church office works closely with South County
Salvation Army to respond to the needs of those in transition,
or those who face a crisis in their lives. At times, this
amounts to helping someone with their utility bill or their
rent.
Special events are held regularly to draw people to our church
who may not normally attend. But the major way we reach out
is people inviting friends.
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