Monday, June 8, 2015

A Farewell to You

Greetings my friends,

In 2009, I started this blog as I began my time as your pastor as a tool for communication. In over 1000 posts I have shared with you all devotional thoughts, sermons, Bible readings and the minutia of church life.

Today is my last day as the pastor of Druid Hills United Methodist Church and I am retiring this blog. As I move to my next appointment I will be serving as the co-pastor of Community UMC in Fruitland Park alongside my wife Debbie. We will continue to write, but we will share a new blog site together as we enter this next chapter in ministry: http://rev2d2.blogspot.com

Blessings to you my friends,

Saturday, June 6, 2015

Bible Challenge 06/07 - 07/04

Greetings all!

This will be my final posting of the Bible schedule on this blog and the readings listed here will take you all the way through the first Saturday in July. I pray this has been a meaningful instrument for you to deepen your love of Scripture as well as your relationship with our Triune God.

Continuing our journey through the book of II Chronicles, chapters 6-9 concern themselves with Solomon's reign as king. Israel splits into two nations after his reign - Judah in the south with Jerusalem as its capital and Israel in the north with Samaria as its capital. Most of the rest of II Chronicles is concerned with the history of the kings of Judah with occasional references to the kingdom of Israel. In the last chapter, Judah is destroyed and the people taken into exile in Babylon. In the final verses, the Persian king Cyrus conquers Babylon and authorizes the restoration of Solomon's temple and apparently the return of the exiles, approximately 50 years after they were taken away.

7 - (Su) - II Chronicles 2-5

8 (M) -II Chronicles 6-9

9 (Tu)- II Chronicles 10-13

10 (W)- II Chronicles 14-17

11 (Th) - II Chronicles 18-21

12 (F) - II Chronicles 22-25

13 (Sa) - II Chronicles 26-29

The books of Ezra and Nehemiah used to be one book in the Hebrew Bible before being separated. Both of the books deal with the return of the Israelites from captivity in Babylon. The Book of Ezra consists of ten chapters. Chapters 1-6 cover the period from the decree of Cyrus the Great allowing the first return of exiles (about 538BC) to the completion and dedication of the new temple in Jerusalem (about 515BC). This part of the book is largely told in third person, as if someone is retelling what has been told to them. But chapters 7-10 are largely told in third person (presumably by Ezra himself), dealing with his mission to Jerusalem (about 465BC) and his struggle to purify the Jews from their inter-marriage with non-Jews.

Nehemiah is about 20 years after Ezra. He is the cupbearer to King Artaxerses of Cyrus and is sent to help build up the wall around the city of Jerusalem and reform the people according to the law of Moses. The first part of the book is all hard work - rebuilding the wall of Jerusalem, setting up guards along the wall and gates, taking a census of the people, having the law of Moses read to the people, leading the people in repenting for their sins and beginning a new covenant with God. After twelve years of hard work, Nehemiah returns to Susa. Later he comes back to Jersualem and finds that the people have backslid in his absence. So he takes measure to enforce his earlier reforms and asks for God's favor.

14 - (Su) - II Chronicles 30-33

15 (M) -II Chronicles 34-36; Ezra 1

16 (Tu)- Ezra 2-5

17 (W)- Ezra 6-9

18 (Th) - Ezra 10; Nehemiah 1-3

19 (F) - Nehemiah 4-7

20 (Sa) - Nehemiah 8-11

Next we turn to another book of the exile, Esther. The book of Esther is interesting because while the name of God is never explicitly mentioned in the book, God's action is certainly implied. Esther is a Jewish woman living in exile in Persia. When the Persian king Xerses banishes his wife, a contest starts to seek a new queen. Esther is one of the women presented and ultimately Xerses' choice. Tensions arise between Xerses' right hand man Haaman and Esther's uncle Mordecai until the life of all Jews are threatened. My favorite part of the book is Mordecai's question to Esther which spurs her to take a risk: "And who knows but that you have come to your royal position for such a time as this?"(Esther 4:14)

I love how we see God working things out among his people for a return after the exile..... prompting the leaders of foreign nations to help rebuild Jerusalem and provide native leaders for oversight. It reminds me of the truth of what Paul wrote centuries later in Romans 8:31: "If God is for us, who can be against us?"

