President’s Monthly Message

June 2025 • Our God is Great and Awesome…

There’s building…and then there’s re-building. Our younger daughter was a “builder” of Legos growing up. They were always on her Christmas and birthday wish lists. We knew they would be a present she’d love by the fact that she’d open and begin to build whatever it was that very day. Over the years, she ended up with quite a collection of Star Wars, Robots and more. Once put together, they stayed assembled.

Yet it wasn’t that way for me when I was young. Certainly, we didn’t have such incredible Lego sets to choose from, but me and my friend Stevie used to take those perfectly constructed sets, and we’d keep playing with them. By that I mean, we’d disassemble them piece by piece and those pieces would then become new creations with pieces from the other sets. 

That was me then, but now I’m more of a person who likes things to look like the instruction manual. I mean, isn’t that picture of the kit the “Right” way to build with these Legos? When a piece comes loose, we pull out the picture and put it back exactly where it is supposed to go. It’s quite a contrast to swapping parts and combining sets to end up with silly and unique creations.

Yes, if I had a big crate of mixed-up Lego sets, I think I’d want to make it a spring project to sort the Legos back into sets and then following those instruction manuals put them all together the right way once more. This sounds like the ultimate project. Get everything in its “right” place and all will be right with the world.

The truth is, it would take a great deal of time and effort because I truly believe building is far easier than rebuilding. Building starts with a clean space or slate. The pieces are clearly sorted and separated. Building does not begin with confusion.

But re-building starts with brokenness, mess and rubble and we must restore what’s broken and remake or even re-design what is lost. In the book of Nehemiah, God’s people rebuilt the walls of Jerusalem that had been destroyed by their enemies and left in ashes and mounds of rubble for years. During the rebuilding, they were harassed, mocked, and threatened by enemies, and yet they kept working. Some guarded while others built. Some built with one hand holding a weapon and the other hand laying bricks. They refused to be sidetracked, delayed, or stopped.

The rubble, however, almost defeated them.  Nehemiah 4:10 says: In Judah, it was said: The strength of the laborer fails, since there is so much rubble. We will never be able to rebuild the wall. ” (Nehemiah 4:10).

That’s what almost broke them. One Bible Study on Nehemiah writes: It was that exhausting rubble that just about took them down.

Many of us have a sense that the church as we know it has been under attack, has lost its once honored place in society, has in some ways been torn down and is struggling to hang on. Whether it’s the realities we face in the Church or realities in our personal lives, there are things in life that are discouraging and exhausting.

Over the past several years, whether because of the effects of Covid, the decline of decency, heightened selfishness, a failure to love and treat all people with value as God’s children, it’s been easy to be defeated by brokenness. Ministries, jobs, finances, churches, school plans, friendships, health and connections with others… all may need rebuilding, and such rebuilding is exhausting and hard. We can’t just jump in with a new vision, a clean slate and build. No, we need to re-build. There are hurts tangled up in this.  There’s sadness over what has been lost. There is letting go of what has been. There is anger, frustration and uncertainty. There is a feeling of helplessness because we have no control.

In the midst of such, there can be an intense desire to just get things back to the way they were before, the way they are “supposed” to be—and then protect them so that they can never be changed again.

However, that is not our reality.  My friends, we need God to equip us for the rebuilding, to strengthen us to face enemies and strengthen us to clear out the seemingly never-ending rubble and start raising the walls again. Nehemiah said to the discouraged, worn-out, battle-weary people of Judah:

“Don’t be afraid of them. Remember the Lord, who is great and awesome, and fight for your families, your sons and your daughters, your wives and your homes” (4:14).

Remember the Lord, who is great and awesome. This is not too much for Him! That is the reminder I sense we need. It may take time, it may take creativity, it may mean hard work and standing against the Enemy. The truth remains, though: Our God isn’t just able to build; He is able to rebuild. He has done it before, and He can do it again. He is great and awesome! Therefore, let us “fight for your families…” and all those who need the touch of our “great and awesome” God!

 – – 

As we prepare to gather for our District Convention in 5 days, please join us in fervent prayer that Christ’s love would COMPEL us in connecting many more to Jesus!

  • Pray that our Convention work will result in greater fruit for the Kingdom
  • Pray for a united and joyful spirit as we work together
  • Pray for our lay and pastoral Delegates that they may come prepared and ready to serve
  • Pray for the Resolutions that will come before the delegates and that they would further clarify our primary work and how we can best work together
  • Pray for those who have been nominated for leadership positions
  • Pray for the staff at the hotel and all who will serve us
  • Pray for the District Staff and the Convention Committee as they prepare for the Convention
  • And pray that all we do may be used now and in the years to come to equip, empower and engage every congregation and member in living as Christ’s witnesses.

