First Baptist Church of Elmhurst

First Baptist Church of Elmhurst is our name.

ELMchurch is our description of how
we make and develop His disciples.

EVANGELISM EVERYWHERE means sharing the good news of Jesus with everyone.

LIFE TOGETHER describes our involvement with God and one another.

MATURITY IN CHRIST calls us to grow up as followers of Jesus Christ and humbly serve others.

Mission Statement:	With reference to:	Meaning:	Through our purposes:
To reach people with Jesus Christ and	GOING into the community	Evangelism Everywhere	OUTREACH
Be loving disciples,	GATHERING as a family	Life Together	FELLOWSHIP WORSHIP
Growing into maturity.	GROWING as a body	Maturity in Christ	MATURITY MINISTRY

This development happens through five purposes related to the mission. Every purpose has teams of people ready to offer help on that part of the spiritual journey.

Evangelism Everywhere: Outreach – both local and international

Outreach is our speaking of and demonstrating the love of Christ to the lost world by meeting the needs of people, the most important being the abundant, eternal life offered through Jesus Christ.

Life Together: Worship and Fellowship

Worship is our God-honoring, Christ-centered, and Spirit-inspired heart response to God that results in the fruit of the Spirit. It is a lifestyle developed by the practice of personal and corporate spiritual disciplines.

Fellowship is the expression of biblical love between those connected through Christ to the Universal Family of God. Fellowship grows through personal involvement with other believers supporting one another through mutual encouragement and care.

Maturity in Christ: Maturity and Ministry

Maturity is the process of growth toward the goal of Christ-likeness. Every disciple can experience spiritual transformation in order to make progress in truth, love and obedience. This intentional development happens in connection with others and in cooperation with the Holy Spirit for true spiritual formation.

Ministry is the giving of time, money, and abilities from a heart of love toward the need of any person. Ministry is optimized when members of the Body of Christ serve others interdependently through their spiritual gifts and calling.

You can enjoy a purposeful spiritual life. No matter if you are a seeker, someone making a new faith commitment, or someone actively following Jesus, there is a place for you at ELMchurch.

HIS DESIGN FOR DISCIPLES

God has a clear design for every person he has created.
He wants them to become disciples of Jesus Christ.
It begins with faith in Jesus as a convert.

Through belief in Jesus, disciples receive forgiveness and new life. (Go to New Life under “Beliefs” for more information)

It involves allegiance to Jesus’ word as authority.
As a student of Jesus, disciples publicly identify with him as their teacher.

It means learning as his apprentice.
Through loving obedience, the student becomes like his teacher.
To find out more about God’s design for his disciples you can attend our helpful seminar: Discover ELMchurch. Refer to the monthly calendar for our next Discover session.

True Christianity is the development of people as disciples. A disciple has a personal attachment that shapes their whole life. It is more than having religion as part of a well-balanced life. It is the defining relationship at the center of a well-ordered life.
(Go to My ELMchurch under “About ELMchurch” for a personalized approach to your involvement through a life development process)

ELMchurch seeks to follow God’s design for his disciples.
We offer services, events, groups and classes that will help anyone follow God’s design for their life.
(Go to Services and Programs for more information)

Harvest Home Dinner and Celebration, Nov. 21
You are invited to eat, talk, laugh and celebrate. Then you will enter "The Amazing Place" team competition. You will be enthused by the master plan of the "City Ministry Centre", and be able to give toward the next Building Renewal Steps. Tickets on sale after Sunday Services and at the Church Office thru Sunday November 16th. Adults $7.00, Ages 6-12 $4.00, ages 5 and under Free.

Community Christmas Carol Sing
Sunday, December 14th, 7:00 pm is our Christmas Carol Sing, Elmchurch invites the community to join us in celebrating the season of our Christ's birth in song.

Ladies Christmas Tea
December 6th from 2-4 P.M. Women's Ministry will celebrate with their biennial Christmas Tea. Please plan to join us for a concert in our sanctuary followed by tea and dessert in the Fellowship Hall. It will be a day of inspiration and enjoyment for ladies. Invite your friends and neighbors.

SFC Annual Chicago Day
Trip to Chicago by train. Fun day for Middle School Kids. More details in the near future. Save this date: December 13, 2008.

Common Journey
The "Pink Sheet" for November prayer is available in the foyer. It is also available as a pdf file here on our website. Click on the Forms/Info header, and find it under "Information". By request of SPI and their copyright privilege, printing of this "pink sheet" must be made on pink paper. Pink paper is available by request from the church office.

Common Journey
Men's small group meets every Monday at 6:45 P.M. Group study is THE MANUAL, come with the guys on a journey to be a godly manly man!

Women's Evening Edition
Tuesday Evenings at 7:00-8:50 P.M. Please join us as we experience friendships of grace and truth. You will love the relational environment as we learn the habits of a healthy group. And you will be encouraged to grow through a study by Mary Kassian called Knowing God By Name.

Crew
Is a ELMyouth's small group ministry that is designed to help students connect with each other and adults that truly care about their journey with God. The Middle School and High School will each have their own group. Crew meetings are held on Sunday evenings at 6:00 P.M. at a home. For more information contact the church office.

Men's Basketball
Come play ball with us at 8:30 P.M. on Monday evenings in the Church gym. Common Journey meets at 6:45 P.M. and there is still time for Basketball at 8:30 P.M.

Small Groups
ELM Church is increasing your options for connection. The Home Connections Groups will enable you to gain friends in order to do life together. Contact Pastor Phil to discover how to experience the mutual encouragement of a home group.

New Additions to the Library
Adult fiction books added for your reading pleasure: Between Sundays by Karen Kingsbury; Blink of an Eye by Ted Dekker; Picture Perfect by Debra White Smith; Dying to Kill by Patricia Rushford; and Stranded in Paradise by Lori Copeland. The DVD The Sin Eater has also been added.

KIDZ POWER HOUR
WHO? Kids entering kindergarten through 5th grade. WHAT? A cool ministry for kids to learn about God at their level with their peers. WHERE? Room 302, which is upstairs on the top floor of the church. WHEN? Every Sunday morning, from 10:20 a.m. until the end of the service. WHY? God desires a relationship with kids! We hope to help kids come into this relationship with God and grow in it.

Wondering about your involvement at ELMchurch?
Thinking about your development as a disciple of Jesus Christ? Find helpful info about both purposeful involvement and personal development at MyELMchurch on this site.

Members
Get your new Membership Covenant right on this site. See Beliefs--Membership Covenant for the downloadable file. Print two--one to sign and return to the office, and the other to keep and remind you of the lifestyle of mutual encouragement it describes.