21 - (Su) - Nehemiah 12-13; Esther 1-2

22 (M) - Esther 3-6

23 (Tu)- Esther 7-10

24 (W)- Job 1-4

25 (Th) - Job 5-8

26 (F) - Job 9-12

27 (Sa) - Job 13-16

This marks a shift from the books of history and now we enter the books of poetry (Job, Psalms, Proverbs and Eccelesiastes). In Jewish tradition, Job is understood to be the grandson of Abraham's brother. So chronologically we are going way back into the history of Israel. The book of Job appears to have been written to address the problem of evil and why the righteous suffer. The first two chapters act as a prologue to set the scene and then we move into cycles of speeches between Job and friends.

Cycle 1 (Chapters 3-11) - Job, Eliphaz, Job, Bildad, Job and Zophar Cycle 2 (Chapters 12-20) - Job, Eliphaz, Job, Bildad, Job and Zophar Cycle 3 (Chapters 21-31) - Job, Eliphaz, Job, Bildad, Job

Job's three friends never seem to waver from their belief that Job must have sinned to incite God's punishment. They continually berate him for refusing to confess his sins, even though they themselves are at a loss as to what Job has done wrong. In their theology, God always rewards good and punishes evil, with no exceptions. Job meanwhile maintains his innocence. He refuses to curse God or accuse God of injustice but wants an explanation as to why this is happening to him.

We get introduced to another person in chapters 3-37. Elihu almost takes a mediator's path - attempting to hold together an understanding of God's sovereign power and righteousness along with God's gracious mercy. He condemns the approach by Job's other three friends and argues that God's righteousness is being misrepresented and his loving character discredited. Elihu lifts up many of God's attributes: mighty, just, quick to warn and to forgive. He suggests that Job does need to repent - not from a particular sin - but from his arrogance in presuming to understand God.

When I read through the book of Job I realize that we still wrestle in today's society with these same issues - understanding evil and suffering and supposing to know how God operates. It's comforting in some part to realize that these are not new struggles. But they are definitely issues worth reflecting on.

28 - (Su) - Job 17-20

29 (M) - Job 21-24

30 (Tu)- Job 25-28

1 (W)- Job 29-32

2 (Th) - Job 33-36

3 (F) - Job 37-40

4 (Sa) - Job 41-42; Psalms 1-2

I pray your love of Scripture will  continue to grow, that your habit of spending time in the Word of God will remain steadfast, and that your appreciation of just how intimate our God truly is will never cease to amaze you!

So one last time, from me to you...

May God add His richest blessings to the reading, the hearing, the understanding and most importantly the living out of His holy word. Amen. 

Friday, June 5, 2015

A Friday Few

1. A Farewell Sunday - This Sunday will be my last worship service with you all. I am going to use this opportunity to reflect on all the wonderful things God has done through us over the last six years. It is just wonderful to look back and see the multitude of ways God has poured out his blessings upon us and I feel it is appropriate for us to name that. This week will also be the last time I get to celebrate Holy Communion with you as your pastor. Therefore, I will serve the entire congregation as my way of saying farewell and let you know how much I love you all. I hope to see you there!





2. Stop Hunger Now - As a response to us meeting our Advent Conspiracy Challenge in 2014 we are going to participate with Stop Hunger Now and hold a meal packaging event here at Druid Hills, TOMORROW! It will take place from 9am-12pm as we gather to package around 10,000 meals for starving children around the world and we need your help to make this happen. Please make plans to come and help and as an incentive know this, last year we had a whole lot of fun!








3. Name tags - Many people ask, what are some ways we can welcome our new pastor. One of the best ways we can welcome our new pastor is by wearing our name tags. This will give Pastor Brian, Faith and Abbey the opportunity to put names with faces and get to know you all that much faster.

