July 31st, 2026 | Rev. Rachel Williams

Beloved Friends,

        As we count down the final days of summer and look toward the fall I wanted to share my excitement around our next sermon series. For the month of August, we will take a look at some of the pivotal texts within the book of the prophet Jeremiah.

The prophet Jeremiah lived at the end of the Davidic monarchy and into the reign of some very corrupt kings. At their hands, Jeremiah witnessed an immense amount of suffering for those living in the land of Judah and Jerusalem. Throughout the month, you’ll hear themes of calling, repentance, and restoration.

If you’ve never sat down to study the book of Jeremiah, this month would be a great opportunity to do so. There are fifty-two chapters, so if you read two a day you’ll be done before the end of the month! More so, I hope you will hear and read that God calls us to humility in following God’s commands, particularly by worshiping no God but God and through loving our neighbors.

        Additionally, this Sunday we will welcome our area educators to our Teacher Supply Fair. If you are still on campus at noon please be sure to welcome our educators to campus and thank them for all of their hard work. We value the love, care, and teaching they provide our area children, and we are happy to offer them a bit of love back through these supplies. Many of these teachers have to purchase extra supplies out of their own funds, so this is a way we can also help increase their supplies and keep them stocked throughout the year. Thank you to all of you who donated funds or supplies!

With grace and peace,

Pastor Rachel

The Good News: Lamb Re-Opens VPK with Refreshed Classrooms

July 31st, 2026 - On August 10th, the Voluntary Pre-Kindergarten program (VPK) at Lamb will resume after a short hiatus. VPK is a free state-funded program in Florida designed to prepare 4-year-olds for kindergarten. VPK runs with the county’s school term. 

“We are excited to be offering a VPK program again, “ Pastor Rachel said. “Lamb has always been known for providing an exceptional education to our preschoolers. We often hear from kindergarten teachers that they can tell which students have attended Lamb.  Our program has always been special, and we are pleased to be offering it to the community once more.”

It also means that Lamb will be having a preschool graduation again next May. 

“Lamb’s VPK graduation is something that our whole church is invited to come celebrate,” Pastor Rachel said. “It’s so cute and we love to support our students.”

When students and families arrive for the new VPK term at Lamb, they’ll arrive to a bright and refreshed building. Recently, the Trustees at Memorial worked to have new windows installed in the 60-year-old building and add new paint to the walls in the classrooms and main hallway. 

“It looks great!” Pastor Rachel said.

“We are so thankful for the Trustees who helped make it happen and all of the Lamb staff and Memorial volunteers who moved all the furniture and toys in and out so the work could be done.”

Keep the Lamb staff, students, and families in your prayers as they begin another new school year!

#LoveShowsUp: It was All Smiles at The Arc Nassau's Bingo Extravaganza!

July 24th, 2026 - On Tuesday, July 21st, Love Showed Up at The Arc Nassau when nearly 30 members of Memorial made a visit to our friends, shared a cookout lunch with them, and then some very exciting games of Bingo!

Each year, one of Memorial's Hands-on Mission Opportunities is to share some fund with our friends at The Arc. Volunteers brought side dishes and desserts to serve alongside the burgers and dogs cooked on the grill by our Memorial grillers! All ages of volunteers shared a meal, some laughs, and then played around 10 rounds of bingo together!

Some of the volunteers supplied the prizes for the bingo winners (everyone was a winner more than once). The clients loved to be celebrated with each win and to take a visit to the prize table. (story continued below photos)

Lamar Wildes was the bingo "caller" and you could hear a pin drop in the room before he said each new letter and number combination. And then the room would break out in cheers at the shout of "Bingo!"

The Arch Nassau is a funded mission parter of Memorial.  They provide programs & 

services for adults with developmental disabilities. They are located in Yulee, on highway 17 just north of State Road 200. The are currently in the process of working to acquire a new group home after state and federal funding cuts left some of the clients without housing. You can give a gift to help these efforts by selecting The Arc Nassau when you give online or by putting "The Arc Nassau" in the memo sections of your check written to Memorial.

Volunteers from Memorial have been visiting The Arc Nassau for several years and have made many friends among the clients! Thank you for your monetary donations, donations of food & prizes, donations of time, and your prayers for this event! It was a truly fun day full of smiles!