Last Sunday in worship our Finance Committee Vice-chairman, Rusty Payne, spoke to us about our 2020 Stewardship Initiative. Below is part of his speech.
What does your church mean to you?
I can honestly say I believe the church is the body of Christ in the world today. Its mission is to make Disciples of Christ. I’m a member of First United Methodist Church of Winter Park and I have been attending here for 10 years.
I’m blessed to have two daughters and a lovely wife. This church provides leadership opportunities based upon your spiritual strengths. My wife, Melissa, serves as the chair of Leadership Council and I am the Vice-Chair of the Finance Committee. I also have the opportunity to provide mentorship to youth as a small group leader in Elevate. My Connect Group is the Cornerstone Sunday School Class, which provides opportunities for relationship building through study and prayer. I see my oldest daughter, Caroline, developing knowledge about Christ through her involvement with the Impact Singers, Acolytes, Bodybuilders and Elevate. My youngest daughter, Emily, enjoys learning stories of the Bible in Promiseland. As a family, we attend the 11 o’clock service and sponsor a member of Inua.
As you can see, this church enriches our lives and I can see how we are developing in our walk with Christ. We pledge because this is so important to us. Today, this is what the church means to me. One thing that I have learned is the church is > ME. There are so many more ministries that the church has to offer. As a family, we have submitted our pledge to the church so plans can be made for the ministries in the coming year.