Remember, while you all only have three names to remember they have an entire congregation. So please do them this kindness and wear your name tag every week in worship. If you do not have a name tag, please let the church office know and we will get you one made. Thanks in advance for you help!





4. Annual Conference - Next week begins Annual Conference in Daytona. I would humbly ask that you all please take a moment and pray for us. Pray that as we vote for delegates, conduct our business, and lay out our mission for the future, we will hear and heed the voice of the Holy Spirit and be obedient to all God asks of us. Thank you in advance for your prayers.





Have a great weekend and I will see you Sunday!

Saturday, May 30, 2015

Bible Challenge 05/31 - 06/06

Greetings All!

This week we will finish reading I Chronicles and read the first chapter of II Chronicles.The first segment of I Chronicles was a lot of genealogical lists, concluding with the house of Saul and Saul's rejection by God. This sets the stage for the rise of David. The second segment then contains a history of the reign of King David.

You might ask, "Why so many books telling the same stories?" Well in the Jewish canon of Scripture, Chronicles appears last making it then a summary of everything that has gone before and most likely the reason why the genealogy goes all the way back to Adam. But one of the calls of the Old Testament is to remember. God asks the people to remember constantly in their rituals, offerings, and festivals the great work that he has done on their behalf. Certainly we can see what happens in the books of history when Israel (and Judah) do not keep this knowledge of God close at hand and forget! As they stray away from God, they wander into dangerous ground spiritually, as individuals as well as a nation. We would do well to remind ourselves continuously - to remember what God has done and what happens when we try to do things in our lives on our own without Him!

Here is the schedule:

31 (Su) - I Chronicles 3-6

1 (M) -I Chronicles 7-10

2 (Tu)- I Chronicles 11-14

3 (W)- I Chronicles 15-18

4 (Th) - I Chronicles 19-22

5 (F) - I Chronicles 23-26

6 (Sa) - I Chronicles 27-29; II Chronicles 1

May God add His richest blessings to the reading, the hearing, the understanding and most importantly the living out of His holy word. Amen.

Friday, May 29, 2015

Friday Fives

1. Sunday Worship - This Sunday is Trinity Sunday! Over the last several weeks we have looked at a few of our more important days in the life of the early church and how those days impact our faith journeys today. We have look at how Christ's Ascension points to salvation and how the arrival of the Holy Spirit give us that ever present companion to share our faith.  This week we will look to the Trinity and how our Triune God models for us the life we are to live.   I hope to see you there!





2. Stop Hunger Now - As a response to us meeting our Advent Conspiracy Challenge in 2014 we are going to participate with Stop Hunger Now and hold a meal packaging event here at Druid Hills. We have set up Saturday, June 6th, from 9am-12pm as our time and day for this event. We are circulating signup sheets for you to register and claim your spot. We will package around 10,000 meals for starving children around the world and we need your help to make this happen. Besides, it is a whole lot of fun! The sign up sheets are out and we need about 20 more volunteers. Invite a friend to come help and sign up today!





3. Bishop's Offering at Annual Conference - Every year we take up a collection to support causes picked by our Bishop and present our gift during the Licensing/Commission/Ordination Service at Annual Conference. This year one half of the offering will support our Imagine No Malaria campaign, and one half will help fund an Ordinands Pilgrimage to the Holy Land, supporting the continued growth and learning of our newly ordained clergy. If you would like to donate to this offering, you can simply mark your envelope "Bishop Offering". We will continue to collect donations through June 7th. If you would like more information about this offering, please click here.





4. Name tags - Many people ask, what are some ways we can welcome our new pastor. One of the best ways we can welcome our new pastor is by wearing our name tags. This will give Pastor Brian, Faith and Abbey the opportunity to put names with faces and get to know you all that much faster. Remember, while you all only have three names to remember they have an entire congregation. So please do them this kindness and wear your name tag every week in worship. If you do not have a name tag, please let the church office know and we will get you one made. Thanks in advance for you help!




5. Welcome Pastor Brian and Family! - I am excited to introduce to you our new pastor and his family; Brian Sanderson and his wife Faith, son Bryce, and daughter Abbey.

