Upcoming Fundraiser sponsored by 1st Baptist

Upcoming Lenten services sponsored by the Joint Ministerium

All are welcome, please join us for these services of prayer and re-commitment as we journey together as a Christian community toward the Cross and the Empty Tomb.

What Every Christian Should Know About: World Religions - class to resume 1/31

The second, of three, lectures on World Religions from the Christian perspective will resume this Wednesday from 7:15-8:45 PM at Seneca United Methodist Church.  For those who missed the first class, the final two will still be informative and useful; to catch up, watch the Youtube video covering 7th Day Adventism, the Jehovah's Witnesses, and Mormonism.  This week's focus will be Judaism, Islam, and Hinduism, with the class finishing up on 2/7 with Buddhism, Confucianism, Taoism, Shinto, and Scientology.

Below is the link to Pastor's page with the Youtube video, PowerPoint, and other related materials:

What Every Christian Should Know About: World Religions

Below is the link to the video from the 1st presentation at Seneca UMC.

                                          World Religions video, no PowerPoint on screen

                                                                         Part 1 of 3                                       

                                                                      Part 2 of 3

Charity for children with cancer supported by First Baptist, the Magic Yarn Project, is featured on CNN

This is the charity that the church supports through Nicole Brzezinski Powell's fundraiser from last year, the Fairy Enchanted Evening which was a mother-daughter (or father-daughter, grandma-granddaughter, etc.) event which raised $1,500 for the Magic Yarn Project. This year's event, Fairy Enchanted Evening's Princess Ball will be May 5th. Fairy Enchanted Evening website  Those interested in attending the ball should go to the website for ticket information, those willing to volunteer to help put on the Ball should also contact Nicole through the Fairy Enchanted website, or call the church at 814-432-8061.

Those who live in the Venango County area who wish to attend, please get your tickets early, last year's event sold out.

The Magic Yarn Project story on CNN

Upcoming Meeting in January regarding assistance to those in need.

What Every Christian Should Know About: World Religions - to be offered again

The presentation/seminar by Pastor Powell on the topic, What Every Christian Should Know About: World Religions, will be offered for a second time in three parts at Seneca United Methodist Church on Wednesday, January 17th, 31st (not on the 24th), and finishing on Wednesday, February 7th.  Each night will begin at 7:15 PM and last until 8:45.  Seneca UMC is located at: 196 E State Rd, Seneca, PA 16346.  If you have any questions about the class or its content, contact Pastor Powell at 432-8061 or by email at: pastorpowell@hotmail.com

Google map to Seneca UMC

Christmas Eve at the Parsonage

The church family of 1st Baptist, as well as our local family and friends in the Franklin area, are invited to join the Powell family (Pastor, Nicole, Clara, not to mention doggies Winnie and Linus) on Christmas Eve from 5:00-6:30 for coffee, hot chocolate, cookies, and Christmas cheer at the church parsonage (connected to the church building, use the church parking lot and enter through the church).

The parsonage will be decorated (by Nicole) to highlight its 125+ year old Victorian charm, but lights and trees need people to enjoy them, please join us if you can.

The Christmas Eve church candlelight service will begin at 7 PM, if you don't have another church service to attend that evening, you are more than welcome to stay and join us in a service full of singing Christmas carols and punctuated with Lois Ann's rendition of "O Holy Night", as we celebrate the arrival of the child of Bethlehem.

Teacher Support Cancelled, Bible Study returns to Wednesday

Due to lack of participation, the Teacher Support Group is being cancelled, after Bible Study this Sunday night (10/8), Bible Study will return to its original place on Wednesday evenings at 7 PM starting on 10/11.  The evening group is currently working its way, verse by verse, through the Gospel of Matthew.  All are welcome.

What Every Christian Should Know About: World Religions

In this 3 part series, Pastor Powell seeks to give a brief but accurate explanation of the basic beliefs of 11 of the world's religions viewed through the perspective of their commonalities and differences with apostolic/traditional/Biblical Christianity.

In the first part, the Seventh-Day Adventists, Jehovah's Witnesses, and Mormons are discussed following a brief general introduction to the topic.  In the second part, Judaism, Islam, and Hinduism are discussed.  In the third part, Buddhism, Confucianism, Taoism, Shinto, and Scientology are examined.

                                                       World Religions - Part 1 of 3

                                                        World Religions - Part 2 of 3

                                                           World Religions - Part 3 of 3

Parents' Night Out returns to save the day once again.

1st Baptist will host the first Parents' Night Out of this year on Friday, November 10th from 5:00-7:30 PM.  This is an opportunity for parents' to have a "date night" and spend some quality time with each other and/or with friends, as well as a chance for the young people to enjoy a whole lot of fun at the church.

This year Parents' Night Out will be a cooperative effort that includes First UMC and Christ UMC as well.

Additional dates have also been chosen: Saturday, December 2nd (10 AM -3 PM) for Christmas shopping, and Friday, February 16th (5-7:30 PM) for Valentine's Day.

