"Mother's Day Prayer" from Sunday, written by Caroline Mercer


Heavenly Father,


Thank you for this beautiful day that we can gather together and worship you. Thank you for this church, and the community here at Wilkesboro Baptist Church.


Lord, we come before you today, remembering Mother’s Day

And that there are many feelings that come with this day,

All of us have mothers

     Some of us are mourning mothers who are no longer with us

     Some of us have had challenges in our relationship with our mother

     Some of us are mothers

     Some of us have a deep longing to be mothers

     Some mothers have experienced the heartache of losing a child


Lord, we pray for those in our church who are grieving today. Bring them comfort and peace. We turn to you for healing in our relationships. Please bring restoration. We ask you to help us forgive and seek reconciliation in broken relationships.


Don’t let us lose hope and forget what you have done in our lives or for us through Christ, and that you answer prayers and hear the cries of our hearts. You are near the broken-hearted; you are with us through trials and troubles.


We make our plans, but we know that Your plan prevails. And although we do not always understand your plans, we know that your purpose is for our good and your glory. We trust you and your plan and how you are working out our lives. Lord, give us the strength to trust you.


Thank you for mothers, the women who raised us, the women who invested in us, the women who loved us.


Thank you, Lord, for the women in our lives who have been given the gift of children. We pray for each of them that they will see what a beautiful gift children are, and take the responsibility of stewarding this gift well, to further your kingdom, and increase your glory.


Lord, for the mother with littles, who is exhausted, weary, spiritually malnourished, and just trying to survive. Please bless her with energy, patience, and rest. Help her to persevere on the hard days and seek you for her strength. Help her to remember the high calling of motherhood, in raising up the next generation for you.


We pray for the mother of older children, with sleepless nights of worry about her child’s decisions and future. Lord, give her peace, and remind her that you are in control even when things seem so out of control. Watch over her children, guide them, be with them, and draw them to your truth.


We pray for the mother of adult children, that she may find peace that can only come from God, knowing that God is sovereign over every person’s story and he is still at work. And we pray that her children already know and serve God, but if they do not, Lord, please open their eyes to your truth, give them a desire to know you, and put people around them who will be a light and lead them to you.


We pray for foster moms that you will give them the strength to be strong for the children they serve and love, that you will provide a support community so that they don’t feel alone. Help them to feel your presence as they walk through heartbreaking situations, and help them to provide a safe space for these children to find hope and healing.


Lord, we praise you for grandmas, who are still pouring into their grandchildren, loving and caring for them. And we praise you for the many surrogate grandmas who have blessed families in our church who do not have grandparents nearby.


We praise you, Lord, for the spiritual mothers in our lives who encourage, support, and walk with us, and show us what it looks like to follow you through the good and the bad.


Lord, build up the women of our church, help them to find community and family. Bring a spiritual mother into their lives to encourage and mentor them. Bring a spiritual daughter into their lives that they can pour into and walk with. Strengthen their families, strengthen their marriages, help them to grow in their faith and desire for You. Almighty God, remind them that you are with them through the mountains and the valleys.


Thank you for creating the family to point us back to you and reflect the relationship of the Trinity. Thank you for the hope we have in wholeness and restoration through Jesus Christ.


Most of all, we are thankful for your son, who you sent to die on a cross, a death we deserve. Please forgive us for our selfishness, and help us to serve and love you, our families, and others the way Christ came to serve and love us.


Lord, thank you for this day, and for the reminder to be thankful for the relationships you have given us to steward. Please help us to serve you well through them.


In Your Most Holy Name we pray, Amen

Updates

By Chris Hefner • May 12, 2026
Church family, We hope you all had a blessed Mother's Day Sunday. This upcoming Sunday, May 17, is our Member Meeting at 5 pm (third Sunday of odd months). We have several updates for you from the Elders and the Strategic Planning Committee, and at least one motion as well. We will also take up an offering for the Vision Fund at the meeting. For more details on the offering, refer to the letter we mailed last week. This Wednesday, May 13, Pastor Chris will work through Psalm 40. On Wednesday, May 20, Pastor Chris will give a "State of the Church" report, following up on progress from the January 2025 "State of the Church" report last year. As always, thank you for your partnership in the gospel and keep us in your prayers (Philippians 1:3-5).

Upcoming Member Meeting Updates

By Chris Hefner • May 6, 2026
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Investing In Your Spiritual Life

By Chris Hefner • April 28, 2026
Church family, Remember that we are "ambassadors of reconciliation." Our lesson from Wednesday, April 22, on 2 Corinthians 5:11-21 reminded us of the importance of sharing with others the reconciliation and redemption we've received from Christ. Would you continue praying for those who need the gospel? Invite them to church. Initiate a coffee or lunch conversation. Have them over for dinner. Share the gospel with them. As we enter the month of May, which is a busy month for families and our church as school finishes, programs end, holidays occur, and summer break begins, make sure you are investing in your spiritual life. Seasons of busyness necessitate time in the Word, in prayer, and in worship. Keep praying for marriages and families in our church. For those who are married, mark down the following Marriage Enrichment Date Nights at WBC where childcare will be provided: Friday, July 17, and Wednesdays, July 29, August 12.

Merlefest and More

By Chris Hefner • April 23, 2026
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

Thank You

By Chris Hefner • April 16, 2026
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/

Easter Recap

By Chris Hefner • April 9, 2026
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

Leading Up To Easter

By Chris Hefner • April 1, 2026
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 :

Last Sunday in James

By Chris Hefner • March 25, 2026
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

Member Meeting and Easter

By Chris Hefner • March 17, 2026
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!

Strategic Planning Committee and Bible Study

By Chris Hefner • March 11, 2026
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