Church family, this Wednesday we will study 2 Corinthians 5:11-21. The passage details how followers of Jesus are ambassadors for reconciliation between sinners and God. Paul gives several reasons why we should share the gospel and lead others to meet and follow Jesus. This week thousands of people will descend on Wilkes County at Merlefest. For those of you volunteering or participating in Merlefest, would you consider yourself an ambassador of the gospel to those you serve with and to those you will meet. Look for opportunities to speak to people about your faith and your Savior. Church, our mission is to "lead our neighbors and the nations to follow Jesus." When all is said and done and we find ourselves in eternity, the only thing that will really matter is the destination of our souls. Consider this for your children, grandchildren, neighbors, co-workers, acquaintances, etc. Pray for the lost. Invite them to worship with us. Take them to coffee or lunch. Share the gospel with them. Invest in those who don't know Jesus and lead them to take their next step in following Jesus. Grace and Peace, Dr. Hefner

Church family, Thank you WBC for the way you've cared for me and my family! Our church cares for people well. From meals, visits, cards, and prayers, our church loves those who are hurting, grieving, struggling, and in the hospital. I've experienced your care over the course of the past week with texts, prayers, phone calls, cards, meals, and love. We've needed our church family following my surgery, and you all came through. Thank you WBC for the way you've prayed for me and cared for my family. It's a good time to reflect on our mission to lead our neighbors and the nations to follow Jesus by worshiping, learning, serving, and replicating. Where are you in your journey of following Jesus at WBC? Are you gathering for worship and engaging regularly? Do you have a Sunday school class or discipleship group or Bible study where you can learn? Are you serving somewhere? Are you replicating your ministry in the life of someone else?  Wherever you are in your journey, plan to take the next step this spring. Keep inviting people to join us as we watch what God is up to. The link below takes you to some of my thoughts about being in hospital over Easter weekend. I hope these observations encourage you. Grace and Peace, Dr. Hefner https://chrishefner.org/2026/04/10/easter-sunday-on-the-other-side-of-a-hospital-room-door/

Church family, What an Easter weekend! Easter should be big because it represents "the event" in salvation history. We ought to celebrate our risen Savior gloriously and greatly. Attendance records for Easter 2026 were broken, having to put out chairs for the 390 people that came to the 9:30 service! For me, the weekend did not go as I planned. After two painful days of stomach pain, I went to the ER early on Friday morning, April 3, to discover I had an infected and inflamed gallbladder with a gallstone blocking a bile duct. Over the weekend, I had surgery and came home late Sunday evening to recover. I was able to watch and worship during the live stream at the 9:30 service.  Church family, we need to recognize that God is doing something special at WBC. Lives are being changed, believers are becoming followers, and God is preparing us for what he has in store. Let me offer some special thanks for Sunday. Thanks to Pastor Tad for preparing an Easter sermon on 48 hours' notice, along with all his normal logistical work. Thanks to the choir, praise team, musicians, and our Minister of Music, Brian Price, for leading us musically in all three services! Sunday's music was outstanding and celebratory. Thanks to the ushers who made extra space available at 9:30. Thanks to those in Sprout (nursery) for their availability at 9:30 and 11:00. Thanks to all the volunteers who made all the moving parts of Sunday's worship work. While I deeply missed you all in person on Sunday, I'm so grateful to be a part of a church and leadership team of elders, staff, deacons, and servants who helped make Easter so meaningful. May God continue to bless Wilkesboro Baptist Church. Keep inviting friends and acquaintances. You never know what God may do this week. Grace and Peace, Pastor Chris

Church family, from Palm Sunday (March 29) to Easter Sunday (April 5), we have much to celebrate. Thank you to Brian Price, praise team, choir, and musicians for leading us in stellar musical worship on Palm Sunday. We already anticipate the celebratory worship on April 5. This Wednesday, we will celebrate communion together during Awana Family Worship. The worship service will begin at 6:15 in the sanctuary. Please prepare your hearts for celebrating the table together with your church family. Keep praying for Easter at the Commons. On Saturday, April 4, at 10am, our women's ministry will be hosting a prayer walk for the Sunday service. Pray for those who need Jesus, invite them to join with us, and save them a spot to worship next to you. Continue praying for good weather for the morning. Plan to arrive by 9:30 so you can find a parking place, set up your chair, and fellowship with friends and church members before the service. As you arrive, look for people you don't know. Speak to them, welcome them, get to know them. We have a chance this Easter Sunday to be hospitable and set the table for people to hear and respond to the gospel. For more thoughts on Holy Week, continue reading "From Palm Sunday to Easter Sunday" linked here :

