November 17th, 2023 | Rev. Dr. Mark Charles

In my Mid Week Reflection this week, I shared about the excellent gathering of Florida United Methodist clergy that Pastor Rachel and I were part of on Tuesday. Bishop Tom Berlin reminded us of the great hope we bear witness to – that Christ is risen and His power to transform lives remains undiminished! Bishop Berlin also inspired and encouraged the Florida United Methodist clergy to continue moving into our future with great hope. What a great word that was!

Over the last number of years, I have experienced Christ’s hope as a sustaining force for my faith and ministry. When life and work has been deeply challenging, it is the promise of resurrection – that new life can rise out of the most dire and difficult circumstances – that has kept me going. As a result of that experience, I find myself in complete agreement with Bishop Berlin’s message on Tuesday and am stepping into the future with great hope.

This weekend will be filled with reminders and signs of great hope. At 1:00pm on Saturday afternoon, we will gather at Main Beach to celebrate the baptism of Reid Vollmers. Please come and celebrate this significant moment in Reid’s journey with Christ. On Sunday morning, our Youth Ministry will be leading our worship. They have worked hard to prepare all aspects of services, and I know their witness to Christ’s great hope will be an encouragement to all who are there. Don’t miss it.

See you there!

Pastor Charlie

November 10th, 2023 | Rev. Rachel Williams

“The Lord is coming, always coming. When you have ears to hear and eyes to see, you will recognize him at any moment of your life. Life is Advent; life is recognizing the coming of the Lord.” – Henri Nouwen

I opened the garage door on November 1st and just stared at it- the big box in the corner holding our precious, beautiful faux Christmas tree. I stood there looking at it, thinking to myself, “Do we just put it up early to add a little bit of familiarity to a house and a place that is so new?” Alas, I kept the tree in the box, shut the door, and left the decorating for another day.

Now, if you are a Christmas-as-soon-as-Halloween-is-done person, you do your thing. I think we can all use more joy in our lives, and if you find that in preparing for the holidays now, deck those halls! But I grew up in a household where my mom was something of an Advent/Christmas purist. Christmas decorations went up no earlier than the day after Thanksgiving. Christmas music did not stop in our house until January 6th, with the arrival of Epiphany. And the Magi did not even make an appearance in our nativity scene until Epiphany, which meant that the nativity usually stayed out for an extra week in January. Many of those rituals have stuck with me because I love the order of the seasons.

Recently, though, I saw a post from a pastor friend of mine here in Florida who said that he was starting an early Advent study with his church. His argument was that if the world is moving into Christmas earlier and earlier, we find ourselves out of sync between the preparation that takes place in our homes, our hearts and our churches.

So, I wonder, even as we look to the start of Advent on December 3rd, what can we be doing to prepare ourselves for the coming Christ child? If you already have Christmas up in your house, what rituals will draw you into the peace, hope, love, and joy of the coming season?

I have yet to put up the tree in our house, but my antsy self is looking at my Fridays off thinking, “This seems like a great day to deck the halls.”

We shall see. Nevertheless, may all that we do between now and December 24th look toward the coming of the Lord.

With Grace and Peace,

Pastor Rachel

November 3rd, 2023 | Rev. Alyce Parmer

November 1 is All Saints Day, a day we will celebrate as a church family this coming Sunday. As I reflected on Bishop Willimon’s message of last Sunday, I contemplated my own faith journey and remembered the hands that held mine as a child, whose lives, stories, values, and beliefs first planted faith seeds in me, as well as those who came later and watered those seeds during the various stages of my Christian journey.

We Methodists understand that God’s grace intersects with us long before we understand what it means to accept Jesus as a personal savior. We call that Prevenient Grace. Once we say “yes” to God’s invitation to follow Jesus we call that our Christian conversation or Justifying Grace, the moment that marks the beginning of our Christian journey, as we daily yield our will to God’s and ask for spiritual growth. We Methodists call that Sanctifying Grace, as we are set apart as disciples, seeking justice and meting out mercy while striving to live our lives as Jesus did.

All these stages of my Christian journey and likely yours too are marked by the intersection of those whose faith helped show us the path toward Christlikeness by love, forgiveness and example.

So, I’m remembering My Auntie Irene, the only Christian Scientist in my family, whose love and reverence for God’s creation instilled the same in me.

I’m remembering my Mother, sending me to Sunday School and Vacation Bible school and making sure we children knew the real meaning of Christmas.

I’m remembering my Father, who took me to church. I’m remembering two missionaries who told me their story of faith, that led me to become baptized.

I am grateful for the dear friends whose faith inspired and encouraged me.

I’m remembering too my own sweet husband and his sister whose unwavering faith helped me overcome a lot of doubts.

So many I remember are in that great cloud of witnesses I will think of this Sunday. Our faith is not solitary. It is communal, it is family, and All Saints Sunday reminds us of our own duty to pass it on to the next generation. I hope you remember those people in your own life who planted and watered your own faith seeds and honor them with a prayer of gratitude this Sunday. I’m humming “Thank You for Giving to The Lord” right now! Go YouTube it!

Blessings,

Pastor Alyce