It's been almost a year and a half since we've been able to enjoy our church wide 5th Sunday Fellowship time. These fellowships were a time when (once a quarter) we would assemble in church to share a meal and enjoy fellowship one with another. For many of us it was an important time to form bonds, encourage one another and a time of sharing. It was an important time for many of us that we miss.
For some time now we've been considering how we might safely re-start our 5th Sunday Fellowship time. Since the mandatory shutdowns ended, we've observed how restaurants have modified their preparation and serving procedures, and how patrons have responded to these changes (using attendance as a subjective measure of public confidence). Based on restaurant parking lot occupancy, there seems to be substantial acceptance of the precautions and procedures they've put in place.
Using the following "roadmap", we'd like to schedule our first attempt at re-starting the 5th Sunday Fellowships on August 29th immediately following the Sunday Morning Service:
1) the meal will be catered. Meal items will be prepared by a commercial kitchen
2) plates will be prepared at church by gloved and masked servers
3) social distancing will be observed. Our meal tables are 6 feet in diameter and only four chairs will be at each table
Because the meal will be catered, we'll need a good estimate of how many people would like to attend. A sign-up sheet will be in the sanctuary, or send the church an email.
Hope to see you there.
Provisions for COVID-19 protocols are in place and will be available for all on-campus gatherings. Hand sanitizer and disposable masks are available at the front entrances to the church building. Seating in the church sanctuary has been adjusted to ease social distancing.
8/18/2021 Updated Service Schedule
Effective September 1st, 2021, our church in-person service schedule will be as follows:
Wednesday Evening Service (beginning September 1st): Begins at 6:00 p.m. in the church sanctuary.
Sunday School (beginning September 5th): Begins at 9:30 a.m. every Sunday morning in the church building.
Sunday Morning Service (beginning September 5th): Begins at 10:45 a.m. in the church sanctuary.
All services held in the church sanctuary will be recorded and archived on the Joyful Life Baptist Church website (joyfullifebcga.org). These recordings can be viewed at your convenience 24/7.
For those who are not yet comfortable attending in-person services, the Sunday Morning Worship Service and the Wednesday Evening Service will be "livestreamed". At the present time livestreaming can be viewed on Facebook page "Roy Gibbs".
Provisions for COVID-19 protocols are in place and will be available for all on-campus gatherings. Hand sanitizer and disposable masks are available at the front entrances to the church building. Seating in the church sanctuary has been adjusted to ease social distancing.
6/16/2021
Adding a "Worship Through Giving" Capability, To Our Website
We are looking into adding the ability for website users to participate in "Worship Through Giving" and would appreciate your input.
Would you participate using our website if such a capability was available?
If so, what mechanism would make it most convenient (i.e. credit card, e-check, Google Pay, Apple Pay, etc.)?
Please share your thoughts using the "Contact Us" tab at the top of the page.
Thank you in advance for you feedback.
6/13/2021
Livestreaming Church Sanctuary Services, Technical Problems
We are experiencing technical problems in livestreaming our church services from the sanctuary. We are working to resolve the problem as soon as possible.
Our ability to record (audio and video) is unaffected. You can still visit the recording archive on this website (using the "Recent Services" tab). All church services held in the sanctuary are recorded and added to the archive (usually within 24 hours).
We apologize for the inconvenience, and are working to resolve the technical problem.
5/23/2021
Wednesday Evening Services In The Church Sanctuary Beginning On June 2nd, 2020
After a very long break, our on-campus Wednesday evening services will restart on June 2nd, 2021.
We look forward to seeing you in the church sanctuary on Wednesday evening. The services will begin at 6:30 p.m. every week.
Be sure to call your friends and family and ask them to meet you there.
12/15/2020
Sunday Morning Services In The Church Sanctuary Beginning On December 20th, 2020
After a two week break in on-campus meetings, Sunday Morning Services will restart in the church sanctuary on December 20th.
We look forward to seeing you there. The morning service will begin at 10:00 a.m.
Be sure to call your friends and family and ask them to meet you there.
Pastor Roy & Nancy, Positive Covid-19 Test, Break In On-Campus Church Services
As some of you may have heard, Pastor Roy and Nancy had Covid-19 tests this week. Both test results were positive. To date, their symptoms have been light (body aches, coughing and feeling tired). Both have undergone additional testing because of their past medical history. All test results were encouraging, and as of yesterday (Friday) both feel they are improving.
Please remember Pastor Roy and Nancy in your prayers. Pray for their continued recovery and for God’s protection. Let’s all pray for their encouragement and for their spirits to remain high.