Please keep them in prayer as they make the transition of saying goodbye to the church they serve now and prepare themselves for ministry with you. I also want to invite you to reach out to them and welcome them into the Druid Hills family. I am excited for how the Holy Spirit will work through Brian to lead this congregation as well as for the opportunity you all will have to get to know his family.




Have a great weekend and I will see you Sunday!

Saturday, May 23, 2015

Bible Challenge 05/24 - 05/30

Greetings All!

This week we will finish reading I Kings, read all of II Kings and a couple of chapters into I Chronicles.

By the 2nd chapter of II Kings, the prophet Elijah is taken up to heaven to be with God and the story continues through his successor Elisha as he ministers to the northern kingdom of Israel. Chapter 5 includes the fascinating story of Naaman's healing. In II Kings chapters 11-12, the focus shifts to a young boy-king in Judah named Joash who spends significant time trying to restore the temple. Elisha dies in chapter 13 and here you also have a rather interesting account of what happens when someone is thrown into his grave months after his death. Talk about the power of the Lord! The downward spiral continues though in the kingdom of Israel as king after king fail to follow the Lord and by chapter 17 we see that the northern kingdom of Israel has fallen to the Assyrians, with many of the people being carried away into exile. We finish up with the narrative of the lives of the kings from Judah. A few more wicked kings are described before we get to the interesting story of the boy-king Josiah and all of his reforms (chapters 22-23). But even he isn't enough to turn the tide of sin and false idol worship. After him, three more evil kings follow before Jerusalem falls to the Babylonians (chapters 24-25).

Then our attention turns to another of the history books, I Chronicles. In many ways it should sound familiar because it is largely a retelling of the material found in I and II Samuel as well as I and II Kings. The book of I Chronicles really falls into two broad segments. The first, in chapters 1-10, contains mostly genealogical lists, concluding with the house of Saul and Saul's rejection by God.

Here is the schedule:

24 (Su) - I Kings 22; II Kings 1-3

25 (M) -II Kings 4-7

26 (Tu)-II Kings 8-11

27 (W)-II Kings 12-15

28 (Th) - II Kings 16-19

29 (F) -II Kings 20-23

30 (Sa) -II Kings 24-25; I Chronicles 1-2

May God add His richest blessings to the reading, the hearing, the understanding and most importantly the living out of His holy word. Amen. 

Friday, May 22, 2015

Friday Fives

1. Sunday Worship - This Sunday is Pentecost! The Sunday we celebrate the ascension of the Holy Spirit upon the believers in Jerusalem. This is a tremendously important moment in the life of the church and one we need to celebrate with great enthusiasm! Wear something red and come and join us this Sunday as we welcome the Holy Spirit into our midst and look at the power we can garner from this relationship with the Advocate! I hope to see you there!





2. Stop Hunger Now - As a response to us meeting our Advent Conspiracy Challenge in 2014 we are going to participate with Stop Hunger Now and hold a meal packaging event here at Druid Hills. We have set up Saturday, June 6th, from 9am-12pm as our time and day for this event. We are circulating signup sheets for you to register and claim your spot. We will package around 10,000 meals for starving children around the world and we need your help to make this happen. Besides, it is a whole lot of fun! The sign up sheets are out and we need about 20 more volunteers. Invite a friend to come help and sign up today!





3. Bishop's Offering at Annual Conference - Every year we take up a collection to support causes picked by our Bishop and present our gift during the Licensing/Commission/Ordination Service at Annual Conference. This year one half of the offering will support our Imagine No Malaria campaign, and one half will help fund an Ordinand Pilgrimage to the Holy Land, supporting the continued growth and learning of our newly ordained clergy. If you would like to donate to this offering, you can simply mark your envelope "Bishop Offering". We will continue to collect donations through June 7th. If you would like more information about this offering, please click here.