Please RSVP, 432-8061, starting two weeks prior to each night so that we can asses how many volunteers we need to work with the kids and how much food they'll need (parents, you don't need to feed them before you go, we'll take care of it).

Teacher Support/Fellowship Group to begin 9/20

As a former teacher, I know that teaching is both a rewarding and a stressful career, one requiring support from friends and family.  With that in mind, a support/fellowship group is beginning on September 20th at the First Baptist Church of Franklin (1041 Liberty St.).

 The group will meet on the 1st and 3rd Wednesdays of each month during the school year from 7-8 PM.

This will be a lightly structured event, focusing on allowing teachers to connect with each other and find help for the challenges they face through dialogue.

Refreshments will be provided, all teachers, public and private, current and former are invited, along with classroom support staff.  No registration necessary, come when you can, and thank you for your service to our community.

If you have any questions, please call 432-8061 or email Pastor Powell at: pastorpowell@hotmail.com

1st Baptist 150th Anniversary recognized by the State of Pennsylvania.

Knowledge is the enemy of Hatred

150th Anniversary Worship service video

Our recent 150th anniversary of the founding of the church was celebrated with a special worship service on July 30th.  The video of the service is divided into 3 parts due to length, click the links below to watch.

                                          150th Worship Celebration - Part 1

                                          150th Worship Celebration - Part 2

                                          150th Worship Celebration - Part 3

Still standing on the Promises of God

The family and friends of 1st Baptist on the 150th anniversary.

Some of our senior saints and their family members, along with Pastor jumping into the shot.

God has been faithful, in every generation.

Sunday marked the 150th anniversary of the founding of 1st Baptist Church of Franklin, an in recognition of that milestone, we celebrated with family and friends including former pastors Roy Johnsen, Ray Williams, and regional executive pastor Frank Frischkorn.  Over 120 people worshiped together, celebrating the past and praising God for his faithfulness, as well as looking to the future and trusting that God has great things in store for his church.

Clara Powell makes a break for it while Pastor Powell and wife Nicole work with the choir before church.

Pastor Roy Johnsen, 1983-90 shares memories during the service.

The congregation sings, with Pastor Frank Frischkorn in the center.

Pastor Powell leads congregational singing in front of the Estes Organ.

It wouldn't be a Baptist celebration without food, everyone gathered in Clark Hall after the service.

Former interim pastor Ray Williams (2011) and his wife Frances.

Pastor Len Lewis and his wife Shirley, Len was ordained at 1st Baptist.

Pastor Powell in front of the collage of 18 former pastors out of the total of 31 during the church's 150 years of existence.

Bill and Marilyn Moffitt, long-time members and stalwarts of the church.

Pastor Powell speaks to the congregation in the sanctuary, completed in 1904.

Pastor Powell writes down prayer requests during the service.

Lois Ann Schaeffer sings "His Eye is on the Sparrow", Lois Ann sang in the choir in 1947 for the 80th anniversary, and in every year since.

This weekend: Open House and Worship Celebration for the 150th

It is finally here, we've been working on preparing for this date for a year now.

Saturday: 11-2  Open House at the church - tours, organ music, historic picture display, and refreshments, open to the public all are welcome.

Sunday 10:45- Worship Service - featuring Pastor Powell, former Pastor Johnsen, and ABCOPAD Regional Executive Pastor Dr. Frank Frischkorn, plus special music from the FBC choir, Nicole Powell on the viola, and more.  Please join us to celebrate the goodness of the Lord to this congregation over the past 150 years.

* Immediately following the service we will be gathering on the front steps to take a photo of the congregation together with our friends and guests.  After the photo, we will all gather in Clark Hall for dinner and fellowship. *

150th Anniversary commemorative booklet

With our anniversary celebration coming this weekend, we've created a 150th anniversary commemorative booklet to pass out to our members, friends, and guests who will be joining us in person.  For those of you unable to attend, the link below contains the PDF of the booklet.  It was created by Pastor Powell's wife Nicole, utilizing the work of the previous booklets from 1967 and 1997.  Please let anyone with a connection to our church know about the booklet so that they can download it too.

First Baptist 150th Anniversary Booklet

Video of the Jews for Jesus presentation

Many thanks to Tuvya Zaretsky for bringing this presentation to our church, and for the ministry of Jews for Jesus.  Below is the video of his lecture of The Gospel in the Feasts of Israel.

Reminder: Jews for Jesus presentation this Sunday night at 6 PM

The Franklin Christian Ministerium presents:

The Gospel in the Feasts of Israel

An educational ministry of:

With Tuvya Zaretsky

Sunday, July 16th at 6:00 PM

At the First Baptist Church of Franklin

1041 Liberty St. 432-8061

This event is free and open to the public, no tickets necessary

A freewill offering will be taken to support the ministry of Jews for Jesus