 

Serving together and connecting people to Jesus!

President Rockey

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2025 Monthly Messages

May 2025 • Keep On Celebrating!

The older I get, the more I realize that we too quickly leave life’s celebrations behind. This can be true of trips that we have anticipated for months, but as soon as we return home, they’re forgotten. Likewise, this is often true of festivals and celebrations in the Church. For instance, we prepare and sing Christmas carols for weeks, but come December 26, they’re put aside like Christmas trees by the curb.

I find this especially true of Easter. In the Lenten weeks leading up to Easter, we give serious attention to our sinful condition and need. We focus on self-examination, repentance, and humbling ourselves before the Lord. And not that I don’t enjoy our Lenten hymns, but when it comes to Easter, those powerful hymns and songs of praise are gone way too quickly.

I find that this is a time that I am thankful for “earworms”, that is, those tunes that rise in my heart and get stuck in my ear. I then find myself singing or humming, Jesus Christ is Risen Today… I know that My Redeemer lives… or Hail Thee, Festival Day.

I find great comfort in the saying, “Every Sunday is a Little Easter.” Some attribute this to Martin Luther, although no real evidence exists of him saying that in such a way. But what a powerful and wonderful practice to remember and celebrate Christ’s resurrection, and the life He won for us over sin, the devil, and death…every Sunday and every day!

Over the past few years, I have lost several dear loved ones. Life can quickly remind us how life is often filled with challenges, sorrows, fears, and uncertainty. It is then that I find comfort and strength in the Easter message and return to the celebration.

In a way, that’s how life is when every morning is Easter morning, and every day is a new beginning! As Luther writes, “ the old Adam in us should… Daily… be drowned… And a new man should daily emerge and arise…” That, my friends, is the power that is ours in Baptism through Christ’s death and resurrection! Romans 6:4 says, “We were buried with Him… In order that just as Christ was raised… We, too, may live a new life.”

Therefore, let me encourage you to keep on celebrating and singing those Easter victory songs every day, no matter what you face. The cross is bare, and the tomb is empty! Today and every day, we can start anew, and tomorrow and every day that follows is a new opportunity to do the same!

Praise God, we are Resurrection people who know and believe that because our Redeemer lives, so shall we!

PRAYER REQUESTS

  • For our District Convention (June 5-7)
  • For our Lay and Pastoral Delegates as they prepare
  • For a united spirit focused on living as along-siders to connect people to Jesus
  • For joyous worship, fellowship, and Resolutions that will guide our mission and work in the coming triennium
  • For vacant and calling congregations seeking pastors and other staff
  • For recently placed new graduates from the Seminaries and Vicars
  • For the vision and mission of the District and each congregation & school

President Rockey

April 2025 • April Showers

Today, we enter the month of April, so as the old saying goes, “April showers bring May flowers!”

Have there been any showers in your life lately?

There’s an old story about two pots. One was perfect in every way. The other had cracks and broken places. Each day, a woman filled the pots with rainwater she collected and then carried them down the path to her home. The first pot felt proud that she never spilled a single drop. The other felt ashamed because no matter how hard she tried, she lost a lot along the way.

One day, the two pots overheard the woman talking with someone who lived nearby. The neighbor exclaimed, “The flowers along your path are so beautiful! What’s your secret?” The woman answered, “One of my pots is broken, and the water that spills out helps the flowers grow every day.”

That story reminds me of Isaiah 53:5, But He was pierced for our transgressions, He was crushed for our sins; the punishment that brought us peace was upon Him, and by His wounds we are healed.

For a powerful version, please listen to the song called “By His Wounds” that’s a collaboration featuring Mac Powell from Third Day, Mark Hall from Casting Crowns, Steven Curtis Chapman, and Brian Littrell.

As I consider these words from the prophet Isaiah, I am reflecting upon some of the “showers” and pain in my life. Pain is no fun and it’s often hard to see the good that can come out of it. I’m quite sure most of us have asked the Lord, “How can you use me when I’m so broken?”

Read again those words from Isaiah or listen to the song

Did you hear? “By HIS wounds, we are healed!” My friends, take those words to heart! They can change your perspective in the midst of life’s showers and pain. Yes, through Christ’s wounds, we are truly healed, and because He lives and He lives in us…our wounds can also be used to bring healing to others too.