Obviously, Pastor Roy cannot fill the church pulpit in person at this time, and will not be able to for the next 10 to 14 days. Since his symptoms have been light, his desire is to continue to lead us and preach. Because of these circumstances we are suspending on-campus Sunday morning services for the next two Sundays (December 6th and 13th). Pastor Roy will lead the Sunday morning service via livestreaming on his Facebook page (“Roy Gibbs”). Other scheduled live streamed services are not affected.
Bro. John Davis will conduct the Sunday morning music service at 8:30 via Facebook page "Mitzi S. Davis". Please join in for both the live streamed music service and the preaching service.
Pray for Pastor Roy and Nancy. Pray for our church. Covid-19 continues to impact everyone.
We've been asked about tithes and offerings during this two week break. You can either mail them to the church, or give us a call and one of the deacons will come to you.
Please forward any questions or needs to: Johnny Woods, 478 319-2625 or John Baldwin, 478 396-0303
Thank you for your support and prayers, Johnny
There has been a new addition to the Joyful Life Baptist Church Music Ministry.
The next time you enter the sanctuary, look directly across from the piano. Yes, a new (to us anyway) organ. We discussed the addition of the organ at out last Communication Meeting. It took up residence in the sanctuary this week.
We've been blessed by a sister church in our association (1st Baptist Church of Centerville). They transitioned to a more contemporary music program format a while back and were no longer using the instrument. Rather than have the organ remain unused, they offered the organ to us. The moving and set-up were provided by anonymous benefactors.
We're looking forward to the blessings this instrument will bring.
Here's a sound bite that we recorded.
6/16/2020
An improved recording system (audio and video) has been installed at church, and is being used to record all services held in the church sanctuary. The resulting improved recordings are being uploaded to the "Recent Services" page of this web site.
The recordings for Sunday Morning services are being provided in sections to increase the convenience of viewing, and to ease finding specific points of interest. Since the "contents" of each service may vary from week to week, some variation in the "sections" available can be expected. Typically, the following sections will be available: 1) Announcements and Opening Prayer, 2) The Music Service, 3) The Scripture Reading, 4) The Special Music, and 4) The Morning Message
Along with the new recording system, an improved DVD creation capability has been implemented. If there is a need for a DVD recording of a service held in the church sanctuary (for a shut-in, etc.) please let us know.
5/6/2020
Dear Joyful Life Family,
After much prayer and discussion, and taking into consideration the guidelines given to us by Governor Kemp’s office, we will begin to meet face-to-face on Sunday, May 31st, 2020.
As excited as we are to be gathering again, this will not be a gathering as we have become accustomed to having through the years at JLBC. This will serve as the beginning of the process of phasing us back into full family gatherings. These are the highlights that you need to be aware of for our first meeting back on May 31:
Initially, we will begin to meet for Sunday AM worship only beginning at 10:00 AM.
There will be no nursery provided, no children’s church, and no Sunday School.
As you arrive, you will be greeted by our deacons who will instruct you how to enter the building and where to sit.
The doors will be propped open into the sanctuary in order to reduce surface contact to a minimum.
Those in attendance must maintain social distancing.
We are asking that everyone in attendance wear a mask. We are, unfortunately, unable to provide you with one at this time and ask you to secure your own before arriving.
Hand sanitizer will be available.
There will be no bulletin provided. Announcements will be put on the screens before the start of the worship service and at its conclusion.
While the offering plate will not be passed, you will still have the opportunity to worship through giving at the conclusion of the service. Instructions will be given at that time.
The sanctuary will be thoroughly cleaned and sanitized before each service.
Bathrooms will be available, but we are asking that you make every effort to not use them except for an emergency if at all possible.
If you, or anyone in your household, are sick, please, stay home.
For everyone's health and safety, we are asking for strict adherence to these guidelines and any instructions given by staff or deacons.
If you are not ready to begin gathering publicly, we understand and want you to feel no pressure concerning your decision to continue to shelter in place. The current “Live Streaming” schedule will continue as follows:
Sunday Morning Message by Pastor Roy Gibbs Praise and Worship Music with John Davis Sunday Mornings at 10:00 a.m. View On Facebook Page - "Roy Gibbs"
Mid-Week Prayer Service with Pastor Roy Gibbs Wednesday Evenings at 6:00 p.m. View On Facebook Page - "Roy Gibbs"
Sunday School Lesson with Jeanette Hall Saturday Evenings at 8:00 p.m. View On Facebook Page - "Jeanette Hall"
There will still be matters to work out as we go through this process of implementation. I ask for your patience as we learn how to work through all of the important safety issues together.
