Congratulations Rev!

Florida’s 2020 Annual Conference was different than usual this year.  Normally there would be a thousand people gathering in Lakeland to conduct the business of the conference, but this year it was done online due to the Coronavirus.

One element of Annual Conference is the Service of Licensing, Commissioning, and Ordination.  During this service, new clergy are licensed for pastoral ministry after being evaluated by their District Committee on Ordained Ministry.  I remember leaving mine in 2007 with Susan sitting in the passenger seat of our car.

“Susan: “So you’re Reverend Matt Horan now?”
Me [nodding proudly]: “That’s right.”
Susan [reflectively to herself]: “Reverend Matt Horan.”
Me [after a pause]: “It’s hard for you to take me that seriously, I guess?”
Susan: “It really is.””

There’s a good deal of pomp and circumstance in the service, with all the clergy of the conference robed up and processing into the room to participate in welcoming these new colleagues to the clergy community.  Many were disappointed that the Coronavirus pandemic prevented the service from happening, but there was one “robe-averse” member of the newest class of licensed clergy that didn’t seem to lose a lot of sleep over it.

After much hard work in seminary and in the ordination process, Heritage’s own Pastor John Silkauskas has taken the next step in his journey, and was approved to be licensed for ministry by the Gulf Central District of the Florida Conference of the United Methodist Church.

Pastor John is now Reverend John Silkauskas.  (Or you can call him “Rev” for short.)

If you’ve been waiting around for a reason to take him seriously, it apparently has very little effect on wives, but as for the rest of you…

That’s Reverend John Silkauskas.

Congratulations Rev!

Renewal Wrap-Up

So pastors are supposed to take one week per year, and four weeks every four years, for a time of spiritual retreat and renewal.  For my first 13 years of pastoral ministry, I said, “Nah… I don’t need that.”  However, feeling somewhat spiritually weary near the end of the summer, I decided to finally give it a try.

Now I get it.  I had no idea I needed such a season until I tried it.

I deviated from my original reading plan some.  I began with reading my first fictional book in about two years, Ready Player One, and that was great.  (Anybody who grew up in the 80’s should absolutely read it!)

Then I began reading The Body Keeps the Score, which is an engrossing exploration of the transformative effects of traumatic experiences on our body chemistry and physiology.

I read that book while also praying and journaling through the Book of Joshua during my devotional time.  I truly sensed the presence of God with me, using this combination of resources to help me explore the origins of some of my own thoughts, behaviors, and worries.  As the days went on, I really felt peace about these things settling into my spirit, and I realize now that these four weeks away gave me the space and time to go on a sufficiently deep journey of self-reflection that I normally wouldn’t have time for.

I got to take this journey during some time at Warren Willis Camp, time at home with my family, and then in North Carolina, with a couple other refreshing and renewing stops along the way.  I cannot say thank you enough to our amazing staff and lay leaders who encouraged me to take this time, and covered everything while I was away so I didn’t have to worry about anything!

It was a rich and renewing time, and now I’m glad to be back.  It was good to visit with Jenna at UNF on the way through Jacksonville, and then to get home last night and see Susan and Ashley after being gone driving all over the South for more than two weeks.  I’m now eager to resume the work to which I’m called at Heritage, making disciples of Jesus Christ for the transformation of the world!

Sincerely,

I stopped at the site of the Confederate Civil War prison in Andersonville, GA, and recorded a devotional message to share with the congregation in the coming weeks.

Pastor Matt’s Upcoming Four-Week Leave

I just finished reading a book called “Didn’t See it Coming,” by Carey Nieuwhof.  It’s about his experience of a total burnout while serving as a pastor several years ago. Unfortunately, some of the warning signs he describes include several that I can identify in my own experience recently!

The United Methodist Book of Discipline makes available a couple different opportunities for pastors to take a leave for renewal and continuing education, including “Professional Formation Leave,” available to clergy in full-time appointment one week per year and four weeks once every four years. (Book of Discipline ¶350.2)  So, for the first time in my 13 years, put in a request with SPR to take the once-every-four-years professional formation leave, and they have approved.  (My self-care skills obviously are a work in progress.)  I’m told by people who know better than me that the four weeks in a row is because once you get into the habit of carrying the weight of responsibility for the condition of the souls of a large group of people for several years, it takes weeks to actually put it down so that you can shift your focus to your own soul and your own rest.  I look forward to bringing you a report of how it works in four weeks!

