Milestones
Milestones is a discipleship ministry that provides a way for us, as a congregation, to:
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Mark some of the important moments of our spiritual journey,
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Stop and notice God at work in ourselves and in one another,
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Provide tangible ways, in the form of stones, to remember what God has done for us,
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Celebrate and journey together in our life with God.
Why Milestones?
Old Testament scholar, Walter Brueggemann, has said, “Hope is grounded in memory.”
At First Baptist, we believe that. We realize the hope that is ours - for today, and for tomorrow, - when we remember who God is and the many ways God has provided for us and cared for us all along the way.
Throughout Scripture we hear the call to remember. The Israelites were called to remember… God brought you out of slavery – God parted the sea… and made a way for you on dry land. Jesus calls us to come to the communion table and remember… that you are loved with an everlasting love. Remember, because life moves quickly and it is so easy to forget the hope of the power and presence and possibilities of our God.
What is "Milestones?"
When someone becomes a member of First Baptist Church, they get to pick out a handmade bowl for their household. Our prayer is, as it sits out on their coffee table or on a bookshelf, it will remind them that they are a part of something bigger; they are part of this congregation and of God’s work in the world.
The bowl itself is a symbol of the ways that God holds their lives in the palm of his hands. Over time, like each of us, they will receive Milestones – clay stones with symbols – marking different moments in their spiritual journey.
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The Stones
One of my favorites is a stone that one member can give to another who has walked beside them or loved them and helped them in a particular season.
The following stones are currently a part of our Milestones ministry. Others may be added along the way as Milestones is an ever-evolving ministry that will grow with us as a congregation for years to come.
When someone receives their bowl for the first time, there are already four Milestones in the bowl that are stamped with the words – Beloved, Tethered, Forgiven, Whole. We have come to believe that these four core truths are foundational to experiencing the freedom and hope that is ours in Christ. These four stones are not milestones that we earn. They are gifts from God that we must receive, and remember, again and again. They remind us that we are,
BELOVED
You are made in the image of God. You are loved unconditionally by the God who knows everything about you. No matter how much you think you have messed up or fallen short – there is NOTHING that can separate you from the love of God.
TETHERED
The psalmist talks about deep calling out to deep. You are anchored to God at the very core of your soul. No matter how disconnected you may feel at times, There is always a way back. Nothing can sever that connection.
FORGIVEN
When we live out of the Forgiveness that Jesus has already provided, we understand what it means to be set free. And to have the capacity to offer that forgiveness to others.
WHOLE
You are enough, just as you are. Scripture says we are all cracked pots made of earth and clay. Our broken places do not make us less than in God’s eyes; they are simply places for God’s light to shine through us.
Birth of a Child
EXAMPLE SHORT DESCRIPTION OF STONES. Collapsible text is great for longer section titles and descriptions. It gives people access to all the info they need, while keeping your layout clean. Link your text to anything, or set your text box to expand on click.
Add a Title
EXAMPLE SHORT DESCRIPTION OF STONES. Can be approx. 2-3 sentences. Collapsible text is great for longer section titles and descriptions. It gives people access to all the info they need, while keeping your layout clean. Link your text to anything, or set your text box to expand on click.
Add a Title
EXAMPLE SHORT DESCRIPTION OF STONES. Can be approx. 2-3 sentences. Collapsible text is great for longer section titles and descriptions. It gives people access to all the info they need, while keeping your layout clean. Link your text to anything, or set your text box to expand on click.
Add a Title
EXAMPLE SHORT DESCRIPTION OF STONES. Can be approx. 2-3 sentences. Collapsible text is great for longer section titles and descriptions. It gives people access to all the info they need, while keeping your layout clean. Link your text to anything, or set your text box to expand on click.
Frequently Asked Questions
The Milestones Story
As you can imagine, launching a ministry of this size for the entire congregation has been quite an adventure! AND it has been amazing to watch God’s hand at work. First we had to Find potters to make all of these bowls. There are over 450 out for you to choose from this morning! We think we will need 600 bowls by the end of the year.– that’s a lot! After weeks of searching and asking we had only found one potter, Shannon, who was willing to make 200 bowls for us. But everyone else turned us down. We thought we were sunk. We could have ordered bowls online, but we felt there was something meaningful and appropriate that the bowls be handmade – each one unique, and that someone who was a part of our local community could use the gifts and talents God gave them to create something special. Then one day at the end of Tuesday Noon Church, Sue Whitmore stopped me and said, “Did you know that George Miars is a potter?” I had NO IDEA. George is a member of our congregation who had taught himself how to make pottery over COVID. Amazing! Some of George’s bowls are on the communion table. They are gorgeous. That was a game changer. Through George we got connected to Fat Cat Pottery Studio and to two CFCC students – Aubrey and Lily. Not only have these talented ladies made over 200 bowls for us, but Aubrey, who works at Fat Cat – has been an invaluable help and encourager in figuring out the next stage of our project – the Stones. We were so excited we had found the potters… and then we realized we now needed to make hundreds and hundreds of milestones! It’s really thousands, but it’s less overwhelming in my head to say hundreds and hundreds. 😊 But here as well, God has raised up so many helpers. •We have a wonderful team on Wednesday nights rolling clay stones, stamping them •Savannah, on our staff, has figured out how to use a 3-D printer to make all of our stamps that we use to imprint the stones – the concept of a 3-D printer still blows my mind •Caitlin Tuttle, one of our members, has helped us to design many of the symbols we will use on the stones. Whenever there has been a need, God has provided. We will begin introducing these individual milestones over time – stones for things like the Birth of a child, or baptism, or a Significant leadership role.
Our Prayer for Milestones
Our prayer for Milestones is that these bowls and these stones remind us that we journey together as a congregation and that God is at work in our midst. By paying attention to, and marking the important moments along the way, the Milestones in our bowl will be a catalyst for reflection and gratitude and a prompt for conversation, about the things that God has done, in us and among us. May it be so.