Church of the Messiah Celebrates Twenty-Five Years!

This August, Church of the Messiah will celebrate its twenty-fifth anniversary and we have planned a special celebration twenty-five years in the making.  We will have special guests every Sunday in August as well as incredible fellowship and reunion events.  Here is all that we have planned for the celebration.

Sunday, August 5th–Our special guest preacher will be Bp. David Epps from the Mid-South Diocese of the Charismatic Episcopal Church.  Bp. Epps is a mighty man of God, a pastor, a writer, and an incredible story-teller.  Church of the Messiah plays a key role in his transition into the Charismatic Episcopal Church.  His visit is sure to be one we talk about for years to come.

Saturday, August 11th–We are hosting a Youth Group Reunion.  Anyone who has ever attended Church of the Messiah’s Youth Group (or old St. David’s Youth Group, for that matter) or been a Youth Pastor or Youth Leader is invited to return to Church of the Messiah for a special night of fun and fellowship.  There will be music, skits, and time to reconnect with friends you haven’t seen in years (except on social media).

Sunday, August 12th—Fr. David Paysinger, the Archdeacon of the Diocese of Florida and Rector Emeritus of Church of the Messiah, returns to the pulpit for the first time since his retirement in 2015.  Fr. Paysinger was pastor of Church of the Messiah from 2006 until 2015.  He is known throughout the CEC as an incredible pastor, counselor, and prayer warrior.  His return to COM’s pulpit is sure to be anointed.

Saturday, August 18th–Church of the Messiah has always been known for its incredible praise and worship ministries and, as part of our 25th Anniversary Celebration, we are “getting the band back together” for a Call to Worship!  Join us for an incredible night of praise and worship with friends who have worshiped at Church of the Messiah over the last twenty-five years. We are grateful that this event will be hosted at The River Church at Jacksonville (click HERE for a map).

Sunday, August 19th—Archbishop Charles Travis of the Apostolate of St. Chad (CEEC) will be returning to Church of the Messiah after many years.  Abp. Travis and his family attended Church of the Messiah for many years when we knew him as “Doctor Chuck.”

 

 

Saturday, August 25th–Church of the Messiah will host a Community Fish Fry from 11:00 to 1:00.  Come join us as Earl Shimp and his team fry up amazing fish, hush puppies, and other incredible fixings.  Invite your friends; this is open to everyone!  Please RSVP on the event page, at church on Sunday, or by contacting the office.  We want to make sure we have plenty of food for everyone!

Sunday, August 26th–Our very own Bishop David Simpson of the Diocese of Florida will join us to cap off our month of celebration.  This Sunday is our actual anniversary and we’ve got lots of surprises in store.  It’s going to be an incredible and anointed service to be sure!

 

 

All events (except the Call to Worship) will be hosted at Church of the Messiah (click for a map).  All Sunday services begin at 10 o’clock.  Click on the dates to visit the Facebook events for each celebration.  For more information, call or email Church of the Messiah at 904-721-4199.  Everyone is welcome and we can’t wait to celebrate all that God has done in Church of the Messiah over the last twenty-five years!

Church of the Messiah’s 25th Anniversary–Save the Dates

This August Church of the Messiah will celebrate its twenty-fifth anniversary and we have an entire “month of Sundays” and even more planned to commemorate this incredible milestone for our community.  Grab your pencil and your calendar and “save these dates” because you will not want to miss any of what we have planned in August!

Sunday, August 5th: Bishop David Epps, the Bishop of the Mid-South Diocese of the Charismatic Episcopal Church will visit and bring the Word of God.

Saturday, August 11th: We are having Youth Group Reunion for anyone who has ever worshiped in Church of the Messiah’s Youth Group over the last twenty-five years!

Sunday, August 12th:  The Venerable David Paysinger, Rector Emeritus of Church of the Messiah, will return to the pulpit for the first time since retiring and share his memories from the very beginning of Church of the Messiah.

Saturday, August 18th: We will be having Worship Reunion Night!  Church of the Messiah has always been known for its incredible praise and worship and throughout out twenty-five years we have have phenomenally talented musicians and singers join us in praising the Lord.  We are issuing a call to “get the band back together” and call together all those who have worshiped with us in the past to praise Him together again.  This event will be hosted by The River Church at Jacksonville.

Sunday, August 19th: Archbishop Charles Travis, Archbishop of the Apostolate of St. Chad (Communion of Evangelical Episcopal Churches) and long-time friend of Church of the Messiah, will join us and share how Church of the Messiah helped to form him personally and has impacted the world.

Saturday, August 25th: We are hosting a Community Fish Fry and Family Fun Day.  We will have amazing fish and incredible sides with great fellowship and fun for the whole family.  Everyone is invited!

Sunday, August 26th: Bishop David Simpson, Bishop of the Diocese of Florida and the Caribbean, will join us to celebrate our actual Twenty-Fifth Anniversary.  This will be a celebration twenty-five years in the making and one you will not want to miss!

All events will be hosted at Church of the Messiah (except the Youth Reunion and Worship Reunion).  To be sure that you don’t miss any of the latest updates, “like” Church of the Messiah’s Facebook page or “follow” Church of the Messiah on Twitter.

 

Bishop David Simpson to Visit Church of the Messiah this Sunday

This Sunday, August 27th, Bishop David Simpson will visit Church of the Messiah in order to preach and celebrate, as well as Confirm and Receive eight members of the parish.  Confirmation is the Sacrament where Christians who were baptized as children make a mature profession of their faith, are strengthened by the Holy Spirit, and receive an apostolic blessing for increased ministry in the Church.   Reception is a formal welcoming of a member who had been Confirmed previously in another denomination.  This is an especially festive occasion for Church of the Messiah as well as for those who have been preparing for many weeks for this event.

