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 Offertory “A Time for Everything”

Organist: Benjamin Henderson 

Anthem “Alleluia! Praise the Lord Who

Anthem  “Blessed is the Nation”

Back in the day, many churches, especially the smaller churches around where I grew up, had a yearly revival in the summertime. Mostly, at least in my experience, these revivals were exercises in nostalgia, singing the old-time (meaning century-old gospel) hymns and hearing a former pastor or an up-and-comer expound on the message of salvation. Occasionally a sinner would repent and experience conversion, but mostly it was a revival of the sagging spirits of the saints who pretty much came to church most of the time anyway. It was a good time; I have nothing against the old-time revivals.

The church today is in need of a revival, but not the old-time kind. We have been through over two years of a pandemic. Many people got out of the habit of church. The mental health, anxiety, and depression issues are still rampant in our country. Most churches are half full compared to what they were three years ago. Online engagement has fallen off since the early days of the pandemic and the advent of live-streaming. If we believe that Jesus Christ is still Lord (he is) and that the mission of the church is still important (crucial, even), then we want more and more people to experience what God is offering us in the church. We want to continue to reach out in meaningful and significant ways to the community around us. We want some revival to happen!

The good thing is, good things are happening in our church today. We never went dormant even in the worst of the pandemic. We were worshiping, teaching, feeding people and praying as we never had before. In the last few months, we have seen significant evidences of the Holy Spirit at work in our midst. There is an atmosphere of excitement in what we are doing. We can feel the spiritual energy. We just want more people to feel it. We want people who stopped church during the pandemic and haven’t started back to do as the Beatles sang, “Get back to where you once belonged!” We want new people to discover the joy and meaning of being a part of a vibrant church. We don’t want just to recreate what we had before the pandemic; we want to rebuild and restore a new expression of God's work in our midst.

To this end, for the experience of revival at Fort Smith First United Methodist Church, we are borrowing another Beatles tune to ask everyone to “Come Together.” In the next six months, we are going to be intentional about seeking revival in our church. This quest will consist of three parts: In July and August, a Season of Prayer. In September and October, a Season of Invitation. In November and December, a Season of Harvest. We will fill in the details as we go along (because we haven’t figured them all out yet). But we do know what we want you to do for the Season of Prayer. For the next two months, along with your regular prayers, have these conversations with God:

1. Pray for your own commitment.  How are you doing with those membership vows–prayers, presence, gifts, service, and witness? If you are among those who have not been back to church, or have only returned sporadically, pray for the will and the desire to return to regular church and small-group fellowship.

2. Pray for our church and its ministry.  From the babies to the elderly members, from the inside stuff to the outreach in the community, pray that God will bless us with effectiveness and fruitfulness.

3. Pray for those who have not returned to church and are able to return.  Pray also for those who long to be here but can’t be.

4. Pray for the new people who will find us or be found by us, who will make a new church home with us.

5. Ask God to give you five people specifically to pray for, friends or family who have fallen off or never got on, folks who could start a new relationship in church with us. Don’t do anything yet except pray for them and ask God to prepare their hearts to receive the message you will bring in the next phase, the Season of Invitation.

When I first brought this idea of revival up in staff meeting, one of the team members asked, “So does this mean we are giving up the theme that ‘the Church has left the building?’” Not at all. If you remember my sermon from Sunday, June 19 (or look it up on our Facebook page), the Christian life and therefore the ministry of the church is not either/or. It’s BOTH/AND. One of the great things we learned during the pandemic is how effective our ministry becomes when we take it outside the church into the community. We are not leaving that insight behind. AND we want to fill our church up with people, who can then go out and make a difference in the community. It all works together, for the glory of God. I am excited to seek and to see revival at Fort Smith First United Methodist Church. I believe it’s a move of God!

We had a BLAST at our Food Truck Party VBS. I hope all of you could attend our VBS service on June 12^th. If you weren’t able to attend, I encourage you to go to our Facebook page or YouTube channel and watch that Sunday’s service. Your heart will certainly be filled! I want to say a HUGE thanks again to all of our volunteers. We couldn’t have done it without you!! From our station leaders, to our shepherds, to those who helped behind the scenes, to those who brought snacks for our volunteers, each one of you were an integral part of making VBS happen! 

July is going to be a month FULL of fun!! We have an event planned every Wednesday throughout the month both for families as a whole and for just children. I want to highlight just a few of our awesome plans for our Month of Fun! 

The whole church is invited to our first event on July 6^th! We will have a “Christmas in July” Family Movie Night! We are going to watch Home Alone, wear our Christmas pajamas, and eat yummy snacks! You won’t want to miss it. We will also be starting our Club 45 Summer Reading Club on July 11^th from 9am-Noon. All soon to be 4^th graders- exiting 5^th graders are invited to join us every Monday to read, play games, and have snacks. For more info, be sure to contact me, Ms. Ashley! On July 20^th we are going to have our first annual Putt-Putt Palooza! We will have 13 exciting holes created by our church members. All are invited to come play putt-putt, enjoy the fellowship, and have a burger on us! If you'd like to create a hole, give me a shout! The more the merrier!! 

Now we are excited to start back the Last Sunday Breakfast on Sunday, July 31st at 8:30am in The Family Life Center. The Chapel Class and other church volunteers will continue Taking it to the Streets with the addition of an in-person breakfast called the Last Sunday Breakfast. This breakfast is an in-person event for neighbors and church members coming into the church for fellowship, food, and devotional. As this ministry starts again, there will be opportunities to support this mission.

If you’re interested in joining the team, email me at tpierce@fsfumc.org. I would love to have coffee with you to discuss where you can use your gifts best.

It has been an absolute pleasure to meet everyone and start to learn about this blessed community!

Throughout the summer, we have a few upcoming events. Wednesdays at 10am till 11:30am the Ladybells will meet for practice. All are welcome to join!

Similarly, the Chancel Choir rehearses Wednesday at 7pm till 8:30pm and has been gaining members, so if you would like to assist with the 11am worship service in the Sanctuary, please come by and check us out. Please email me so that I can have music and a folder prepared for you.

In August, we have Children's Music Camp with the theme of “By the Sea.” This program will teach the children about stories from the bible involving Jesus’ ministry near the Sea of Galilee, a myriad of themed songs, dancing, and handbells. This program is for anyone entering Second Grade through entering Seventh Grade. The first 40 children to register may attend. Registrations are accepted in order in which they are received. DEADLINE for REGISTRATIONS: July 27th.

Thank you for your continued support and I look forward to this great journey with you all.

Feel free to call or email with any questions.

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