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First UMC Middletown had a very special worship celebration this Sunday, as our guest Rev. Ken Kieffer, our outgoing NYAC CT District Superintendent, offered a powerful sermon on Jesus' conversation with a Samaritan woman at the well (John 4:1-42) which Rev. Ken titled "Trauma Queen." His sermon was a remarkable testimony to the experiences of his own life that invite us to put our own lives' traumas into perspective through faith. A beautiful themed altarscape graced our worship space, and wonderful music and witnesses to grace completed a vibrant morning of faith. Rev. Ken got a sense of what worship is like at "that church at the Elks Club," and he was duly impressed!
After worship, we hopped over to our parsonage for our annual Church Conference chaired by Rev. Ken, which celebrated the life of the church as we conducted our annual business. We lifted up our successful ministries, new ministries being led by Sharon Riley, Jill Bennett, and Rossana Barnaby, our new members, our improved fiscal outlook, and our progress towards purchasing land for a new worship center. We also discussed new global mission projects that we can support that offer God's hope around the world. We have much to be grateful for as we enter the new year, having crossed through the "desert" of transition from our old worship space, and as we prepare to cross the Jordan into a new promised land of growing faith in Middletown. May our horns blow loud and clear at the city's walls! We wish Rev. Ken all the best in his new upcoming assignment, and we thank him for his heartfelt support.
First UMC Middletown had a very special worship celebration this Sunday, as our guest Rev. Ken Kieffer, our outgoing NYAC CT District Superintendent, offered a powerful sermon on Jesus' conversation with a Samaritan woman at the well (John 4:1-42) which Rev. Ken titled "Trauma Queen." His sermon was a remarkable testimony to the experiences of his own life that invite us to put our own lives' traumas into perspective through faith. A beautiful themed altarscape graced our worship space, and wonderful music and witnesses to grace completed a vibrant morning of faith. Rev. Ken got a sense of what worship is like at "that church at the Elks Club," and he was duly impressed!
After worship, we hopped over to our parsonage for our annual Church Conference chaired by Rev. Ken, which celebrated the life of the church as we conducted our annual business. We lifted up our successful ministries, new ministries being led by Sharon Riley, Jill Bennett, and Rossana Barnaby, our new members, our improved fiscal outlook, and our progress towards purchasing land for a new worship center. We also discussed new global mission projects that we can support that offer God's hope around the world. We have much to be grateful for as we enter the new year, having crossed through the "desert" of transition from our old worship space, and as we prepare to cross the Jordan into a new promised land of growing faith in Middletown. May our horns blow loud and clear at the city's walls! We wish Rev. Ken all the best in his new upcoming assignment, and we thank him for his heartfelt support.
