February 13th, 2026 | Rev. Dr. Mark Charles

Dear Church,

Back in late 2018, Dr. Joan came to me and asked if I would like to visit the Institute for Worship Studies in Jacksonville with her. She explained that this had been the school where she completed her doctoral studies. I jumped at the chance to spend some time and get to know my new colleague. The day we made the visit, we got to spend time with the director of the Institute, and during our conversation he started to talk about beauty as a means of grace. That conversation has stayed with me ever since, and I was mindful of it when we started to make plans for the worship series we will close out this coming Sunday - Beauty: A Pathway to the Divine.

The message of the last number of weeks has been very simple: there is beauty all around us every day, and this beauty has God’s fingerprints all over it. Beauty is a means by which we experience God’s grace. I hope that this series has helped you notice some of the beauty in your life - the beauty of creation around you, the beauty that can be experienced in even the most difficult of seasons, the beauty of God’s saving and transforming work in your life, and, as we will learn about this Sunday, the beauty of the everlasting and imperishable hope of the promise that God is making ALL THINGS new.

As one series ends, a new one begins and we make the shift into the season of Lent, which is a time of intentional focus and devotion as we journey to the cross.  This year, we are going to make our way through the gospel of Luke, hoping that we will get to know Christ once again and that our faith will be deepened. Pastor Rachel and I will preach from Luke’s gospel each Sunday, but we want you to be reading along with us, and have developed a

that will take you through Luke’s gospel during the 40 days of Lent.  An exciting part of this journey is that we will be joining with other United Methodists in the Florida Conference. Our friends at Riverside Park UMC and at First United Methodist Jupiter-Tequesta will also be joining in this reading plan, and there will be opportunities for online fellowship and discussion with our friends from these churches, too. 

(You can download the reading plan below)

Let’s observe a holy Lenten season, turning our hearts, minds, and lives towards Christ once again.

Blessings

Pastor Charlie

Reading Plan.pdf

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