During this leave I plan to go up to the FLUMC Life Enrichment Center (the grown-up side of the Warren Willis Camp) for some time to pray, journal, take walks, and read in my hammock; drive around Central Florida and visit some mentors; and I’m actually writing two books at once, and so I thought I’d try to finish those and get them ready for the proofreading phase. I may also take some naps.😴

My reading list is Pastor as Public Theologian, by Kevin Vanhoozer, Zealot, by Reza Aslan, and if I finish those I want to start April 1865: The Month that Saved America, by Jay Winik.  (Jim Workman loaned it to me about a year ago, and I probably need to get it back to him at some point!)  My audiobook in the car will be How to Be an Anti-Racist, by Ibram Kendi.

I will participate in Administrative Council on Monday night, lead staff chapel/staff meeting on Tuesday, August 25th, and then begin the leave at that time. Preachers during this time will be Mt. Olive AME’s Rev. James Williams on August 30, District Superintendent Rev. Dr. Candace Lewis on September 6, your very own Children’s Discipleship Director Janean Briseno on September 13th, and your very own Director of Youth Discipleship Peggy Ingram on September 20th. I’m so excited for two amazing leaders who are people of color, as well as three amazing women in leadership to bring the Scriptures to life at Heritage in the coming weeks!

I’ll be back for Worship Tailgate Party Night on September 26th, which is gonna be awesome!

Our Social Creed | The United Methodist Church

We believe in God, Creator of the world; and in Jesus Christ, the Redeemer of creation. We believe in the Holy Spirit, through whom we acknowledge God’s gifts, and we repent of our sin in misusing these gifts to idolatrous ends.

We affirm the natural world as God’s handiwork and dedicate ourselves to its preservation, enhancement, and faithful use by humankind.

We joyfully receive for ourselves and others the blessings of community, sexuality, marriage, and the family.

We commit ourselves to the rights of men, women, children, youth, young adults, the aging, and people with disabilities; to improvement of the quality of life; and to the rights and dignity of all persons.

We believe in the right and duty of persons to work for the glory of God and the good of themselves and others and in the protection of their welfare in so doing; in the rights to property as a trust from God, collective bargaining, and responsible consumption; and in the elimination of economic and social distress.

We dedicate ourselves to peace throughout the world, to the rule of justice and law among nations, and to individual freedom for all people of the world.

We believe in the present and final triumph of God’s Word in human affairs and gladly accept our commission to manifest the life of the gospel in the world.  Amen.

New GriefShare Class Starting

Hello Friends!

Pastor Curtis here and I want to let you know about a powerful ministry that we offer our congregation and community.  This program is for those who are dealing with the grief due to the loss of a loved one.

GriefShare is a 13 week program that includes a video and discussion time.  We are beginning a new series on Tuesday, August 18, 2020 that is open to everyone 18 and above, so feel free to share this information.

Just to let you know a little bit about the group, we meet each Tuesday evening at 6:30.  We are currently meeting using the “Zoom” platform due to COVID.  We begin each meeting by watching a very enlightening 40 minute video.  After the video, some participants may be moved to share something that stood out for them from the video.  Some participants may also share about their loss if they are compelled to do so.  You don’t need to speak at these meetings until you are ready to.  Each video is independently themed so attendees do not have to start at the beginning of the series.

Participants have the option to either purchase their own workbooks or receive one free of charge from us.  The workbook is full of many helpful tools and encouraging messages to read each day.

GriefShare has helped so many people learn how to manage their lives while going through their grief journeys.  Once registered, participants may also sign up to receive daily encouraging emails.  A GriefShare Facebook page is also available for sharing stories and connecting with others experiencing grief.

If you or someone you know could benefit from participating in GriefShare, we are here for you.  Anyone may individually register at https://www.griefshare.org/groups/123720.  After your registration has been received, you will be sent an email with the link to join our next scheduled GriefShare Zoom meeting.  You may also contact me at curtisp@heritageumc.com.  I can provide you with more information, answer any questions that you might have and I am here if you just need to talk.

