WEEKLY OPPORTUNITIES
Tuesday
Advent Bible Study - 10am
Wednesday
Bible Study - 2pm
Choir Practice - 7pm
Youth Group - 7pm
Junior Youth Group (ages 7-13) - 7:30pm
MONTHLY OPPORTUNITIES
FOOD PANTRY
1st Saturday of every month from 10am - 12pm!
All are welcome!
Covered Dish Dinners
2nd Friday of the Month at 6:30pm
(alternate hosting with Buddtown UMC)
97 Main St., Vincentown, NJ 08088
Matthew 18:20
For where two or three are gathered together in my name, there am I in the midst of them.
EVERYONE Is ALWAYS Welcome Here!
Vincentown United Methodist Church
Sunday Schedule
Winter 2020
Dear Brothers and Sisters in Christ,
As many of you know, I am excited to go on Paternity Leave after the birth of my son. Although he was born a little bit early, George David Ledford is happy, and healthy. His pediatrician says he is perfect. I couldn’t agree more! I am blessed and thankful to be a part of the United Methodist Church for many reasons. One of those reasons is that our denomination is far ahead of most of the world when it comes to recognizing the importance of a newborn baby bonding with her or his father. The Book of Discipline of the United Methodist Church allows a minimum of eight weeks of paid Paternity Leave for all clergy. Clergy are also able to plan their leave in the way that best fits the needs of their family. So, I do not have to take all eight weeks at once. I am going on leave in 3 different rounds. The first is from January 12-January 31. The second is February 10-February 24. Finally, the third round is March 8-March 28. This ensures I am here for all communion Sundays, all Food Pantry Saturdays, all Church Council meetings and Ash Wednesday.
I am blessed and thankful to be able to spend this time with my wife and son, but also to spend some time renewing myself. That is something I really have never done in seven years of ministry. I guess it could be said that this is a type of Sabbatical for me. In that, I learn that taking this time with my family is not only a very modern way for me as a father to bond with my son, but it is also a very Biblical practice as well. Rest, rejuvenation and renewal are vitally important to our physical and spiritual health. In Leviticus 25, God acknowledges that the Israelites have a lot to do once they enter the promised land. After that work was done, God insisted that they rest. In fact, after six years of hard work, God told them to take the entire seventh year off. The parallels are obvious, right? God worked for 6 days in creation, and then rested on the seventh day. The Israelites worked for 6 years, and then rested for the seventh year. Don’t worry, I am not taking a whole year off! But the precedent is set in the Bible; rest is important and is commanded by God.
I encourage all of you to also take your rest. I know many of you have worked hard for years, perhaps even decades, on missions and ministries of Christ’s holy Church. You have raised also your families, worked on your careers, studied hard in pursuit of a degree in school. I’m not saying don’t work hard. God never said don’t work hard. God said after you work hard, make sure you rest. Sometimes we try to do too much. And when we try to do too much, we get burned out and exhausted. We lose our passion for what we are doing. That’s why we need our rest. The church needs you to rest. When we are well rested, we are much better disciples of Christ. With our energy and passion renewed and a fire reignited within us, we can go back to our mission of making disciples of Jesus Christ for the transformation of the world. While you rest, those who have been waiting for an opportunity to get involved and waiting for a way to fulfill God’s call in their lives to be revealed, will be able to increase their involvement in the church and in the faith.
For those who need rest, I pray for renewal. For those who have rested and now are looking for something to do, I pray that you will fulfill your calling from God through the ministries of this church. Amen!
Blessings,
Reverend Dave
Our Sunday Worship Schedule
Regular Worship Schedule
September - June
9:45 Adult Sunday School
Upper Room Prayer
10:00 Sunday School for prek-12th grade
10:15-10:45 Prayer and Praise Time
11:00 Worship Service
Summer Worship Schedule
June - August
10:00 SUMMER WORSHIP
HOW TO CONTACT US
Pastor: Rev. Dave Ledford
609-859-2161
Church Office:
609-859-2161
vumcsec@gmail.com
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@vumc_vincentownunitedmethodist
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