“By His wounds, we are healed.” Isn’t it amazing that God doesn’t leave us to try and restore or figure things out for ourselves? He doesn’t leave us to somehow make ourselves right with Him. No. God’s ways are not our ways.

Therefore, He took what was perfect, His Son, and made Him broken in to bring us healing. So, if you’re wondering if God can use you because you’re not perfect and you’re reeling from the rain and storms in your life—know that they may be one of your life’s greatest opportunities.

My fellow servants of Christ, we are like the second pot in the story. Our “April showers” can truly lead to “May flowers” because God can use our brokenness, and He can use it to bring forth beauty that blesses those around us.

President Rockey

March 2025 • The Hope of Spring

It seems that we’ve had some interesting weather this winter and early spring, at least here in north Florida. In 2023-24 my grass never died from a frost and was green all winter. This year the freezes came in November and the weather has been up and down since. Some days I’m out in shorts walking and working in the yard and others I’m in my heavy jacket trying to get the dogs to hurry as we make our nightly mile walk. We even had azaleas blooming in January and then the freeze came again.

Sometimes we go through seasons in our lives like this spring has been here. Up and down. Warm and cold. Trials and triumphs. Sorrow and joy.

When life is good and we’re having one of life’s mountaintop experiences, it’s easy for most of us to rejoice. Much like those warm spring days when the birds are singing and there’s new life springing forth all around us. But when things turn cold and the hardships of life overtake us, it’s easy to lose our joy and dwell on the present suffering.

Most of us would agree that life has its ups and downs. King Solomon knew this and wrote about such fluctuating circumstances. He wrote: “To everything there is a season, a time for every purpose under heaven…a time to weep, and a time to laugh; a time to mourn and a time to dance” (Eccl 3: 1-4). Solomon’s father, David, was a “man after God’s own heart” (1 Sam 13: 22). Yet David’s life revealed how life is filled with seasons of ups and downs. Whether is was grieving over his sin and the death of his son with Bathsheba or the death of his rebellious son, Absalom. Yet he also wrote songs of praise.

There is an old story about a man with a very cheerful, happy countenance, in spite of the fact that his life was filled with trouble and tragedy. Those in his community couldn’t understand it and one day someone asked him how he could stay so cheerful. The old man replied, “I get it out of the Bible.” “What do you mean, you get it out of the Bible?” the person asked.

To that he responded, “Over and over in the Bible I see the words, ‘And it came to pass,’ (FYI in the KJV it shows up 727 times) but never do I find ‘And it came to stay.’ This keeps me moving,” the man said.

Pretty great, right?! What does this say to us? We all face sorrows, suffering, grief and loss in life that we must accept. But on the other end of the spectrum of sorrow is the rainbow reminding us God is here and never leaves us. Trouble will come and go, but the Lord remains forever. He is with us through it all.

Charles Spurgeon once wrote, “The seasons change and you change, but the Lord abides evermore the same, and the streams of His love are as deep, as broad and as full as ever.” Yes, spring may at times seem to be slow in coming but “The Lord is faithful to all His promises and loving toward all He has made” (Psalm 145: 13).

As you begin to see the signs of spring, I encourage you to remember these words of Martin Luther. “Our Lord has written the promise of the resurrection, not in books alone, but in every leaf in spring-time!”

President Rockey

February 2025 • Give Me Your Heart!

“I don’t want your sacrifices—I want your love; I don’t want your offerings—I want you to know me. Hosea 6: 6

What I want instead is your true thanks to God; I want you to fulfill your vows to the Most High. Trust me in your times of trouble, and I will rescue you. Psalm 50: 14-15 (NLT)

Sometimes, we have problems relating to those closest to us. For many, when we discover that a friend or family member has a problem, we might find ourselves saying, “You should have known!” Or, maybe even, “I told you so.” Then for many of us our next response is to jump in and try and “fix” the problem. But in truth, whether it’s a spouse or someone else, what they want most is US.

God had a similar complaint about His people, Israel. His people were all in when it came to religious festivals, observances, and offering animal sacrifices. Yet God said: “I have no complaint about your sacrifices or burnt offerings you constantly bring to my altar” (Ps. 50: 8). But He was not looking for bulls and goats from their herds. He had no need for anything from them. In fact, even if He did have need (which he didn’t!), He certainly would not have told them because His resources were greater than any need. More than their gifts, He wanted them! God’s people had forgotten that it was all about the relationship He wanted with them. 

