8/17/2022
Dear Friends,
On Sunday morning, we considered how the fact that even though Jesus came to bring peace into the world, the result of his ministry often brought division. This was because the decision to follow Jesus meant that loyalty to Jesus was greater than loyalty to any other. In addition, when acting in the ways of Jesus, there will be some who won’t fully comprehend God’s purposes.
The sermon ended by saying:
If you haven’t noticed, there is a lot of division in our world. And I don’t know about you, but I don’t like division. One of my strengths is harmony and I just want everyone to get along. But the thing is, while we are called to be peacemakers, that doesn’t mean that we are simply to sit back, smooth everything over and try to keep conflict at bay. What it does mean is that we are to make the choice – every minute of every day – to follow Jesus, and be about the work of Jesus, the work of justice, the work of love, the work of caring for the poor, the oppressed, the widow, the orphan, the imprisoned, and the least of these.
When we choose to follow Jesus, to be watchful of where God is at work in and among us, to jump in where we are led, we will likely come up against those who are critical of us, those who distance themselves from us, those who flat out wish to do us harm.
But we are called to make a decision, make a choice, to follow Jesus. Not a choice to follow our own theology or doctrine. Not a choice to follow our political leanings. Not a choice to follow our favorite preacher, newscaster, or podcaster. Not a choice to follow our own comfort, doing what makes us feel good or benefits us or even what keeps a tentative peace in our little corner of the world.
We are called to follow Jesus, live as he lived, love as he loved, and give of our whole selves as Jesus gave his all for the whole world.
For those unable to join us in-person, Sunday morning worship is livestreamed on our Facebook page, https://www.facebook.com/GulfShoresFirstPresbyterianChurch. The service airs each Sunday at 11:00 a.m. and will be available to watch after that as well.
The Moving Forward Team met on Sunday after church to talk about ways to continue move our church forward in a number of ways. One of the ideas that came out of that meeting was to help create an atmosphere of invitation within the church. In that vein, the team would like to challenge each of us to invite a couple of friends or acquaintes to church anytime, but particularly bring a guest along on Presbyterian Pints Sundays so that the guest not only gets to experience worship, but also participate in fellowship with us at Big Beach Brewery. In September, that date will be the SECOND Sunday of the month, September 11, due to the Labor Day holiday weekend falling on the first weekend.
Even though we are in the beginning stages of embarking on the social enterprise of creating the Hand-in-Hand Business center, we would love to begin seeing local businesses utilizing the space we are offering for offices. If you know of someone looking for office space, have them reach out to me and we will see how we can meet their needs.
Don’t forget:
Thank you for your continued support of the Blessing Box! With the current inflation, we are struggling to keep it filled. Your donations are desperately needed. Keep bringing those non-perishable items to church on Sunday, or dropping them at the box during the week. With rising costs of everything from gas to food, the box is being used very regularly, and your donations are key to helping us bless those who are in need of what our box can offer.
Upcoming Events:
Weekly Events:
As always, you are welcome to reach out to me via email, text or phone with any needs or just to chat!
Go in peace to love and serve the Lord!
Rev. Chrisy Ennen
gsfpcpastor@outlook.com, (618) 980-9899
"Let all that you do be done in love.”
I Corinthians 16:14
Dear Friends,
On Sunday morning, we considered how the fact that even though Jesus came to bring peace into the world, the result of his ministry often brought division. This was because the decision to follow Jesus meant that loyalty to Jesus was greater than loyalty to any other. In addition, when acting in the ways of Jesus, there will be some who won’t fully comprehend God’s purposes.
The sermon ended by saying:
If you haven’t noticed, there is a lot of division in our world. And I don’t know about you, but I don’t like division. One of my strengths is harmony and I just want everyone to get along. But the thing is, while we are called to be peacemakers, that doesn’t mean that we are simply to sit back, smooth everything over and try to keep conflict at bay. What it does mean is that we are to make the choice – every minute of every day – to follow Jesus, and be about the work of Jesus, the work of justice, the work of love, the work of caring for the poor, the oppressed, the widow, the orphan, the imprisoned, and the least of these.
When we choose to follow Jesus, to be watchful of where God is at work in and among us, to jump in where we are led, we will likely come up against those who are critical of us, those who distance themselves from us, those who flat out wish to do us harm.