4. Usher Training - There will be a training session for all those interested in serving as an usher in worship. This session will be brief and held immediately after worship. The intent of this trainings will be to allow new people to participate and make sure we all understand the best practices of what is needed for this role. The usher training will be this Sunday, May 24th. I hope you see you there!





5. Welcome Pastor Brian and Family! - I am excited to introduce to you our new pastor and his family; Brian Sanderson and his wife Faith, son Bryce, and daughter Abbey.

Please keep them in prayer as they make the transition of saying goodbye to the church they serve now and prepare themselves for ministry with you. I also want to invite you to reach out to them and welcome them into the Druid Hills family. I am excited for how the Holy Spirit will work through Brian to lead this congregation as well as for the opportunity you all will have to get to know his family.





Have a great weekend and I will see you Sunday!

Saturday, May 16, 2015

Bible Challenge 05/17 - 05/23

Greetings All!

This week we will finish reading II Samuel and read most of I Kings.

Just as with the books of I and II Samuel, the books of I and II Kings were originally one long unbroken narrative. I Kings begins with the succession of Solomon as king, after David, as well as the story of Solomon's reign.

After Solomon's death the story starts to turn as the history of Israel moves from being one united country into two divided kingdoms of Israel and Judah. The northern kingdom is Israel, capital in the city of Samaria and is made up of the ten northern tribes. The southern kingdom is Judah, capital in the city of Jerusalem, and is made up of the two southern tribes (Benjamin and Judah). The Scripture becomes a narrative of the lives and reigns of the many different kings in the two kingdoms.

There are a few prominent people and stories. For example we get an extended look at evil King Ahab of Israel and his interactions with the prophet Elijah in I Kings chapters 17-22.

Here is the schedule:

17 (Su) - II Samuel 18-21

18 (M) - II Samuel 22-24; I Kings 1

19 (Tu)- I Kings 2-5

20 (W)- I Kings 6-9

21 (Th) - I Kings 10-13

22 (F) - I Kings 14-17

23 (Sa) - I Kings 18-21

May God add His richest blessings to the reading, the hearing, the understanding and most importantly the living out of His holy word. Amen. 

Friday, May 15, 2015

Friday Fives

1. Sunday Worship - This Sunday is Ascension Sunday. It is one of the observances that John Wesley left in our Methodist tradition they he felt was important. Therefore, we will turn our focus to the Ascension of Jesus and what that means for our understanding of the nature of Jesus and what that means for us as his disciples. I hope you will invite a friend and come on out and be a part of this celebration.





2. Stop Hunger Now - As a response to us meeting our Advent Conspiracy Challenge in 2014 we are going to participate with Stop Hunger Now and hold a meal packaging event here at Druid Hills. We have set up Saturday, June 6th, from 9am-12pm as our time and day for this event. We are circulating signup sheets for you to register and claim your spot. We will package around 10,000 meals for starving children around the world and we need your help to make this happen. Besides, it is a whole lot of fun! Be on the look out for the sign up sheets and get involved!





3. Nepal Aid - Many of you are aware of the utter devastation that the people of Nepal are enduring at this time. I want to encourage each and every one of you to pray daily for this region and its people. I also want to offer you an additional method for helping out in the midst of this tragedy. If you are looking for another way to support the relief effort in Nepal, please consider donating financially through UMCOR; as 100% of your gift will go directly to the people in Nepal to help them in their time of need. You can place your gift in the offering plate and we will cut one check and send it to UMCOR. Please make sure to write Nepal and "Advance Number 982450" on the envelope. Or you can send your donation to UMCOR directly by check, making your check payable to Advance GCFA, write Advance Number 982450 on the memo line and mail to:

Advance GCFA
PO Box 9068
New York, NY 10087-9068

Or you can donate by phone, please call 1-888-252-6174.

Every little bit helps.






4. Liturgist and Usher Trainings - There will be two upcoming training sessions for all those interested in serving as a liturgist and/or usher in worship. These sessions will be brief and held immediately after worship. The intent of these trainings will be to allow new people to participate and make sure we all understand the best practices of what is needed for these roles. The liturgist training will be May 17th and the usher training will be May 24th. I hope you see you there!





