{"id":19,"date":"2015-10-06T15:52:54","date_gmt":"2015-10-06T15:52:54","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/fbcgraham-org.j9elxcy4-liquidwebsites.com\/worship\/"},"modified":"2025-11-19T00:13:41","modified_gmt":"2025-11-19T00:13:41","slug":"connect","status":"publish","type":"page","link":"https:\/\/fbcgraham.org\/?page_id=19","title":{"rendered":"Connect"},"content":{"rendered":"

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Starfish Ministry<\/strong><\/h2>\n

One day a man was walking along a beach when he noticed a boy picking something up and throwing it into the ocean. Approaching the boy, he asked, \u201cWhat are you doing?\u201d The boy replied, \u201cThrowing starfish back into the ocean. The surf is up, and the tide is going out. If I don\u2019t throw them back, they\u2019ll die.\u201d \u201cSon,\u201d the man said, \u201cdon\u2019t you realize there are miles and miles of beach and hundreds of starfish? You can\u2019t make a difference!\u201d After listening politely, the boy bent down, picked up another starfish and threw it back into the surf. Then, smiling at the man, he said, \u201cMade a difference for that one.\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n

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On Saturday, February 18, 2012, First Baptist Church of Graham began a new ministry in this community.\u00a0 It would be a ministry de-signed to offer a nutritious lunch to anyone who came.\u00a0 The only requirement to receive a meal would be hunger and a desire to\u00a0fellowship with others. \u00a0During those initial weeks and months of the ministry, only a handful\u00a0of guests came to receive the meal.\u00a0 But in faithful service to our Lord, the ministry continued, always focusing on making a difference to at least one person and resting on the words of our Savior, “Whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers and sisters of mine, you did for me.”<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n

\u00a0<\/em>Since that first Saturday in 2012, the Starfish Ministry has grown and flourished.\u00a0 Prior to arrival of the Covid 19 virus, 80 \u2013 100 guests were being served as they fellowshipped in the Ministry Center.\u00a0 Since Covid and the need to offer, \u201cto-go\u201d lunches, this ministry has regularly served over 150 meals each Saturday.<\/p>\n

Over the past twelve years, nearly 38,000 meals have been served to guests in our community.\u00a0 An additional 3,000 meals have been shared with the homebound folks in our church.<\/p>\n

With the growth in the number of guests that are served, Starfish has led us to develop additional ministries in our community.\u00a0 The Food Box Ministry provides enough food to feed a family of four for a week.\u00a0 We have provided over 200 food boxes in just the last two years.\u00a0 We have also provided over 50 non-kitchen bags to folks who are currently homeless. \u00a0These additional ministries for the food insecure were born out of the Starfish Ministry.<\/p>\n

As we celebrate the 12th Anniversary of the Starfish Ministry, let\u2019s remember all those special folks who have found a warm, safe, and welcoming place each Saturday to share a meal and see the power of God\u2019s love in action.\u00a0 Starfish allows the light to shine so that God may receive the Glory!<\/p>\n

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\"\"With a name inspired by the well-known story of a little boy rescuing starfish by throwing them back into the sea one by one, our Starfish Ministry seeks to make a difference by providing lunch for anyone who comes to the FBCG Ministry Center each Saturday (11:30am to 12:30pm) throughout the year. Team members prepare and serve a hot meal and interact with Starfish guests, building relationships and sharing God’s love with those who come to eat. On the second Saturday of each month, Starfish Worship takes place at noon in the Ministry Center with music, prayer and a brief message. Four Starfish teams are made up of those from the First Baptist Church family, and our fifth Starfish team is led by the Hanmaum Church, a Korean Church family that meets in the First Baptist Church chapel building. As a part of Starfish, we also have a Food Box Ministry to provide short-term help to families in need of immediate\/emergency food assistance.<\/p>\n

If you would like to know more about how you can be involved in Starfish at FBCG, please contact the church office for more information (336) 226-7395.<\/p>\n

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Each week, before the meal is served, a Starfish team member shares a devotional thought with guests in the dining room area. These brief devotions are chosen by the various team members and allow Starfish guests to focus on spiritual concerns.<\/p>\n

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Starfish Clothing Ministry (Lydia’s Closet)<\/strong><\/h2>\n

\"\"As\u00a0 we reach out to the community around us, we at First Baptist realize that working with others in our community and beyond maximizes the impact we can have as we share Christ’s love in many different ways and with many different people. In the Graham area, we partner with North Graham Elementary School, Graham Middle School, Residential Treatment Services of Alamance (RTSA), and Allied Churches of Alamance County (ACAC). We have met with leaders of these organizations and with them have identified practical needs that our church family can meet simply by purchasing specific items that help these group in their day-to-day work. These items are then stored in Lydia’s Closet (large storage space in the FBCG Ministry Center) and are made available as needed. Below is a sample shopping list for Lydia’s Closet:<\/p>\n

Apparel Items<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n