But we are called to make a decision, make a choice, to follow Jesus. Not a choice to follow our own theology or doctrine. Not a choice to follow our political leanings. Not a choice to follow our favorite preacher, newscaster, or podcaster. Not a choice to follow our own comfort, doing what makes us feel good or benefits us or even what keeps a tentative peace in our little corner of the world.
We are called to follow Jesus, live as he lived, love as he loved, and give of our whole selves as Jesus gave his all for the whole world.
For those unable to join us in-person, Sunday morning worship is livestreamed on our Facebook page, https://www.facebook.com/GulfShoresFirstPresbyterianChurch. The service airs each Sunday at 11:00 a.m. and will be available to watch after that as well.
The Moving Forward Team met on Sunday after church to talk about ways to continue move our church forward in a number of ways. One of the ideas that came out of that meeting was to help create an atmosphere of invitation within the church. In that vein, the team would like to challenge each of us to invite a couple of friends or acquaintes to church anytime, but particularly bring a guest along on Presbyterian Pints Sundays so that the guest not only gets to experience worship, but also participate in fellowship with us at Big Beach Brewery. In September, that date will be the SECOND Sunday of the month, September 11, due to the Labor Day holiday weekend falling on the first weekend.
Even though we are in the beginning stages of embarking on the social enterprise of creating the Hand-in-Hand Business center, we would love to begin seeing local businesses utilizing the space we are offering for offices. If you know of someone looking for office space, have them reach out to me and we will see how we can meet their needs.
Don’t forget:
- If you know of those who need a place to park during their visit to Gulf Shores and they would like to use our parking lot, here is the link to share: https://www.premiumparking.com/P2658.
- Keep collecting that loose change and bring it every week to add to the collection! All of the loose change will go toward the ongoing ministry of the church, as we continue to spread the life-changing good news of God’s love.
- Want to help the church just by doing your normal Amazon shopping? Now you can! Just go to https://smile.amazon.com/ch/63-0859397 and make all your purchases through this link! Each quarter the church will receive a donation equal to 0.5% of your total purchases. You can also set it up so the Amazon app on your phone automatically purchases through Amazon Smile. For help setting that up, see this link: https://www.amazon.com/b?ie=UTF8&node=15576745011.
- The church can now receive donations through Facebook, either by clicking on the “Donate” button on our Facebook Page, or through Fundraisers you can host on your own Facebook page.
- If you have more ideas about how we can creatively fund the ministry of First Presbyterian Church of Gulf Shores, reach out and let me know!
- For safety reasons, at 11:00 a.m. each Sunday, all the doors of the building will be locked EXCEPT the north door that leads into the narthex. If you find yourself running behind, just remember to park up front by that door and enter there.
Thank you for your continued support of the Blessing Box! With the current inflation, we are struggling to keep it filled. Your donations are desperately needed. Keep bringing those non-perishable items to church on Sunday, or dropping them at the box during the week. With rising costs of everything from gas to food, the box is being used very regularly, and your donations are key to helping us bless those who are in need of what our box can offer.
Upcoming Events:
- Tuesday, August 23, 1:00 to 5:00 p.m. – Red Cross Blood Drive in the Fellowship Hall. Make your appointments at redcross.org.
- In September, Presbyterian Pints will be held the SECOND Sunday, September 11.
Weekly Events:
- Bible Study – Wednesdays at 1:00 p.m. both in-person and on Zoom.
- Join the in-person group in the church Fellowship Hall
- Join the Zoom meeting at this link: https://us02web.zoom.us/j/81951398375?pwd=S0FBSEFxRmhhUWt2QnN3WERUY1dOUT09, entering the meeting ID and password below, if prompted.
- Meeting ID: 819 5139 8375
- Passcode: 846358
- This week’s scriptures: Jeremiah 1:4-10; Psalm 71:1-6; Hebrews 12:18-29; Luke 13:10-17
As always, you are welcome to reach out to me via email, text or phone with any needs or just to chat!
Go in peace to love and serve the Lord!
Rev. Chrisy Ennen
gsfpcpastor@outlook.com, (618) 980-9899
"Let all that you do be done in love.”
I Corinthians 16:14
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