Congregational Care Update

Hello Heritage!

Pastor Curtis here and I want to give you a quick update on what your congregational care team has been up to!

We’ve got a great group of people that have jumped in with our caregiving team, working hard on keeping in touch with our congregation through phone calls, cards and letters during this time of quarantine.  If you or if someone you know would like to be contacted and haven’t been, please let us know.

Our prayer team is lifting your prayer concerns up and seeing the results of the power of prayer.

We are continuing to serve our community through our GriefShare (for those who are grieving from a loss) and DivorceCare (for those who are going through or recovering from a divorce) support groups through online meetings using “Zoom”.  When we are able to gather again, we will be meeting at the church.  Please contact us if you or someone you know may be interested in these groups and we’ll give you more information.

If you need prayer, please go to the “Heritage Prays” page on Facebook.  If you need help with things like grocery, prescription delivery or errands, please go to our “Heritage Helps” page on Facebook.

Please feel free to contact us even if you just need to talk!

If you’re not on Facebook or have questions, just give us a call at the church office at 727-796-1329, or email me at curtisp@heritageumc.com.

Stay safe and we’re looking forward to seeing you all in person again!

What Has the Church Been Doing During This Time of Covid?

I will warn you ahead of time that this is a pretty long post but please take the time to read through it all.

This has been a really strange year.  It started with an impeachment hearings, moved into Covid-19 which is still on going, protests and the Black Lives Matter movement, and now we are in hurricane season.  Sheltering in place, social distancing and staying away from groups is the norm.  Not being able to be with family and friends has taken its toll on all of us.  Zoom means something different then it did just a few months ago.  Avoiding listening to the news is something a lot of us are trying to do just to keep sane.  Opening and closing of churches trying to minister during this time. Can’t wait to see what the second half of the year has in store for us.

Our jobs as a church staff have changed significantly, and it has not been easy.  We’ve had to learn new ways to communicate.   Zoom meetings are the norm.  Some Sunday school classes and small groups continue to meet online.  We’ve had to develop new ways of reaching people and providing as much normalcy as possible.  Children’s Ministry has had to be extremely creative to be able to provide VBS this year, online!  Children’s Ministry also provides weekly Sunday school lessons that are sent out with the needed materials and links to videos designed for each age group.  Developing and delivering the needed supplies for kids to be able to participate from home requires a different set of skills but they have pulled it off beautifully.  Providing online services requires more planning, different production skills, people providing content remotely.  Developing new programs to keep people connected to Heritage like Eric’s Monday night Bible study, Pastor John’s Tuesday night prayer time and Pastor Matt’s online Bible study on Wednesday nights.  Youth ministry has held several fun nights for the youth and their parents, all socially distant;  road rallies, scavenger hunts.  A daily devotion series has been developed and is being sent to all of the youth.  Grief Share and Divorce Care ministries continue online and we continue to contact our shut-ins as much as possible.  We’ve worked with small group leaders to provide access to online studies and resources to continue their ministries.  As you know, we had worked to be able to open earlier this month but we’ve had to back that off due to the spike in cases in Pinellas County.  That was a huge effort to try and determine how best to open and then set up the church to meet all of the requirements.  Several churches had reopened but most of those have closed down again.  We are still sorting out when the Growing Place will open based on decisions by the Pinellas County School Board and our own church leadership.

It’s been a tough year for our missionaries as well.  Most of their funding has dried up because so many people are out of work and businesses are closed or at a reduced capacity.  Heritage had to make some difficult decisions when we first stopped meeting as a congregation.  Funds were not coming in as they normally do so we notified all of the missionaries we support that we were going to have to suspend paying them for a period of time.  We did pledge that we would do everything we can to make up the shortfall by the end of the year.  Everyone of them responded positively and understood our predicament.  I’m glad to report that after two months we were able to restore their payments.  But giving continues to be down and who knows what the future holds as it relates to our being able to meet again.

There are many areas where we have continued to be the church.  The first and third Tuesdays of each month we deliver food to the homeless at Safe Harbor that is run by the Sheriff’s Department.  They shut us down for a month but we are back up and running, but in a different way.  We typically would make the food, deliver and serve it.  Now we still make it but we can only deliver it, we cannot serve.  We are still providing food for an average of 350 people each time.