5. Welcome Pastor Brian and Family! - I am excited to introduce to you our new pastor and his family; Brian Sanderson and his wife Faith, son Bryce, and daughter Abbey.

Please keep them in prayer as they make the transition of saying goodbye to the church they serve now and prepare themselves for ministry with you. I also want to invite you to reach out to them and welcome them into the Druid Hills family. I am excited for how the Holy Spirit will work through Brian to lead this congregation as well as for the opportunity you all will have to get to know his family.


Bonus Five #1 - If you have any family member that is graduating from high school, college, or trade school please let the office know by Monday, May 18th so we can include them in our celebration.





Bonus Five #2 - Do not forget that our Druid Hills Team will be representing our church at the Relay for Life tonight at Trinity Catholic High School. Come on out and support our team as work to raise money and awareness to help find a cure for this dreaded disease. Good luck team Druid Hills!! 





 Have a great weekend and I will see you Sunday!

Wednesday, May 13, 2015

Midweek Moment

Today’s Midweek Moment will be brief my dear friends, because this will be my last installment of this piece. As my time comes to close among you, I will need to redirect my time to the preparations necessary for the arrival of Pastor Brian, Faith, and Abbey. I want to invite you to continue to pray for these sweet people as they make their own preparations to join the Druid Hills Family.

Over the years, it has been very interesting for me to see what came out when I sat down to write these installments. I pray you found some hope, some joy, and some encouragement from these little messages. Thank you for reading them!

Have a great week and I will see you Sunday!

Saturday, May 9, 2015

Bible Challenge 05/10 - 05/16

Greetings All!

This week we will finish reading I Samuel and most of the book of II Samuel.

The book of I Samuel ends with the death of Jonathan and King Saul. That story continues in II Samuel. In chapter 1, David hears of the deaths of Saul and Jonathan and lifts up a beautiful song of lament over their lives. Chapter 2 finds David being anointed king over Judah and the next few chapters show the problems between the house of David and Saul before David is anointed king over Israel in chapter 5. Chapters 6-8 detail some of the early victories and establishment of David's kingdom. But chapter 9 is my favorite. It's the story of David and Mephibosheth - one of Jonathan's descendants - and it is a rare story of amazing grace. Read it. Put yourself in the place of Mephibosheth. Read it again and put yourself in the place of David. It's remarkable.

The focus of this latter half of the book deals with the weaknesses and failures of David's reign as king. Specifically we find here the account of David's adultery with Bathsheba and complicity in the murder of her husband (chapters 10-12) as well as David's difficulties with his children and the loss of Amnon and Absalom (chapter 13-20).

Here is the schedule:

10 (Su) - I Samuel 21-24

11 (M) - I Samuel 25-28

12 (Tu)- I Samuel 29-31; II Samuel 1

13 (W)- II Samuel 2-5

14 (Th) - II Samuel 6-9

15 (F) - II Samuel 10-13

16 (Sa) - II Samuel 14-17

May God add His richest blessings to the reading, the hearing, the understanding and most importantly the living out of His holy word. Amen.

Friday, May 8, 2015

Friday Fives

1. Sunday Worship - This week we will celebrate those ladies that have left an indelible mark on our lives. Mothers come in all forms and from many varied places, but they are all important. One of the most important lessons they give us is that of our faith. I invite to come and join us this week as we pay tribute to those ladies that have shaped who we are and what we believe as we look to that unconditional love they have offered us and the importance of sharing those lessons with others.





2. Stop Hunger Now - As a response to us meeting our Advent Conspiracy Challenge in 2014 we are going to participate with Stop Hunger Now and hold a meal packaging event here at Druid Hills. We have set up Saturday, June 6th, from 9am-12pm as our time and day for this event. We are circulating signup sheets for you to register and claim your spot. We will package around 10,000 meals for starving children around the world and we need your help to make this happen. Besides, it is a whole lot of fun! Be on the look out for the sign up sheets and get involved!





