The Church of the Messiah

The Youth Group is selling Gumbo once again to raise money for our Summer fun.  This Sunday, May 26th, is the last day to get your orders in.  One serving is $10 and comes with a generous portion of chicken and andouille (sausage) gumbo with rice and, of course, a piece of french bread.  In a change from previous sales, the youth will be gathering to make the food and then we will be delivering the food to you on Saturday, June 1st.  The money we raise from this we go to off-set the cost of the Diocesan Youth Retreat and Southeastern Provincial Convocation the week of June 16th through 22nd.  Thanks for supporting the Youth Group!

An old friend of Church of the Messiah, Mark Goodman has gone to be with the Lord this week.  Wednesday afternoon, with his wife and children around him, Mark ended his three year battle with cancer.  There will be a memorial service this Saturday, May 25th, at The Covenant Center in Lakeland, Florida (click HERE for a map).  The service begins at 3pm.  Please keep the family in your prayers.

Rest eternal grant to Mark, O Lord:
And let light perpetual shine upon him.

May his soul, and the souls of the the faithful departed,
Through the mercy of God, rest in peace.  Amen.

As previously announced, the Women’s Bible Study on Jonah: Navigating a Life Interrupted by Priscilla Shirer will be held at Lizz Looker’s house on Monday, May 20th, at 7pm.

Join us in thanking the Lord for the healthy birth of Eden Rose Jordan, Fr. Bill and Kathy Jordan’s first grand-child!  Eden was born to David and Tess Jordan last night, May 19th, at 11:32pm, in Malmo, Sweden.  Fr. Bill and Kathy Jordan were long time members of Church of the Messiah going back to “the St. David’s Days.”  In 2003, Fr. Bill and Kathy left Church of the Messiah when Fr. Bill became pastor of Prince of Peace, our CEC parish on the west-side of Jacksonville.  Sarah Jordan, David’s sister and now Eden’s aunt, after a year-and-a-half sojourn with the African Children’s Choir, continues to be a member of Church of the Messiah.  May God bless Eden Rose.  Congratulations to all the family!

It’s time once again for Earl Shimp and his crew (pictured left) to start preparing some of the best fish caught within 100 miles of Jacksonville.  Come to the Arlington Senior Center (click HERE for a map) Saturday, May 18th, for Church of the Messiah’s annual Fish Fry.  Set up will start at 11am, if you would like to volunteer.  Lunch will be served starting at noon.  Please bring a side dish or a dessert to share along with your friends and family.  You can also click HERE to see the Community Fish Fry’s very own Facebook event page!

Please join us in grieving and praying with the McGrew family as they lay their father and grand-father to rest in the coming days.  This Sunday, May 19th, the McGrew family will receive friends and family from 3pm-5pm at the Oxley-Heard Funeral Home in Fernandina Beach (click HERE for a map).  The following morning, May 20th, John McGrew will receive the Mass of Christian Burial at St. Michael’s Catholic Church (click HERE for map) with Fr. Gerald O’Shea celebrating.  John will then be laid to rest in Jacksonville National Cemetery with military honors.

If you would like to provide meals for the McGrew family during the next several days, please contact Suzie Kirkpatrick.  For more information, or to find phone numbers, please contact the Parish Office at 904-721-4199.

Rest eternal grant to John, O Lord:
And let light perpetual shine upon him.

May his soul, and the souls of the the faithful departed,
Through the mercy of God, rest in peace.  Amen.

We received word this afternoon that John McGrew, Greg McGrew’s father, went to be with the Lord this morning after a prolonged battle with cancer.  The funeral arrangements will be handled by John’s home parish and we expect those details to be announced later this week.  We will distribute that information as soon as we have it.  For now, please keep Greg, Carrie, Christian, Alexa, and the entire McGrew family in your prayers.

Rest eternal grant him, O Lord:
And let light perpetual shine upon him.

May his soul, and the souls of all the faithful departed,
through the mercy of God, rest in peace.  Amen.

Tonight we will have monthly Ultreya at the home of Greg and Diane Looker (Click HERE for map).  Dinner begins at 6 with separate reunion groupings for men and women beginning at 7 and concluding with the Holy Eucharist.  Please bring a side-dish for dinner.  The Ultreya is open to anyone who has attended a Tres Arroyos Weekend or any Three-Day Weekend retreat like Cursillo, Walk to Emmaus, etc…  Contact the Parish Office for more details.

It’s “Facebook Official,” so be sure to congratulate Hollie and Aaron this Sunday.  We have known they were expecting for a while now, but they found out they could start narrowing down names this week.  Congratulations, Hollie and Aaron!  May God bless you and your whole (growing) family!

Church of the Messiah now has its OWN brand new Twitter account and Facebook page.  In the past we have been publicized off of Facebook “groups” or other people’s personal pages, but we are changing that now.  If you have a Facebook account, be sure to “Like” us and recommend us to your friends.  If you have a Twitter account, we are @mycomjax, so be sure to follow us.  There may still be a few bugs to be worked out, but we will get them worked out quickly!  Look for more upgrades soon!