Our Foster to Foster closet has been officially closed but we did provide services by appointment.  We are now back up and running Tuesday and Thursday mornings from 9:00 – 12:00 and Wednesday evenings from 6:00 – 8:00.  During this time people continued to donate to the closet and we were overwhelmed by the amount that was given.  We also had a chance to make some changes and reorganize the building.  That is almost complete and when it is we will hold an open house when we can all get back together again.  The closet has become a favorite place for foster families to come and get clothes, toys, games, car seats, cribs, and pretty much anything else they need.  We even have frozen chicken and hamburg available!

All through this time we have continued to deliver food to the three food pantries we support.  The “Pop the Trunk” food drive we did back in June along with 14 other churches was a huge success.  We delivered over 3 tons of food!  Each week we purchase food for Church and Community Outreach and the Mattie Williams Community Center and we give The Safe House at Mount Olive a monthly amount for them to purchase what they need.  There is still a great need so on August 15th we will be holding a second food drive so start saving up non-perishable foods to be delivered to Heritage that Saturday morning between 9:00 and 12:00.  Keep your eye out for more information as we get closer to that day.

Earlier in the summer we were notified by one of our missionary partners, Pete Belon the leader of Cornerstone Ministries who work with the Navajo Nation, that there was a desperate need for food.  The coronavirus had hit the Navajo Nation hard.  Not only had the tribe been devastated by the virus but 11 pastors had died from it.  It was so bad that the surrounding communities were not allowing the Navajo to enter their stores to buy provisions.  Pete was arranging for a semi-trailer of food to be delivered but needed funding to make the purchase.  We put out the call to our congregation and you stepped up in a big way.  Heritage was able to provide the majority of the funding needed and the food was delivered and distributed.  Here are a couple of pictures.

So Heritage is still being the church we have always been.  We continue providing ministries in all areas and are willing to entertain ideas you might have to reach others as well as our members.  Our missions teams have continued to provide services as before even if we have to adapt to the “new normal”.  Our missionaries are working harder then ever to reach people for Christ.  And it has been amazing to see how the staff at Heritage has worked together to keep things moving forward, many times crossing over into other areas and learning new skills in order to do it.  One thing we have learned is that when we cannot meet on a regular basis as a congregation communication to you can sometimes fall through the cracks.  Going forward we plan to rectify that.  Bookmark the Heritage webpage (heritageumc.com) and check out what the ministries of the church are doing; read the blog that is posted; if you have questions or are interested in starting a ministry, let us know.  We cannot do any of this without you.  It’s because of your faithfulness and trust we are able to “make disciples of Jesus Christ for the transformation of the world”.  Let’s continue to be the best church for Clearwater!

DivorceCare Class Starting Soon

Register NOW for the next DivorceCare class starting August 2nd! Do you know anyone who is struggling with divorce or separation?  Heritage United Methodist Church can help weather this crisis.  It’s called DivorceCare, a 13-week, bible-based program that provides participants with spiritual guidance to successfully navigate the trying times associated with divorce and separation.  Registering to participate in DivorceCare is simple… Just go to https://www.divorcecare.org/groups/123719 and click on “Register For This Group”.  One of the class facilitators will contact you with our online meeting information.

The Coronavirus & The Flu

In the past five months, about 196,000 people died from the flu.

In the past five months, over 340,000 people died from the Coronavirus.

In the last five months, about 35,000 people died from the flu in the U.S.

In the last five months, over 96,000 people died from the Coronavirus in the U.S.

Comparing the Coronavirus to the flu is often the basis for pushing back against social distancing requests, but this is a flawed analysis, regardless of stats we quote like those above (from Johns Hopkins University).

We shouldn’t be comparing the two, we should be adding them together.  In 2020, the effects of the Coronavirus are being added to the regular, annual effects of the flu.  People are still getting the flu, and dying from it.  Now, there’s something new.

A couple years ago Puerto Rico was hit by two massive storms in the same hurricane season.  Residents didn’t get to debate which was worse–there was combined damage from BOTH.

2020 is not about comparison–it’s about a combination.

Thanks for reading.  Now please go wash your hands.