Weekly Update// Pastor Will

Good Morning Asbury!

 Growing up in Melbourne, FL, over on the East Coast, the Space Shuttle was just a part of life. I saw it go up every couple of months. If we were in school, we would walk outside and watch it go up. Most of the time we were just wanting to go back inside where there was A/C, but hey, at least we got out of class. Since it was something that always happened, I never fully appreciated how incredible the whole thing was. I recently read that the Shuttle would consume 11,000 gallons of fuel per second between the two main thrusters. Whoa! Is there something in your life that you didn’t think much of when you were younger, but grew an appreciation for as you got older?

 The same could be said for the Christmas Story. As I’ve learned more about the Bible and grown in my faith, I realize more and more how big of a deal this all was. To hear time and time again how Jesus’ birth was prophesied hundreds of years before happening. The book of Micah, one of the minor prophets, speaks directly about a ruler coming out of Bethlehem. Micah 5:2 says, “But you, O Bethlehem Ephrathah, are only a small village among all the people of Judah. Yet a ruler of Israel, whose origins are in the distant past, will come from you on my behalf.” (NLT) While we don’t know the exact date of when it was written, we can infer it was somewhere between 700 to 500 B.C. Even at the latest potential

date, that’s at least 500 years before the birth of Jesus. Whoa! This is all on top of the fact that Jesus came into the world as a helpless baby to a set of parents who probably didn’t feel prepared for parenthood. These are just a few examples of how incredible the incarnation truly is. I could go on, but for the sake of time, I’ll save more examples for the next email!

 This weekend is the Christmas Cantata titled “A Christmas Prayer.” I know Tamara and her team have been working really hard to put on a wonderful performance, which they always do, and I’m sure this time will be no different. Showtimes are Friday and Saturday night at 6:30 pm, and a Sunday matinee at 3:00 pm. Admission is free and a lakeside reception is to follow each performance.

 This Sunday is the fourth week of our sermon series and Pastor Chris is preaching on The Shepherds and the Angels. I got a little teaser of what he is talking about and I am excited to hear more.

 I also wanted to highlight this Sunday is March to the Manger, where we bring our financial gifts to Jesus. This year we have designated the Florida Conference of the United Methodist Church Hurricane Ian fund which will help victims of Hurricanes Ian and Nicole.

 I hope you can join us for Sunday service at either our Celebration (Contemporary) Service at 9:30 am or our Traditional Service at

11:00 am. Both are live-streamed on FaceBook and Youtube if you cannot make it in person.

 Until Sunday, God Bless, and I hope you all have a wonderful weekend!

 Pastor Will