Spiritual Formation
At First Baptist Greenville, small group options exist to deepen our faith education, encourage curiosity and wonder, build community and serve our neighbors. For more information or help finding a small group, contact Camille Loomis Rehnborg.
Spiritual Enrichment Events
Spiritual Enrichment Events are designed to provide a space of rest, prayer, personal nurture
Bible Studies
First Baptist offers Bible studies that cover a wide variety of topics and are led by a diverse group of staff and members.
Prayer Groups
Two groups meet weekly for communal praying – Intercessory Prayer and Centering Prayer.
Labyrinth
Learn more about the two labyrinths at First Baptist and how to use them as a spiritual practice.
Adult Sunday School and Community Groups
Adults may choose from several different classes during the Sunday school hour: 9:15–10:15 a.m.
Circles
Women’s groups who meet monthly and focus on speakers and missions projects.
Knit Wits
The group meets every other week to knit items for church members.
Just Faith
JustFaith is a transformative process that inspires small groups of faithful Christians to embrace the gospel vision of justice and peace.
Spiritual Enrichment Events (SEE)
Spiritual Enrichment Events are designed to provide a space of rest, prayer, personal nurture and retreat.
We live in a busy world. In an attempt to care for our families, jobs and other responsibilities, we rarely make time to adequately care for ourselves. We are tired – mind, body and soul. Spiritual Enrichment Events (SEE) are designed to provide a space of rest, prayer, personal nurture and retreat.
They are open to the public, are typically held on Saturday mornings, and opportunities for relaxed learning and spiritual formation, the chance to interact with some of the finest speakers and facilitators we know, and a delicious lunch.
Spiritual Enrichment Events address real needs.
Spiritual formation, health and wholeness, marriage and parenting, recovery support, theological education, artistic exploration, or simply a “space” for prayer and contemplation. These events are offered on the campus of First Baptist Church of Greenville, conveniently situated beside the Swamp Rabbit Trail and just a short drive from beautiful downtown Greenville.
Recent Events
Bible Studies
First Baptist offers Bible studies that cover a wide variety of topics and are led by a diverse group of ministers and members.
Wednesday Morning Bible Study
We invite any who have an interest to join us weekly on Wednesdays beginning at 6:30 AM and finishing by 7:30 AM so that participants can make timely departures to the rest of their Wednesday activities.
Bert Strange, our Bible study leader, holds a Ph.D. in Theology and served as a Chaplain in his U.S. Army career. We follow the readings in the Revised Common Lectionary which often are used as the next-Sunday worship service scripture readings and thus provide previews of the scriptural bases for sermons.
So bring a cup of coffee and join us for
Wednesdays | 6:30-7:30am
Fall/Spring, Ongoing
Contact: Bert Strange
Reading the Bible Whole:
A Study of the Biblical “Big Picture”
Fall 2022 Friday Morning Bible Study facilitated by Michelle McClendon
Using texts by Walter Brueggemann, Richard Rohr, Peter Enns and Marcus Borg, we will consider biblical history and the overarching biblical themes embedded in scripture that hold scripture together from the Hebrew Bible through the New Testament and offer a lens from which we can interpret the Bible’s individual parts.
10:00-11:30am, Fridays September 9 through November 18 (also hybrid option for those needing to stay home)
Fridays | 10 – 11:30am
September 9 – November 18 2022
January – early May 2023
Cost: $50 per semester
AYMC
Register with Becky Bouton
Prayer Groups
our centering prayer group meets weekly for communal contemplation
The Centering Prayer group welcomes newcomers and visitors at any time. You do not need to commit to weekly attendance — just come when you can!
If you are interested in starting a prayer group, please reach out to Camille Loomis Rehnborg.
Centering Prayer
Tuesdays | Noon-1pm on Zoom
Tuesdays | 3-4pm in person
Parlor (in person)
Contact: Susan D’Amato (420-2016)
As described on the website of Contemplative Outreach, Centering Prayer is “a method of silent prayer that prepares us to receive the gift of contemplative prayer, prayer in which we experience God’s presence within us, closer than breathing, closer than thinking, closer than consciousness itself.
This method of prayer is both a relationship with God and a discipline to foster that relationship.” The Centering Prayer group uses its weekly gathering for reading and responding to a contemplative devotional or article and for twenty minutes of Centering Prayer.
Knit Wits
The group meets every other week to knit items for church members.
2nd and 4th Wednesdays | 1-3pm
Prayer Room (next to Carpenter Chapel on 3rd level)
If you have ever been the recipient of a prayer shawl, baby bib, baby blanket, hat, scarf or another handmade knit or crochet item from our church, you know that these items are truly gifts. You know that these items can brighten your day, brighten your home, and remind you that you are loved and prayed for by your church family. The Knit Wits group at our church works faithfully to make these items and remind others of the love of God.
This group consists of Annelle Locke, Judy Wimmer, Joan Kellett, Janet Albert, Pam Christopher, Carol Cox
Join Us!
The group will meet each month September through May on the second and fourth Wednesdays.
Support
If you would like to support the work of this ministry in
Questions
If you have any questions about this ministry or becoming involved, please contact Janet Albert.
Faith & Racial Equity: Exploring Power & Privilege
Do you want to address racism, but don’t know where to begin?
Faith & Racial Equity: Exploring Power & Privilege is an 8-session program that awakens groups to the economic systems, public policies, cultural norms, and hidden biases that empower some and oppress others.
The first half of the program lays the groundwork for understanding and identifying racial privilege. Sessions 5-8 take a deeper dive into specific issues related to power and privilege, including affirmative action, the school-to-prison pipeline, disparities within the criminal justice system, and biases in media representation. As with all JustFaith Ministries’ programs, participants will explore how their faith should inform their response to their learning, as well as discern action steps for working toward racial equity in their own communities.
Series Goals:
• Develop awareness of the ways that racial privilege impacts our communities and ourselves.
• Through a deep dive into the Gospel of Luke, learn how Jesus’s teachings guide us in seeking racial justice in today’s world.
• Learn practical tools for becoming anti-racist, and for effecting change in our communities.
To learn more about this 8-week series, contact me at matt.rollins@firstbaptistgreenville.com.
—Matt