ROCKINGHAM – As Christmas approaches, nothing may truly capture the spirit of the holiday season than a live nativity scene.
Mount Olive Baptist Church on East Washington Street in Rockingham will be hosting its annual “Scenes of Christ Drive-Through.” The event is a presentation of 12 scenes of how the Bible foretold Christ’s life and how it describes Christ’s life while he walked the Earth.
Unlike a typical Christmas presentation, Mount Olive’s program includes the events leading up to Christ’s earth life, some scenes of Christ’s adult life, a dramatization of his death on the cross, and what happened after his death.
“We have been blessed to be able to present this year after year for the community,” said Joey Bennett, one of the event’s coordinators. “We receive so many positive comments each year and it is such a blessing for all of the members in our church to work collectively on this project.
“We want to offer attendees an opportunity to talk to someone following the dramatizations,” Bennett added. “What they will experience can be emotional and we feel it appropriate to offer people to talk and pray about what Christ did over 2,000 years ago for each and every person.”
Nearly 150 people have been directly involved with the project, including those from Mount Olive, as well from other churches in the area.
The scenes include live animals, and attendees will remain in their car and drive the three-quarter of a mile circle by the scenes. As guests arrive, they will receive a disc to play on their car stereo that will describe the scenes and tell the Biblical stories.
Following the drive-through, attendees are invited to visit the church to enjoy refreshments and talk to church members about the scenes.
“So many people in our church spend a tremendous amount of time working on this each year and have invested so much time on this project over the years,” Bennett explained. “It is one of the highlights of our church year and one of our biggest outreaches to our community.”
Bennett added that anyone is welcome and encouraged to attend, and that the drive-through is capable of hosting buses and vans. Two of the scenes may require some explanation to young children as they portray scenes leading up to Christ’s death
The free showing will be held Friday, December 1, and Saturday, December 2. Gates will open at 6 p.m. and close at 8:30 p.m. Anyone in line at 8:30 p.m. will be allowed to drive-through. The entrance will be located closer to the school and will be marked with lights.
