July 2022 Pastor’s Letter
From the Desk of Pastor Melissa
Dear Friends,
Welcome to July! The summer months full of family, friends, and sunshine are well underway both in our personal lives and in our church life. Vacation Bible School readiness is in full swing. Around 65 children have registered to attend and 25 adults and youth are preparing to lead us all to a deeper relationship with Jesus as we “Adventure on Discovery Island.” Please keep the children, their families, and our leadership in your prayers.
This year our church is participating in National Night Out! Volunteers and staff are preparing an evening of fun food and fellowship on August 2nd from 6-9 pm. National Night Out events were created to build connections between neighbors and first responders. It is so easy to forget that a church lives in a neighborhood and we are called to respond to the needs not only of the folk we know well, but the neighbors we don’t. The inflatable “jumpies” have been ordered, food trucks are being contracted with and games out on the lawn are being planned. There will be outdoor staging where Charles Horton will DJ, sharing his passion for music. Kris Hemphill is leading an interactive music activity for children and Jayson Hemphill is getting his band back together by inviting The Elevate Project to play. Please mark the evening of August 2 on your calendar. Pray for our leadership and ask God to help you discern who to invite. We want to connect to our neighbors and show folk we care about them.
People are also preparing the building for many new friends from the See Saw Daycare Center who will begin serving the community from Cornerstone UMC. Over 50 children and their parents have been uneasy this spring as they awaited resolution regarding the placement of much needed daycare in this portion of the county. I am proud that our church will be able to help them. The entire youth wing will now be dedicated to serving children and families through the continuing ministry of Stepping Stones and the care that See Saw will provide. I am excited to see how we will touch the lives of these families and the folk that serve them!
This month we also begin a new worship series called “What it means to be…” What does it mean to be a Christian in the United Methodist tradition? What does it mean to be a part of Cornerstone and serve Jesus in our community and in our lives? During the month of July, I will share distinctive messages about Holy Communion, Baptism, Salvation, Grace, and how we can find our way as we grow in our understanding of what it means to be…
These are exciting times and Jesus is walking with us. Our Creator God is still creating and the Holy Spirit is guiding us to a new beginning of reaching out and connecting deeply with our neighbors as we share the love of Christ!
We’ll talk again soon,
Pastor Melissa