Bishop Simpson has been in ordained ministry for over 40 years, with 21 of those years in the Charismatic Episcopal Church  where he has served as the Rector of Church of the Resurrection in Miramar, Florida.  Bishop Simpson recently celebrated his tenth anniversary as the Bishop of the Diocese of Florida.

While in Seminary, Bishop Simpson married his college sweetheart Toni.  They have three grown children and have six grand children!  Join us as we welcome our bishop.  He is sure to bring an inspired Word of God.  We hope everyone will join us because it is going to be an amazing day!  All are welcome!

Hurricane Matthew Relief Fund Created

hermes2andfamilyAt Church on Sunday morning many people asked about taking up an offering to aid victims of Hurricane Matthew.  Fr. Looker intentionally delayed such a collection in anticipation of receiving word from Bishop Simpson on how the Diocese of Florida as a whole would respond to the catastrophe.  Today we heard from Bp. Simpson.  We already knew that the Bahamas were particularly hard hit, but we have learned that the home of one of our own clergy, Deacon Hermes Laing II, was practically destroyed and that they have lost most of their belongings.  Bp. Simpson is creating Hurricane Relief Fund to assist the people of the Bahamas, Haiti, and Cuba in rebuilding their lives and homes.  If you would like to donate to the Hurricane Relief Fund, you may do so in two ways: you may put a check in the offering basket earmarked “Hurricane Relief” or you can visit our donate page, choose “Other” from the drop-down menu and enter “Hurricane Relief.”  All donations are tax-deductible and will be sent to the Cathedral and distributed to those in the affected area.  Thank you for your generosity.

Bp. Simpson Issues Appeal for Hurricane Relief for the Bahamas

On Tuesday, October 6th, Bp. David Simpson, whose episcopal oversight includes the Bahamas, issued this appeal to clergy of the Diocese of Florida in the aftermath of Hurricane Joaquin:

Although our sister parish, Church of the Nativity, in Nassau, Bahamas, was not struck by the recent hurricane, other parts of the nation most certainly were. In response to this humanitarian crisis, the Cathedral Church of the Resurrection and the Diocese of Florida are undertaking a Hurricane Relief Fund to assist the people of the Bahamas in restoring their lives and property in the aftermath of the storm.

At the Cathedral, we will be collecting items as well as cash. Outside the Cathedral, however, given transportation issues, it seems best to appeal for financial contributions. We will then take all such cash contributions and purchase supplies locally to be sent to the Bahamas. We will be working with Fr. Bowleg in this regard to ensure that our contributions are received properly and distributed wisely.

If you are inclined to join in this effort, you can make your checks out to the Diocese of Florida, clearly earmarked “Bahamas Hurricane Relief”.

NativityDancers

Worshipers at Church of the Nativity, CEC, in Nassau, Bahamas.

For those wishing to send checks directly to the Diocese of Florida, the address is 6701 SW 25th St, Miramar, FL 33023.   Alternatively those withing to make donations make make checks payable to Church of the Messiah, clearly marked “Bahamas Hurricane Relief” and we will send those donations out next week.

Bishop Announces Fr. Paysinger’s Retirement

Father David and JaniceOn Trinity Sunday, May 31, while on his annual visit, Bp. David Simpson informed the congregation that he had reluctantly accepted Fr. David Paysinger’s resignation as Rector of Church of the Messiah.  Bp. Simpson admitted that this had been a matter of prayer between himself and Fr. David for many months, and that they had both been diligent to affirm that this was, indeed, the will of God.  The exact date of Fr. Paysinger’s retirement is not set, although it will occur sometime this August and coincide roughly with Fr. Paysinger’s seventieth birthday.  While Fr. Paysinger will be retiring as rector of Church of the Messiah, he will continue to serve as the Archdeacon for the Diocese of Florida and as one of the members of the Bishop’s Council, serving Bp. Simpson as one of his senior priests and advisors.

David Paysinger was one of the founding members of Church of the Messiah who transitioned from St. David’s Episcopal Church in the Fall of 1992.  He was ordained to the Diaconate in December of 1993,  appointed Archdeacon for the Diocese of Florida and the Southeastern Province in May of 1995, and ordained to the Sacred Order of Priests in November of 1995.  During his many years of ministry, Fr. Paysinger has traveled extensively throughout the Southeast Province–and even internationally–for the sake of ministry.  Fr. Paysinger has served on both the Provincial Council for the Southeastern Province as well as on the Bishop’s Council of the Diocese of Florida.  On May 28, 2006, Fr. Paysinger was installed as the Rector of Church of the Messiah.  The announcement of his retirement comes nine years almost to the day of his installation as Rector.

Throughout his 23 years of ministry, his wife Janice has been ever-present by his side.  Janice has served in countless roles in Church of the Messiah including working in the Nursery and Kids’ Church, chairing the Women’s Ministry, heading up Care and Comfort and Hospitality ministries, and recently filling in as parish secretary while serving as the parish bookkeeper. In the Fall, Janice will likewise retire from her position at Church of the Messiah so that she can remain ever-present with her husband as they travel and enjoy their retirement together.

Church of the Messiah and the Paysinger family covet your prayers as Fr. David and Janice begin to transition into this new phase of their life and ministry.