Dear Members and Friends:
I am having the best time of my life in this new appointment,
following retirement. I didn't know how much I missed being an
active pastor. Besides, your hospitality here at Faith has been
exceptional. You make me love my calling to ministry. I enjoy
working with church people. A special thanks to Bishop Jonathan
Keaton and the Cabinet for providing me this second chance to
serve. Also, I'm going to let DS Benton Heisler know how much we
appreciate the financial support being received from the Lansing
District and West MI Conference of the United Methodist Church to
enable ministry to happen here. Please take advantage of my
enthusiasm and high energy level. I want to see the local church
grow numerically and spiritually. So, we all must be invitational
and hospitable. Everybody needs a church family. Follow my lead. I
will knock on doors and call people, inviting them to Faith UMC and
South Lansing Ministries. It is an unconditional invitation. We
want both poor and rich to come. We are pleased with the attendance
so far. Keep up the good work. If others outside our church family
knew how much fun we are having, they would flock to Faith UMC. I
can hardly wait for Sundays to come. It’s a blessing to be a child
of God. We want a strong local church (Faith UMC) to sponsor an
outreach ministry (South Lansing Ministries). We are ideally
located for such a time as this. Our building is perfect for
outreach and service to the community. We are resuming all
ministries, effective now. We are surrounded by people. We are
submitting proposals, seeking funding to strengthen our ministries.
We need you as volunteers to make these ministry opportunities
happen. My aim is to make spot visits in the homes of our members
and friends. I will, however, call to get permission for these
visits. We will continue taking Holy Communion to our "shut-ins".
Please let us know when there is sickness, hospital stays and
deaths of members and friends. I am committed to getting more
knowledge of our community and neighborhoods. So keep me informed
about these opportunities. I love the Church, local church people
and all God's children.
Yours in the Faith, Pastor Russell F. McReynolds