Remember that these guidelines are in place not to restrict but rather protect. Your health and safety are our primary concern as we begin to physically gather once again. Stay informed and aware of the directives that are being given by our state and local authorities.
Please, continue to pray for our community, our state, our nation and the world as we begin this task of getting back to some semblance of normal life. I also ask you to continue to pray and seek opportunities share Christ with those around you.
The Deacon Body and I will continue to make adjustments to our plan as necessary. We continue to seek wisdom and direction from our Lord in these days as tough decisions are wrestled with and made with our eyes on Jesus and His mission for us at such a time as this. Please, do not hesitate to reach out to me or to any one of our deacons with any questions that you may have. I am looking forward to seeing you soon. You are all greatly loved and missed!
In His Service & Yours, Roy Gibbs 229-938-4817
JLBC News Update 3/28/2020, 4:30 p.m.
No new uploads for this week, but if you check the "EVENTS" page you'll see a full schedule of Live Streaming opportunities this week.
All our Sunday morning messages for 2020 are now available on the "RECENT SERMONS" page for you to view at your convenience. You can also download the individual messages to your personal device to view at a later date if you like. If anyone has difficulty, let me know.
If anyone has any needs, please contact the Pastor or one of the Deacons (contact information is on the "STAFF" page).
If there is a need to get something delivered from a Pharmacy or Grocery and you are unable to go out yourself, we have volunteers who can help. Contact me if that is the case.
Johnny Woods
JLBC News Update 3/22/2020, 2:18 p.m.
Hope everyone was able to enjoy Bro. Roy's live stream this morning.
I regret that we weren't able to upload his message for this week to the website. Unexpected technical difficulties precluded getting the upload done. Hopefully these will be worked out for next week.
If anyone has ideas or suggestions on how we can improve our communications please pass them along to your Deacon. If anyone has needs please let us know.
God is in control and He will help us get through this. We just need to trust him and do what we can to care for each other.
Johnny Woods
JLBC News Update 3/22/2020, 2:18 p.m.
Hope everyone was able to enjoy Bro. Roy's live stream this morning.
I regret that we weren't able to upload his message for this week to the website. Unexpected technical difficulties precluded getting the upload done. Hopefully these will be worked out for next week.
If anyone has ideas or suggestions on how we can improve our communications please pass them along to your Deacon. If anyone has needs please let us know.
God is in control and He will help us get through this. We just need to trust him and do what we can to care for each other.
Johnny Woods
JLBC News Update 03-19-2020 Hello Brothers and Sisters, I hope that you are having a good day even in these unusual circumstances. I know that God is in control and He will see us through these challenges. Our response to Coronavirus requires us to make changes in the ways we communicate, worship, and serve. We will post updated information from time to time on this web page as well as phone calls and text messages. Please feel free to call me or one of our Deacons should you have a need, concern or question. We are currently posting recent sermons on this web page. A sermon for this Sunday will be posted by Sunday AM for you to view at your convenience. I will also do a Facebook live message for those who do not have access to the web page. I will give the time in advance and the message will be saved. My Facebook page is “Roy Gibbs”. Nancy is doing a Daily Devotion at 3:00PM on her Facebook page which is “Nancy B. Gibbs”. John Davis is working on some music which will be posted on our sermon page next week as we work out the logistics Please be patient and pray for us as we as we try to provide platforms for communication, information, and worship. I want to thank Johnny, John, John, John, Carol, and Nancy as they work on logistics, communication, maintenance, security, ministry, and devotional messages. As we continue to minister as Joyful Life Baptist Church, we are having to adjust the way we receive tithes and offerings. Since we are not meeting on campus, we are encouraging mailing tithes and offerings as you are able to the following address: Joyful Baptist Church 1618 S. Houston Lake Road Kathleen, GA 31047 As a Church, we can Pray, Study the Word, Check on and Encourage each other, and Trust God. Please forward to us any needs or concerns. Roy Gibbs, Pastor roycgibbs@aol.com 229-938-4817
JLBC News Update 03-21-2020 Brothers and Sisters, I thank all of you who are doing so many things for JLBC. If you have an immediate need or prayer request, please call me or one of the Deacons. Please continue to pray and trust God for a quick resolution to this challenge. There is a recent sermon on our web page which you can access. Nancy, “Nancy B. Gibbs” does a Facebook Live Devotion each day at 3:00PM. Tomorrow, Sunday, 03/22/2020, at 9:00AM, I, “Roy Gibbs” will share a brief message via Facebook Live. Please continue to Pray, Study the Word, Check on and Encourage each other, and Trust God. Roy Gibbs Pastor roycgibbs@aol.com 229-938-4817