From the Pastor… (Page 11)

From the Pastor… (Page 11)

Preschool and VBS

First Church Family,At times, we think of summer as a period of time to relax, vacation, and get ready for the fall. While all of those dreams are partially fulfilled during this time, we are FUMC are incredibly busy following God’s plan. By now you certainly have heard that Melanie Anderson, our Robbins Pre-School Director of 27 years, is retiring this summer. Melanie leadership has kept our program at the top of the list of great pre-school programs in our county, and will be…

Promises, Promises

First Church Family, I pray that you had a blessed Memorial Day Weekend. That holiday marks the unofficial beginning of summer. And last Sunday, we began our summer worship series on the “Promises of God.” In ensuing weeks, we will take a close look at some of the important things God promises us in the Scriptures. Topics will include promises made about: eternal life, heaven, the Holy Spirit, God’s presence, rest for the weary, peace in our lives, and God’s guidance, among others. I…

June Message

First Church Family, Over the past week, it has felt like we have jumped right into summer, with daily highs near 90°. That is after a long, cold, dark, and wet winter and early spring. Over the past fourteen months, we at First Methodist have been the most cautious and safety conscious church of which I am aware. We have sought to follow governmental guidelines as closely as possible. And I am proud of and thankful for our decision making…

Diversity and Freedom

First Church Family,     I pray that you are in good health and spirits. Much has happened over the past week. The COVID-19 Pfizer vaccination was approved for ages 12 up, and thankfully, several of our youth have already been able to get it. I pray that you pursue that option in your families.     Over the past fourteen months, we at First Methodist have been the most cautious and safety conscious church of which I am aware. We have sought to follow governmental…

Youth Sunday

First Church Family,     One of the treasures in every community and church is its youth. And 2020-21 has been a very challenging, difficult time for them.     Last school year was shortened by massive restrictions due to the COVID pandemic. And though this year has been a bit less restrictive, much teaching was done online, masks were required, even for athletes during their events, bands and choruses weren’t allowed to function. The list goes on and on.     Actually, to their credit, it…

Mother’s Day Service

First Church Family,     Blessings on you this first full week of May. The experts tell us that our last chance of a killing frost is past us, meaning that we are free to set out annual plants and garden vegetables without fear of losing them to cold weather. But is anyone really an “expert” on weather? Ha!     We continue to move forward following our resumption of in-person worship services on Sundays. Thank you for participating the way you have. And many thanks to…

May Message

First Church Family, The sunny weather has been wonderful! After a cold, dark, wet winter, spring has actually sprung. But what about the saying: “April showers bring May flowers?” One of the things our congregation is known for in our region is our commitment to food ministry for the poor. Though the COVID pandemic has been a challenge for us, and prevented us from reaching out to the community through our Thanksgiving Day provision of “ready to cook” meals for…

Spring Worship

April 28, 2021  First Church Family, I pray you are enjoying the wonderful Spring weather with which we’ve been blessed the last days. A couple of weeks ago I spent several days at the beach, and while it was fun and restful, the water temperature was still in the mid-fifties! Evidently, winter was cold, dark and wet there too… But now things are changing. I actually set out annual vegetables on my Sabbath yesterday. And so far, there is not a predicted frost/freeze in…

In-Person Worship

First Church Family, What a glorious Easter season we enjoyed at FUMC! Easter Sunday was the first Sunday we didn’t rigidly limit the number of people in our Sanctuary, but we were well under our maximum of people limited by COVID protocols. And what a great feeling it was to be together! Our total worship attendance (including those worshiping with us online) was well over 400 persons. Many thanks to staff and volunteers who worked together to ensure our safety as they encouraged COVID-19…

What Wondrous Hope

First Church Family, What a glorious Easter we experienced together! Many thanks to all of our staff members, volunteers, musicians, and ushers for going beyond the call of duty to provide meaningful worship in as safe a context as possible. And thank you for being patient with us, and also following our COVID protocols. We had been trying to limit our attendance to between 50 to 60 worshipers at previous services, but we were able to handle twice that many on Easter fairly easily. It has…

Easter Week

Dear First Church Family, Holy Week blessings to you! What a difference in mood we experience during this sacred time of year. Last Sunday, we began worship with Jesus’ triumphal entry to Jerusalem, amid shouts of “Hosanna.” In fact, things were going so well that John says the Pharisees murmured: “Look! The whole world has gone after Him!” (John 12:19) Everything seemed wonderful! But Jesus knew it wouldn’t last. He knew how fickle crowds could be. He knew that the faces of people inside…