Church family, This past Sunday, we completed the letter of James. James invited his readers to pray when suffering and to praise when cheerful, to pray about sin and to confess sins to one another, to pray for the lost, and to share with the lost. As we head into Palm Sunday and Easter Sunday, here are some ways you can apply this past Sunday's message. First, commit to gathering with us over the next three weeks to praise God in song. Second, bring your concerns and needs to God in prayer. Third, pray for those who are lost and astray. Part of the application from Sunday was asking worshipers to write down the name(s) of people they knew were lost or had wandered from the faith. Would you pray for that one or more person by name from today until Easter Sunday? Invite them to worship with us any Sunday over the next few weeks, but Easter Sunday would be a great opportunity. Let's not just be hearers of the word, but let's apply genuine faith by doing the word in prayer, praise, and sharing the gospel. Grace and peace, Pastor Chris

Church family, Thank you for your attendance, involvement, and participation in the March 15 Member Meeting. All three motions presented were approved. The 2025 budget surplus was allocated. Approval was given by the church to complete the purchase of 402 W. Main Street along with permission to the Strategic Planning Committee to negotiate and purchase 202 Woodland Blvd. Because of your generosity in previous years, we almost have enough in the Vision Fund to purchase both properties free and clear. We will give further updates at subsequent Member Meetings regarding plans for these properties. We also had updates regarding Easter at the Commons (April 5) and regarding our church hospitality and guest welcoming strategy. Here are some ways you can continue to be part of leading our neighbors and the nations to follow Jesus. First, keep inviting friends, family, and co-workers to worship with us. Second, when you arrive for worship at 9:30 or 11:00, please sit in the interior sections of each row leaving space for people to gather around you. Third, use the Easter Page on the website, Facebook, and printed invitations to invite people to join us for Easter at the Commons on April 5 at 10:00 AM. Fourth, consider making contributions to the Vision Fund. Your one time gift would help us cover the cost for property acquisitions. Consider making Wilkesboro Baptist Church a part of your financial or estate planning. Continue to pray for the Strategic Planning Committee, Elders, and Deacons as we research and plan for current and future growth needs at Wilkesboro Baptist. Grace and Peace!

Church family, This week we will have our Strategic Planning Committee Town Hall. We will share some of our process over the past year as well as updates ahead of our Member Meeting on Sunday. Please plan to attend the Town Hall and Member Meeting this week. Bring your favorite dish for us to share a family meal together. We continue to have new members join with several more attending our Next Steps Class yesterday . Look for people you don't know to enjoy fellowship with them at our Member Meeting on Sunday. This week, we will have Easter at the Commons invitations ready. Easter is less than a month away. Would you begin praying for the person(s) you can invite? On Wednesday, March 18, at our adult Bible study, we will begin a brief study through 2 Corinthians 4 and 5 on the power of the gospel to open eyes and our role as Christ's ambassadors. Grace and peace, Pastor Chris

Church family, I want to share with you several upcoming days in our church life. First, our Strategic Planning Committee has been working for the past year to review our growth trajectories as well as things we can do to address current and future growth needs. In a letter sent at the end of 2025, we noted that we would have a Town Hall update/conversation in the new year. That Town Hall conversation will take place on Wednesday evening, March 11, during the Adult Bible Study window. We will share some important updates and take your questions. Second, as a follow-up to the Town Hall conversation on March 11, we will have our regular Member Meeting on March 15. One update you will receive at the Town Hall concerns property acquisition possibilities, which could come as a motion at the Member Meeting on March 15. For those unable to attend the March 11 Town Hall, we will record and make available on our podcast channel by Thursday, March 12, ahead of the March 15 Member Meeting. Would you continue to pray for WBC, our Elders, Staff, Deacons, and Strategic Planning Committee? Would you plan to attend the Town Hall where your questions will be welcome? Would you plan to attend the Member Meeting on March 15? Thank you again for the opportunity to take a few weeks to refresh and reset. I took advantage of those weeks to read, study, and write. With the link that follows, here are some initial mini-reviews of some of the books I completed during my sabbatical: https://chrishefner.org/2026/03/02/a-sabbatical-reading-review/

Church family, thank you for the opportunity to take a sabbatical. It was a timely season for rest, worship, and reset. I'm deeply grateful to the elders for leading and teaching in my absence, for the deacons and staff continuing to serve, and for your support as a congregation. The timing was perfect as God let me grieve and reset instead of drowning myself in work, which would not have been good for me or for WBC. I've written some extended thoughts below about sabbatical and Sabbath, and plan to share some additional posts in the weeks to come about reading, writing, and Sabbath. Grace and Peace, Dr. Hefner https://chrishefner.org/2026/02/23/thank-you-wilkesboro-baptist-for-my-sabbatical/