Hello Members & Friends of Mentor United Methodist Church,
On behalf of the pastors and staff at MUMC, I wish you a happy and blessed New Year!
I continue to be grateful beyond words for the opportunity to serve as one of the Sr. Pastors at Mentor UMC. You are an incredible church! As I reflect on the past year, there are too many blessings and God-signs to count. However, you can read some of the highlights included in the Pastors’ Report and the Lay Leaders’ Report for Charge Conference linked below.
I am excited to see all that God has in store for MUMC in 2025. As I have been praying about the coming year, I feel God has placed a prayer and a vision on my heart. I shared this with Pastor Ivy and Pastor Tammy. Their positive response gave further affirmation that this prayer and vision is truly of God. It is simple. I invite you to consider making it your own. Just three things:
1. Immerse ourselves in scripture
2. Devote ourselves to prayer
3. Commit ourselves to spiritual practices
Imagine everyone at MUMC embracing to some degree this vision in the new year! Imagine the impact on our lives individually and collectively as a church. I know that many of you are already doing these things in your own ways which I celebrate. Keep on doing what you are doing and invite others to join you! Some of you may be feeling God nudging you to take a new step in your faith journey in this new year. I hope you will follow that nudge!
Pastor Ivy, Pastor Tammy, and I invite you to join us in one or more of the ways we are personally embracing this vision. Details are shared below as well as a video:
Immerse ourselves in scripture:
-Pastor Steve will be leading Disciple Bible Study 1 on Thursdays from 4:00-6:00 PM starting January 16th at the church
-Pastor Tammy will be leading Disciple Bible Study 1 Fast Track on Tuesdays at 6:00-7:15 PM starting January 7th
-Pastor Ivy will be reading the Bible Genesis through Revelation using The Bible Year by Magrey DeVega (https://a.co/d/8qJE9fC). Participants are invited to be part of a digital group on the app “Slack”
-Other Disciple Bible Study opportunities include Syndie Toth leading Disciple 1 on Mondays from 10 AM - 12 PM and Lucas & Wendy Rhoads leading Disciple 2 on Thursdays from 7-9 PM.
Devote ourselves to prayer:
-Pastor Steve will be praying daily and while fasting once a week for 24 hours. You can be part of a chat on Slack to keep in touch if you choose to do the same or similar. He may also utilize different prayer resources throughout the year which he will share before using – such as during Lent.
-Pastor Tammy will be using Praying in the Wesleyan Spirit: 52 Prayers for Today by Paul Chilcote (https://a.co/d/g5wjgX1). Participants are invited to be part of a digital group on the app “Slack”
-Pastor Ivy will be including prayers daily as she engages The Bible Year. Participants are invited to be part of a digital group on the app “Slack”
Commit ourselves to spiritual practices:
Spiritual practices are practices that for centuries have shown to help people experience God’s presence and grow in faith. They include:
-Worship
-Prayer
-Devotion
-Holy Conferencing (engaging in conversations with others with an open
mind and heart humbling seeking to understand and connect)
-Singing
-Communion
-Mission Work
-Fasting
-Prayer Walks (praying for others and yourself as you walk a neighborhood
or in the woods or park)
-Creative Process – (painting, writing, sculpting, composing, knitting,
sewing, etc.)
-Journaling
-Affirming (intentionally looking for God at work in others and affirming it by
letting them and others know)
These are just some spiritual practices. I would love to hear some of the practices that you find most helpful.
I pray that each of you will hear God’s call on your heart to know the next step in your faith journey and that you will be encouraged, equipped, and empowered to take that next step. However you decide to nurture your faith in 2025, I hope you will make a priority to begin the year by attending the following two events:
Shepherding Summit: Wednesday, January 15th, from 6:30-8:30 PM at Mentor UMC
Healthy Congregations Workshop: Saturday, February 8th, from 9:00 AM - 4:00 PM at Mayfield UMC (Register & learn more by clicking here)
Blessings to you in this new year!
Pastor Steve
Click here to read the Charge Conference Report.
Click here to read the Lay leaders report.
Click here to join Slack.
