 Please Pray for Our Troops and Missionaries Around the World.
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WHAT CAN I EXPECT ON MY FIRST VISIT?
From the moment you pull into the parking lot, you'll be made to feel at home. Our parking volunteers will direct you as you enter the campus. As you enter the buildings, our greeters will be available to give you directions or answer any questions you may have. If you have children, we will take you to our children's building, and then you will be personally escorted with your children to their rooms. As you enter the worship center, our ushers will welcome you, hand you our worship folder, and assist you in seating.
HOW TO JOIN OUR CHURCH 
At the close of each worship service, we offer an invitation for acceptance of Christ, for membership, or for any renewed dedication to God which one may desire to make.
Members are received as follows:
1. As a candidate for believer's baptism ---upon Profession of Faith.
2. By transfer of letter from a Baptist church.
3. By statement of past membership in a church of like faith and practice.
Upon uniting with our fellowship, individuals will be encouraged to attend the Discovery Luncheon (New Member Orientation) designed specifically for new members. Individuals transferring membership will be given the opportunity to express interest in any specific area of leadership for which they have previously served. Those new members with no training or experience will have opportunity to express their interest in preparing for a specific place of service.
WHAT DOES IT MEAN TO DEDICATE MY BABY?
In this dedication service, the parents pledge to raise the child in a Christian environment, the child is dedicated to God and prayed for, and the church pledges its spiritual support to the child and the parents. When the child is old enough to make his / her own decision, he or she may decide to accept Jesus as Savior and be baptized. For us, it is important that becoming a Christian is a decision each person makes and is old enough to remember. Mount Olive provides Dedication Services for children and babies at least twice a year.
WHAT SIGNIFICANCE DOES THE LORD'S SUPPER HAVE?
The Lord's Supper is a reminder of what Jesus did in the past, a symbol of our present relationship with Him and a promise for what He will do in the future.
1. The bread and wine are memorials of Jesus' death on the cross. In the Lord's Supper, we each eat a piece of bread in remembrance of Jesus. When we drink the "fruit of the vine," we remember that Jesus' blood was shed for us and that it signifies the new covenant. Jesus' death shows how much God loves us - so much that He sent His Son to die for us, so that our sins may be forgiven, and so that we may live with Him forever.
2. The Lord's Supper also pictures our present relationship with Jesus Christ. The crucifixion has a continuing significance to all who have taken up a cross to follow Jesus. We continue to participate in his death (Romans 6:4) because we participate in his life (Gal. 2:20). Paul wrote, "Is not the cup of thanksgiving for which we give thanks a participation in the blood of Christ? And is not the bread that we break a participation in the body of Christ?" (I Cor. 10:16) With the Lord's Supper, we show that we share in Jesus Christ. We participate with Him, commune with Him, become united in Him. The Lord's Supper helps us look upward to Christ.
3. The Lord's Supper also reminds us of the future, of Jesus' return. Jesus said He would not drink "the fruit of the vine" again until He came in the fullness of the kingdom (Matt. 26:29). Whenever we participate, we are reminded of Jesus' promise. Paul wrote that "For whenever you eat this bread and drink this cup, you proclaim the Lord's death until He comes" (1 Cor. 11:26). The Lord's Supper helps us look forward.
WHY JOIN A DENOMINATION?
Some people feel that denominations are constrictive, and that when you identify with other churches, you suffer compromise. Southern Baptists are sympathetic to these concerns and they firmly hold to the principle of church autonomy and self-rule. The Southern Baptist Convention does not ordain ministers, assign staff to churches, levy contributions to denominational causes, dictate literature and calendar, or assign persons to churches according to place of residence.
Denominations give churches a way to collectively express their convictions and realize their vision. In such a free land as ours, it is natural that churches would take the opportunity to identify with like-minded churches. Denominations allow churches to be a part of a larger enterprise, pooling their resources to establish and advance the Great Commission. A denomination can have an impact larger than the sum of the impacts of the individual churches.
WHAT IS THE SOUTHERN BAPTIST CONVENTION?
Since its organization in 1845 in Augusta, Georgia, the Southern Baptist Convention (SBC) has grown to over 16 million members who worship in more than 42,000 churches in the United States. Southern Baptists sponsor about 5,400 home missionaries serving the United States, Canada, Guam, and the Caribbean, as well as sponsoring more than 5,000 foreign missionaries in 153 nations of the world. The term "Southern Baptist Convention" refers to both the denomination and its annual meeting. Working through 1,200 local associations and 41 state conventions and fellowships, Southern Baptists share a common bond of basic Biblical beliefs and a commitment to proclaim the Gospel of Jesus Christ to the entire world.
The Southern Baptist Convention exists for only two days a year, at the annual gathering. The rest of the year, denominational entities carry out the instructions of the messengers to the convention. The "authority," then, resides with the messengers elected by churches who participate in the two-day meeting. Still, those churches and individuals who identify with this enterprise typically call themselves "Southern Baptists."
WHAT IS THE RELATION BETWEEN THE SOUTHERN BAPTIST CONVENTION AND LOCAL CHURCHES?
All Baptist general bodies are voluntary organizations, established by individuals who wish to cooperate for some common end or ends in the Kingdom of God. This Convention is not an ecclesiastical body composed of churches, not a federal body composed of state conventions. Churches may seek to fulfill their obligations, but always on a purely voluntary basis, and without surrendering in any way or degree their right of self-determination.
There is no relation of superiority and inferiority among Baptist general bodies. All are equal. All make their appeal directly to individuals and churches. Each determines its own objectives - financial or otherwise - and allocates its own funds to the interest promoted by it. Each defines and fixes its own sphere of activities. But all is done with due consideration and regard for the functions of other Baptist bodies. (All are autonomous, yet united in purpose.)
WHAT IS THE COOPERATIVE PROGRAM?
Since its inception in 1845, the Southern Baptist Convention has always had one mission - the Great Commission (Matthew 28:19-20). To fulfill its assigned part of this Divine mandate, each SBC entity makes special offering appeals to the churches. Churches in each state work together through the state convention to support a wide array of ministries and missions, including evangelism efforts, children's homes, volunteer missions, missions education, new churches, colleges and universities, collegiate ministries, camps, and much more.
At the SBC Annual Meeting, messengers from across the country decide how the gifts received from the local churches will be distributed among SBC entities. The bottom line is that due to people's giving, people all around the world hear the Gospel and receive Christ.
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