Marengo United Methodist Church VO LU ME X I
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And again I say, Rejoice
Inside this Issue: Anniversaries & Birthdays Baptisms Calendar Finance Secretary Gas Can Mission Help Needed Keeping the Dream Alive Library News L.I.F.E. 401
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Mailbox 6 Meet the Pastor Keck Mowry 3 Memorial Bricks 8 Parent s Day Out 4 Prayer List 6 Roots to Wings 10 Senior Moment 4 Summerwood 7 UMM Credit Union 2 UMW 5 Vacation Bible School Back Worship Time Change 11 Worship Schedule 11
Philippians is one of my favorite books of the Bible. It is a love letter from the Apostle Paul to the church that he holds in his heart (1:7; a phrase that can also be translated you hold me in your heart ). And it is a letter full of joy. The word joy and rejoice repeats over and over, and bubbles over in that wonderful phrase, Rejoice in the Lord always; again I will say, Rejoice (4:4). But again, we have a phrase that can be translated another way. The word for rejoice is also the word for farewell. So, was Paul saying, Rejoice in the Lord always or was he saying, Farewell in the Lord always; again I will say, Farewell. Both are possible, for Paul writes this letter from prison. We don t know which prison he wrote from. There is reference to the imperial guard (1:13) and the emperor s household (4:22), so tradition says he wrote from Rome. And if he wrote from Rome then Paul will soon be facing a martyr s death. Perhaps Paul knew what was looming before him, and so this is a last chance to send a word of love and encouragement to the congregation he held in his heart and brought him so much joy. And that, of course, is the position in which I find myself not in prison facing death, but having to say farewell to a congregation I hold in my heart and has brought me so much joy. It has truly been the most amazing six years of my ministry. Personally, I took a quantum leap in learning how to be an apostolic leader instead of the bureaucratic manager I had been trained to be. Here I found the answer to the holy discontent for the status quo that had been on my heart since I was 12-years old; and now, thanks to you and Rick Warren I know the five purposes of the church for which Christ created us, and I am totally committed to getting churches back on track to fulfilling our purpose. And I shall always be able to sing Mission Rock. But more than that, I have been blessed by worship here; I have been inspired by your commitment to learning and creating Wesley Fellowship groups and mission I have never served a church that had one on-going commitment to a mission trip, much less two! And you cared for me through some major milestones in my life the births of my grandsons, the marriage of two daughters, and the deaths of my parents. Again, no other church has ever walked those roads with me and no other church ever will. They are unrepeatable life experiences, and I was fortunate to have experienced them with you. It was a privilege to be your pastor as you walked Continued on page - 2