This Past Monday, the fellowship hall was bustling with folks ready to share a meal and learn about Morehead UMC becoming a lighthouse congregation. Lighthouse Congregations are United Methodist Congregations that are equipped to welcome anyone who is in a time of grief and transition because their church has closed or disaffiliated. These faith communities are a resting place, with people who will care and provide a haven of peace and grace.
In that meeting, we talked about the state of our denomination, what it means to be a lighthouse church, and then dreamed together about how Morehead specifically can live into being a lighthouse church. It was a wonderful time of hope and connection!
We have so many opportunities for hope and connection in the next two weeks! We have new members joining and a baptism this Sunday morning, we have Holy Week and Easter next week! We have Youth Sunday on April 16th, and the announcement of our incoming minister on April 23rd! So many wonderful signs of hope and connection in Christ!
I want to share with you the beautiful prayer written by Sylvia LeClair for our church that closed out our time on Monday:
Oh, God of all time and places, we pray for our church, which is amid the perplexities of a
changing order and face to face with tasks that are new to us. Lord, we pray that you will breathe fresh life into us and renew us with the spirit of Jesus. Bestow upon our church a great responsiveness to duty, a swifter compassion with suffering, and a loyalty to your will. Fill us with Christ like tenderness for those less fortunate than us and help them to know they are loved. Lord, I pray your heavenly blessings upon this church that all its members may dwell together in unity and love. It is in your holy name I offer this prayer. Amen.
To that I say AMEN AND AMEN!
Grace,
Pastor Nikki Raye