3. Nepal Aid - Many of you are aware of the utter devastation that the people of Nepal are enduring at this time. I want to encourage each and every one of you to pray daily for this region and its people. I also want to offer you an additional method for helping out in the midst of this tragedy. If you are looking for another way to support the relief effort in Nepal, please consider donating financially through UMCOR; as 100% of your gift will go directly to the people in Nepal to help them in their time of need. You can place your gift in the offering plate and we will cut one check and send it to UMCOR. Please make sure to write Nepal and "Advance Number 982450" on the envelope. Or you can send your donation to UMCOR directly by check, making your check payable to Advance GCFA, write Advance Number 982450 on the memo line and mail to:

Advance GCFA
PO Box 9068
New York, NY 10087-9068

Or you can donate by phone, please call 1-888-252-6174.

Every little bit helps.






4. Liturgist and Usher Trainings - There will be two upcoming training sessions for all those interested in serving as a liturgist and/or usher in worship. These sessions will be brief and held immediately after worship. The intent of these trainings will be to allow new people to participate and make sure we all understand the best practices of what is needed for these roles. The liturgist training will be May 17th and the usher training will be May 24th. I hope you see you there!





5. Welcome Pastor Brian and Family! - I am excited to introduce to you our new pastor and his family; Brian Sanderson and his wife Faith, son Bryce, and daughter Abbey.

Please keep them in prayer as they make the transition of saying goodbye to the church they serve now and prepare themselves for ministry with you. I also want to invite you to reach out to them and welcome them into the Druid Hills family. I am excited for how the Holy Spirit will work through Brian to lead this congregation as well as for the opportunity you all will have to get to know his family.





Have a great weekend and I will see you Sunday!

Wednesday, May 6, 2015

Midweek Moment

It has now been several weeks since the announcement that Pastor Brian will be joining Druid Hills as pastor beginning this July. He was kind of enough to send to us a brief biography and I want to use this space to share it with you. I pray through your reading you will find connections with Pastor Brian and that this information can help guide you in your prayers for him, Faith, Abbey, and Bryce.

Therefore, it is with great honor that I introduce you to Pastor Brian Sanderson:

I have enthusiastically served the United Methodist Church for fourteen years. My first twelve years of ministry was spent serving the youth of First United Methodist, Madison FL. It was during this time that I fully surrendered to a calling that had been persistently wooing me, that of Pastor. I began my studies at Asbury Theological Seminary, Orlando in the fall of 2008 and graduated with my Masters of Divinity in 2013. I have served Lee UMC since and I absolutely consider it an honor and a privilege to be Pastor to God’s people.

I have traveled the globe on mission and for education. I believe that the Church is the hope of the world. Disciples of Christ are all gifted and empowered by the Holy Spirit to live by faith, be known by Love, and offer voices of Hope. This is the proper response of those whose lives have been redeemed and are being renewed by God’s grace offered to us in Jesus Christ.

My wife and I have been married for fourteen blessed years and have a daughter, Abbey, and I have a son Bryce. Faith was born and raised in Thousand Oaks California until moving to Madison, FL. at age twelve. I couldn’t survive in ministry without Faith (both faith in God and my wife Faith of course ;-). Faith is the strong-silent, hard- working type. You will not find her speaking and preaching in front of crowds but you will find her faithfully serving and working hard to support her husband, family, and the Church. I love being a father and a husband, and I couldn’t make it without the loving support of my family.

I consider it a great joy and honor to live and serve in the Florida Annual Conference of The United Methodist Church.

Have a great week and I will see you Sunday!

Tuesday, May 5, 2015

May 3, 2015: The Way of Authority
James 2:1-9

When we give of our time and talent, the person(s) we give authority to in our lives can often dictate those experiences. When we place our Triune God as first in our lives, the way we give takes on a whole new dimension. As you listen to the message below, consider to whom you give your authority and what your life, what this world, could look like as it all goes to God.

Saturday, May 2, 2015

Bible Challenge 05/03 - 05/09

Greetings All!

This week we finish up the last chapters of Judges, read the entire book of Ruth and get most of the way through I Samuel.

