Welcome to Friendship Baptist Church

5200 Newbys Bridge Road

Chesterfield, VA 23832

Friendship is a church that loves God, loves people, and exists to reach others with the good news of Jesus Christ.

A Word From The Pastor.

Be content with what you have, because God has said, “Never will I leave you; never will I forsake you.” - Hebrews 13:5 (NIV)
The heat and drought has started this summer off with some unbearably hot days. Usually, I like to go to the mountains and hike some trails and enjoy the relative cool of the mountain air. I remember the first hike I went on after my battle with covid where I spent 8 days in the hospital. It was a foolhardy trip. Not only was it too early for me to test my body and my lungs on such a long trail, and it was arguably the most difficult hike in all of Virginia. Old Rag Mountain has a mile and a half boulder scramble to get to the top. It was a hot day in the summer, and the mountain air did nothing to lower the temperature which was 94 degrees that day. Several times I didn’t think I could go on. At one point I couldn’t pull myself up, so I threw my bag up and thought, “if you want that bag, you’re going to have to pull yourself up.” When I got to the top I laid in the shadow of a large boulder and fell asleep. Upon waking, I realized I had very little water left and the trip down was a long 8-mile meandering slope to the parking lot. I literally had to resort to begging people for water. It was humiliating, but the people saw how exhausted I looked and were willing to help.
My desire or my need to get to the top of that mountain almost cost me dearly. And as I compare this story to my own faith journey. I always strive to be at the top of the mountain. While I often fall very short of this aim, I have learned that God is always with me, and this inspires me to continue the journey. Despite setbacks, God’s abiding love surrounds us. Even if we don’t always get to the top, God walks with us every step of the way.
Dear God, help us to remember that wherever our path may take us, you walk beside us and guide us every step of the way. Amen. Blessings. Pastor Matt