A Pastoral Letter from David & Rwth

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Grace and Peace to you in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ!

 This coming Sunday (Oct 30) we celebrate the end of our Stewardship Campaign with Commitment Sunday.  If you have not turned in your Financial Commitment Cards before this Sunday, you can drop them in the offering plate during worship.  After the offering, all the Commitment Cards collected over the course of the Stewardship Campaign will be gathered together and we will ask for God’s blessing on the both the gift and the givers.

Rwth and I have been so impressed with the generosity of this congregation.  As I have said throughout this past month, our membership vows are to support Ocala First with our prayers, our presence, our gifts and our service. I am grateful for Karlie Harper and her message to us on Oct 9 about the importance of offering out time and talents to God in service through the church. We do need you! And this past Sunday, Dianna Peltier spoke very personally about the difference we make together in our prayers for one another.  On Commitment Sunday, Mark Babalian will help us see how our financial gifts represents an important investment in making a difference not just within our church but in the ways we extend ministry into the Ocala community and beyond.

We have selected the theme, “A New Chapter” for our 2017 Stewardship Campaign.  As Rwth and I begin our ministry with the Ocala first family, we have loved hearing and learning about the story of this congregation over the years – from the earliest beginnings as the Camp King Mission in 1844 to the first two church sanctuaries built in 1850 and 1890 (the 1st under J.C. Ley and the 2nd under his son, J.B. Ley) on the corner of what is now Fort King St. and SE 1st Ave, to the move to our present location in 1852 under George Foster, to the many great pastors and lay people who have made this church so special over the years.

Rwth and I are humbled to be joining the story of this congregation in what we hope will be a fruitful and fulfilling “New Chapter” for all of us as we turn the page in the life and ministry of this congregation.   We look forward to how our story will unfold in the future!

Your commitment to Ocala First is not taken for granted.  We are so very grateful for all you make possible through the generosity of your time, talents and financial support. Please keep praying for our church family and especially for those who are not yet apart of this great congregation! 




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