Ruth is the first book named after a woman. Ruth's devotion to her mother-in-law is endearing and touching and how this foreigner is rewarded for her faithfulness is nothing short of amazing as she is listed in Jesus' genealogy!

I Samuel details the history of the Israelites as it details the life of one of their famous leaders, Samuel; who was the last of the judges and the first of the prophets. The first seven chapters deal mainly with his birth, calling and ministry, before turning attention to Israel's request for a king, fulfilled in the person of Saul.

By chapter 15 though, King Saul has been rejected by God because of his behavior. Young David is chosen by God and anointed by Samuel as king in chapter 16, then fights the famous Philistine giant in chapter 17. King Saul grows more and more suspicious and paranoid about David in chapters 18 and 19. Then we read about the friendship between David and Jonathan in chapter 20. The remainder of our reading this week details the ongoing hostilities between Saul and David.

Here is the schedule:

3 (Su) - Judges 18-21

4 (M) - Ruth 1-4

5 (Tu)- I Samuel 1-4

6 (W)- I Samuel 5-8

7 (Th) - I Samuel 9-12

8 (F) - I Samuel 13-16

9 (Sa) - I Samuel 17-20

May God add His richest blessings to the reading, the hearing, the understanding and most importantly the living out of His holy word. Amen. 

Friday, May 1, 2015

Friday Fives

1. Sunday Worship - With Lent behind us and Easter within us it is a natural time to turn our attention to how that journey will impact each of us. Over the last several weeks we have turned our attention to the gifts God has placed in our care as we looked at how we are called to use them. I hope and pray that as we have looked to the way of caring for this creation and using what God has given us wisely each of you have come away with a new perspective and are re-energized to continue your walk with Christ. We will wrap up this series this week as we look to the authority of our lives; who has it and who we listen to as we walk our journey. Invite a friend and I hope to see you all there!





2. Stop Hunger Now - As a response to us meeting our Advent Conspiracy Challenge in 2014 we are going to participate with Stop Hunger Now and hold a meal packaging event here at Druid Hills. We have set up Saturday, June 6th, from 9am-12pm as our time and day for this event. We will circulate signup sheets soon for you to register and claim your spot. We will package around 10,000 meals for starving children around the world and we need your help to make this happen. Besides, it is a whole lot of fun! Be on the look out for the sign up sheets and get involved!





3. FAD Night - FAD (Faith and Discipleship) Night has wrapped up for the Spring. We hope you have enjoyed the opportunity to gather, share a meal, and deepen your walk with Christ. Stay tuned for the date when we will start this ministry up again after the summer. Thanks to all who invested in this ministry and for all who came to make it a reality!





4. Lion's Club Garage Sale - Tomorrow, Saturday, May 2nd, the Fort King Lion's Club will be using the church parking lot to host their Spring Yard Sale to benefit the Florida Center for the Blind. I want to invite and encourage you to grab a friend and come on out and support this event. There are so many that will benefit from happens this day and from the mission of the Lion's Club. Come and be a part of it!





5. Liturgist and Usher Trainings - There will be two upcoming training sessions for all those interested in serving as a liturgist and/or usher in worship. These sessions will be brief and held immediately after worship. The intent of these trainings will be to allow new people to participate and make sure we all understand the best practices of what is needed for these roles. The liturgist training will be May 17th and the usher training will be May 24th. I hope you see you there!





Bonus Five - Welcome Pastor Brian and Family! - This past Sunday it was announced that I will be moving in July and my time as pastor at Druid Hills will be coming to an end. So with that I am excited to introduce to you our new pastor and his family; Brian Sanderson and his wife Faith, son Bryce, and daughter Abbey.

Please keep them in prayer as they make the transition of saying goodbye to the church they serve now and prepare themselves for ministry with you. I also want to invite you to reach out to them and welcome them into the Druid Hills family. I am excited for how the Holy Spirit will work through Brian to lead this congregation as well as for the opportunity you all will have to get to know his family.

Have a great weekend and I will see you Sunday!