Despite contrary belief, God isn't only present on Sundays at 11am. Rather, God is present forever and always. We were reminded of this a few weeks ago when we celebrated Pentecost, and we are reminded yet again in this week's scripture lesson. In Acts 8:26-40, the disciples are going about doing ministry when Philip encounters an Ethiopian eunuch. They are headed down the road in mid-conversation when they come upon some water on the side of the road. The eunuch

On June 9, 2022, the Clergy Session of the Florida Annual Conference met to approve the recommendations of our Board of Ministry for persons who had met the qualifications to be licensed, commissioned and ordained. The 55--member Board of Ministry works with the candidates over a multi-year process and then brings recommendations to the clergy session for approval. Your pastor, Kipp Nelson, was one of those being recommended for commissioning. For the class of 16 persons who were recommended

For when you’re running on fumes Sometimes I am paper thinning at every touch. Responsibilities and duties and errands are wearing me down. There is not enough time or energy or finances or imagination. I hardly recognize myself. I can’t keep going, but I can’t rest. God, can You help me slow down? I just need a little shelter and a long breath. Give me space to curl up for a while. Hold me until I can feel my

This Sunday is Pentecost which is when the Holy Spirit comes upon the followers of Jesus and offers them the ability to see visions and dreams. This event in Acts 2 marks the birth of the church and the beginning of the Christian movement. It is when we start to see people taking on the responsibility of taking the gospel to the ends of the earth. Pentecost reminds us that the Christian faith isn't about "ticket to heaven" as much

Has anyone ever given you this advice before, "don't waste your breath...." Maybe you were upset with something and wanted to complain. Possibly you knew your words would fall on deaf ears. The truth is that we do waste our breath a lot. Some things need to be said but many things do not need to be said. Oftentimes our complaining, gossip, yelling, lying and negative speech are all wasting our breath. This week we end our series on the

These are the opening words to Psalm 100 which we will be reading this Sunday in worship. This psalm beckons us to sing praises to God for the many gifts around us. It calls all the earth to shout forth the glory of God. This has been a helpful reminder for me amidst all the stress that life can bring. Although there is much to stress and be concerned about, it is important to remember the good things that are

Sometimes I feel that we hold so much pressure to appear successful and perfect we are afraid to make mistakes. But as we hold this pressure, we become afraid to admit our mistakes when they happen. It becomes a heavy weight that we feel day in and day out. There are times we just need to come clean and let it all out. We need to admit that we were wrong and come clean of our mistakes. This can

This is what my therapist often instructs me to do when it seems I am lost and frustrated. On a week like this, I think a deep breath would all serve us well. There is a lot of disturbing news coming out of our nation's capital that I know is weighing heavily upon a lot of people. There is much pain, fear, and dread within so many of us. May is Mental Health Awareness Month and I cannot stress enough how

Over the last couple of years, I think we have been perpetually looking for signs of hope from God. Some days that search is harder than others, but regardless of the day, the search can be exhausting. As life unfolds, we are often led to believe that the movements of God will be bold and visible. Therefore we spend much of our time looking for these big things that God may be revealed within, and yet we keep waiting for

This week in worship we will be reading from 1 Kings 3:1-15. In this passage, we see God ask Solomon what he wishes to receive as king. Out of all the many things he could ask for, he asks for wisdom. He takes a posture of humility and understands that his new role as king is something to take seriously. He recognizes the magnitude of what this position means and wants to honor those who have come before him.