As part of that relationship, God wanted His people to thank Him (Ps. 50: 14). He wanted thank offerings so that His people would recognize that He is the Giver of all good gifts. In addition, saying “thank you” can be evidence of a healthy relationship. Those who recognize who God is in their lives and know how much they depend on Him are people who know that all they are and have comes from Him. The more we recognize this essential connection with the Lord, the more we overflow with gratitude.

God also wanted His people to fulfill their promises (Ps. 50: 14b). It was God who took the initiative and told the people of Israel that He would be their faithful God. In response, they assured Him that they would be His faithful people.  This is a powerful picture of the relationship between God and His people, Israel. But the people tended to forget – so vows went unfulfilled, promises ignored, and the relationship deteriorated. But God still loved His people and longed to have them back again.

God also wanted His people to trust Him (Ps. 50: 15). Imagine God’s sorrow when we, His children, get ourselves into trouble and then turn away from Him to find help in other people and things. Remember, He is our “Ever-present God and help.” God is present and wants us to turn to Him and ask for His help. Indeed, He is always ready to give it.

What God wants is no mystery. He wants thankful, trusting, faithful people. He wants people who will actively live in a relationship with Him. He wants people He can delight in and love who love Him! He wants us!

This month, as we observe Valentine’s Day, telling those we care about and value that we love them. But may we also ponder and recommit ourselves to loving the Lord God by daily growing, celebrating, and living fully in relationship with Him. Yes, He loves us unconditionally! He wants us!

President Rockey

January 2025 • MERRY CHRISTMAS…It’s Not Over!

Merry Christmas! I extend this greeting to each of you from my heart because that is what I truly pray you both experienced this past week and continue to experience.

Now I know that those of you reading this are people of faith and understand that Christmas is far more than a day of gifts, feasts, football, and a day off from work. It is indeed the festival of our Savior’s birth. Therefore, as those who believe and celebrate Christ’s birth, it is indeed appropriate that we greet one another with “Merry Christmas!”

But have you ever wondered…wondered where the phrase “Merry Christmas” comes from? I know that since Thanksgiving, many of us have been greeting others with these wishes and sending cards and letters expressing this to family and friends. But in a culture where “Happy Birthday” and “Happy Easter” are the norm, using “Merry” is a bit out of the norm.

Saying “Happy Christmas” just doesn’t feel right. It may be because saying “Merry Christmas” is so familiar and engrained, but in truth, there are those who do say “Happy Christmas.” It is still widely used in England. Some say that this is because “happy” carried a higher-class connotation than “merry” which was associated with the rowdiness of the lower class. The royal family adopted “Happy Christmas” as their greeting. Even Queen Elizabeth continued to wish her citizens a “Happy Christmas” throughout her life rather than a merry one.

A letter from Bishop John Fisher to Henry the VIII in 1534 reveals that “Merry Christmas” has been used for at least 500 years. Also, the English Christmas carol, “We Wish You a Merry Christmas,” used the phrase when it was introduced in the 1500s.

So, how did we begin to use it here in the US? Some historians believe that it likely comes down to a grammatical lesson. “Happy” is a word that describes one’s emotional condition or feeling. However, “Merry” is more of a description of behavior. It is something active and maybe even raucous!

Did you hear that? That speaks volumes to me. Christmas is more than an emotion or a feeling. It’s more than a holiday. Christmas describes a behavior. Consider the “act of merry-making” versus simply being “happy.” Now listen carefully – I’m talking about our response! Living in such a way that we behave or live with abandon reflects the joy, the merriment, and the life that we have received through our Savior born in Bethlehem!

But get this: As I said, Christmas describes a behavior that reminds us that it all began with God. His action in abandoning His throne in heaven to come here to us. His “merry making” by His suffering, death and resurrection that takes away all sorrow, tears and pain. We have “Merry Christmas” because of Christ’s behavior, His action and saving work for you, me and all people!  

You may be reading this on January 1, but Christmas is not over! Christmas may be the day our Lord was born, but that shouldn’t limit us from continually living and behaving in ways, that those around us experience the “Merry” in Christmas. My dear friends, may your life overflow with the joy and merriment of what Christ has done for you! May you continue to be those who share the life-changing joy of our Savior, born in Bethlehem.

Merry Christmas and a Blessed New Year,
President Rockey

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