Events

November 5 & 12: Information Packets Available  The Christmas Gift Drive is Oxford Bible Fellowship's ministry to help local children who are in need by partnering with Talawanda School District.  Our goal is to provide 100 children with Christmas gifts this year! WHY PARTICIPATE This ministry gives us an opportunity to share Christ’s love by helping meet the physical, emotional, and spiritual needs of local children. HOW YOU CAN HELP  Select a child's information packet on November 5th or 12th and receive a gift tag. Purchase and wrap the child’s desired Christmas gift(s). Affix gift tag to the wrapped Christmas gift(s). Return wrapped Christmas gift(s) to the church by December 3rd. It is important that Christmas gifts are returned on time! If you would like to help deliver the gifts, please contact Ellen at [email protected].

We are excited to enter the season of Advent with you beginning this Sunday! The word advent comes from the Latin word adventus meaning arrival. For the next four weeks we will study passages that foster our celebration of Christ's first arrival, when Light broke into darkness. And together we will look ahead to His triumphal arrival, yet to come! This Sunday we have the pleasure of hearing from our Pastoral Resident, Taylor Scott as he preaches from Genesis 6:1-8. Consider reading the passage ahead of time to better follow along.

Last week, as we began our advent series, we examined the darkness that resides, not only in our world, but in each one of us. This week our Director of Student Ministries, Justin Kailer, will continue our advent series by looking at Isaiah 9:1-7. We will examine how, at a particularly dark point in history for God's chosen people, God promised a glorious light to dispel the darkness and bring illumination to the world.

Hello church family! This Sunday we will be celebrating the third week of Advent and lighting the third candle which symbolizes joy. This has also been called the shepherd's candle because of the declaration received by the angels–good tidings of great joy. Our passage this Sunday will be Luke 1:59-80 and Pastor Emanuel will be walking us through the birth of John and the hymn of Zechariah. This passage is traditionally called the “Benedictus Dominus Deus Israel” because of Zechariah’s opening expression—“Praise be to the Lord, the God of Israel”. It is a song of benediction and praise for how God has worked to bring about the dawning of light in the coming birth of Christ. "Praise be to the Lord, the God of Israel, because he has come and has redeemed his people. He has raised up a horn of salvation for us in the house of his servant David (as he said through his holy prophets of long ago), salvation from our enemies and from the hand of all who hate us.” (ESV, Luke 1:66-68) We encourage you to read the passage ahead of time and join us in God’s Word corporately on Sunday!

We are days away from our Christmas Eve service on December 24th, from 5:30-6:30pm! Following the service, there will be a cookie reception. This will be a special evening of anticipation and celebration as we gather as Christ's body to remember His arrival. Please invite neighbors, family, and friends and participate with us on Christmas Eve!

Happy New Year! We praise God for His faithfulness and provision in 2023 and look forward to how God will lead and direct us in the year ahead. This Sunday, Pastor Emanuel will be leading us through Revelation 3:7-13 as we look to become the kind of church that Christ calls us to be. We invite you and your family to join us this Sunday morning as we close out 2023 together as a church family. We will be resuming our preaching series in John after the new year. Questions for reflection: 1. If you could only use one word, what word would describe your walk with Jesus in 2023? 2. What steps or actions are needed for you to build on where you are today in your journey of faith?    We will have one family service at 10:30am this Sunday, December 31st. There will be no Children's Ministry and no Student Ministry. We invite all families to participate in the service, together!

This Sunday we will be resuming our series through the Gospel of John. Pastor Emanuel will be preaching from John 6:1-21 as we look at the miracle of Jesus feeding the five thousand. We encourage you to read ahead in preparation for this Sunday. Discussion questions for this week’s passage can be found here.

Let us begin this new year submitting ourselves and this church to the Lord in prayer! As we're encouraged in Philippians 4:6-7, "Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let requests be made known to God. And the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard hearts and minds in Christ Jesus" (ESV).

Members, please mark your calendars for a budget meeting after second service on Sunday, January 21. This will be a time for questions regarding the proposed 2024 budget.

This Sunday we return to two worship gatherings at 9:00AM and 10:30AM. We will continue our sermon series in John 7:53-8:11. There is much dispute over this “passage” and as such, we will examine it the same way we do every text: with careful study and plain explanation. As we encourage you to do each week, make sure to take a few minutes and read through our passage before Sunday! You may access this week's discussion questions here.

Let's get ready to celebrate what God has done at Oxford Bible Fellowship this past year and look forward with great expectation for what He will do this year! Here are a few ways you can prepare for this year’s Annual Meeting: 1. Click here to access the 2024 proposed budget. Physical copies are also available for pick up at the Next Steps area. Please note that our final year-end 2023 Financial Report will be available next week. 2. Come to the Budget Meeting on January 21 at 12:00 PM: We will meet in the sanctuary after the second service. During this time, questions surrounding the 2024 proposed budget will be covered. You can also email any questions to the elders at [email protected]. 3. Join the Annual Meeting on January 28 at 5:00 PM: We would love to have every member and regular attendee come to the annual meeting! We will be voting on the proposed budget and elder nominations. The elder bios are available in the Next Steps area. If you are unable to join us in person, the meeting will be live-streamed. 4. Grab a Proxy Form: Any member who is unable to attend the Annual Meeting in person on January 28th should pick up a proxy form at the Next Steps area in the lobby or stop by the church office during business hours to pick one up. 5. Sign up for the Chili Cook-Off: Sign up here to compete in the chili competition or sign up in the Next Steps area to bring something to contribute to the dinner! We will also email about the needed food items.

The Gospel Coalition will be hosting its Women's Conference, Behold and Believe, in Indianapolis from June 20-22nd! This will be a special time for worship, discipleship, and training from keynote speakers like Jen Wilkin, Ruth Chou Simons, and David Platt. In the keynote sessions, attendees will study passages from the gospel of John, dovetailing with our church's current sermon series! Click here for a video encapsulating the themes of Behold and Believe and for more information. Register here with discount code OBF20 for $20 off. Food and housing will be an additional cost. We are thankful to Barb Schrag for arranging the carpooling and housing details! Please email Barb at [email protected] by February 10th so she has time to book hotel rooms.