The Church of the Messiah

Palm Sunday, April 1st, 10:30am at Sam R. Marks Chapel, JU
This service will begin outside with the Blessing of the Palms

Maunday Thursday, April 5th, 7:00pm at Sam R. Marks Chapel, JU
This service includes foot washing and the Stripping of the Altar

Good Friday on April 6th, from 12 noon to 3pm
St. Luke’s Episcopal Church, 2961 University Blvd. N.
Please join us for part or all of this service to meditate and reflect on the love God has shown us through the gift of His Son Jesus.

Easter Sunday, April 8th
He has Risen! He has Risen Indeed!
6:45am Sunrise Service at 576 St. John’s Bluff Rd. N.
bring your beach chair or blanket
bring a flashlight for safety!

Easter Sunday, April 8th
10:30am at Sam R. Marks Chapel, JU
Children’s Easter Parade
Please bring flowers for Flowering of the Cross

Bishop David Simpson receives holy water from Fr. Ed Shiell in order to bless Church of the Messiah's new sign.

Saturday, February 18, was a momentous day for the people of Church of the Messiah.  Bishop David Simpson, Ordinary of Florida, joined with the people of Church of the Messiah and several clergy from throughout the Diocese, in order to bless and consecrate Church of the Messiah’s new property.  In May of 2007, Church of the Messiah sold their previous property and entered into a five year period “in exile.”  The congregation has been meeting in the Sam R. Marks Chapel at Jacksonville University ever since.  In October 2011, Fr. David Paysinger, Rector of Church of the Messiah, in consensus with his Rector’s Council and Bishop, purchased the congregation’s future home on St. John’s Bluff Road North.  The property was heavily forested and had never seen any construction.  It was such “virgin territory” that no postal address was ever assigned and the congregation would have to wait two weeks to learn of their new home’s mailing address.  Of course, that did not prevent the congregation from visiting the property.  “For the last four months we have had prayer walks, prophetic intercessors’ meetings and work days on the property all leading up to this blessing and consecration,” reported Fr. Paysinger.

The service began in the late morning with a seventy per cent chance of rain.  While back-up plans were in the works, Fr. Paysinger faithfully declared, “We are in the thirty per cent!”  There was no rain that morning as Church of the Messiah processed onto their property.  The first stop was the unveiling of the new signage declaring the property to be the future home of Church of the Messiah.  Bishop Simpson blessed the sign and prayed that it would be a testament to those who drove by and that people would be led to the Lord because of it.  Next Bishop Simpson celebrated the Holy Eucharist on the property, a true sign and symbol that the Kingdom of God was being established there.  The people received the Body and Blood of Our Lord and then celebrated the first pot-luck lunch on the premises, by God’s grace, the first of countless to be celebrated on those grounds.

Bp. Simpson, standing beside Fr. David Paysinger, opens the first Holy Eucharist ever celebrated on Church of the Messiah's new property.

During his sermon, Bishop Simpson reminded those present that “this is not a Moses and Joshua return from the wilderness. This is the Children of Israel returning from Babylon.”  The bishop likened the congregation’s time renting worship space to “time in exile” and reminded everyone that “the return from Babylon took many years and came in stages.”  The Church of the Messiah is currently in the midst of a building campaign in order to raise the money needed to begin and complete the construction.  While the service was a time of healing a restoration for many present, one of the most powerful moments came when Earl Shimp, a member of the Rector’s Council, stood and read this prayer:

“May the Lord bless our property, may it never be used for any purpose other than to magnify His name and spread the Good News of Jesus Christ to the community and the world, may all those who set food on our property, or even pass by it, be blessed beyond measure with the love and knowledge of Jesus Christ.  May all of us be further strengthened to serve Him in all we do and empowered by the Holy Spirit to resist evil and share in the goodness of the Lord.  I pray we all be Christ’s vessels of sight to the blind, wealth to the poor, words to the deaf, healers to the sick, light to the lost, and fathers to the fatherless,  I pray that the Lord’s plan for this property, as He has known it from the beginning, be totally fulfilled by the decisions, worship, praise, works, deeds, actions, words, prayers and efforts put forth by the believers of the Church of the Messiah from this day forth and forevermore.  May His will be done, on this piece of earth, as it is in Heaven.  God, use this land and these people for Your purpose.  In Jesus name I pray.”

Amen and Amen.

Join Father David and the Church of the Messiah as we observe Ash Wednesday, this Wednesday, February 22. Ash Wednesday is the traditional service which begins the season of Lent, forty days of prayer and fasting which both commemorates Our Lord’s forty days in the wilderness and prepares our hearts to celebrate the Feast of the Resurrection of Our Lord Jesus Christ. The service includes the Litany of Penance, Imposition of Ashes, and the Holy Eucharist. The service begins at 7pm in the Sam R. Marks Chapel at Jacksonville University. Click HERE for directions.  Please note that this service replaces our regular Wednesday night services, which will resume next week.

The Church of the Messiah is blessed to invite you to join us as we consecrate and bless our new property on February, 18, 2012.  The service begins at 11am with a covered dish potluck dinner to follow. Please join us at 576 St. John’s Bluff Road North, Jacksonville, Florida, 32225.  Clergy are invited to vest and wear white stoles.

Please keep in mind:

• Bring lawn chairs.  We will have folding chairs, but they do not work well on soft ground.
• Wear outdoor shoes.
• There is no electricity on the property so do not bring something that needs to be heated.

If you are not a member of Church of the Messiah, please RSVP to the Church Office at 904-721-4199.  Please join us for what promises to be one of the most important services of the year!

Click on the link to download:

February Prayer Calendar

February E-Newsletter

February Daily Office Bookmarks

The Church of the Messiah’s Women’s Ministry invites all of the ladies to join them for the first Movie Night of 2012.  The ladies will meet at the home of Amanda Paysinger at 7pm this Friday, January 27.  Snacks will be provided.  Please RSVP to Brooke Shimp.

See the attached Women’s January 2012 Movie Night Flyer for more details!

You may have noticed that many of the youth were not in church last Sunday.  That is because they were traveling to Washington, D.C., to participate in the 39th annual March for Life.  Five of our youth endured planes, trains, and automobiles in order to testify in our nation’s capitol that “All Life is Sacred.”  They participated in the “All Life is Sacred” Rally on Sunday night, before staging a “Million to One Die-In” in front of the White House on Monday morning  before praying at a Liturgy for the Pre-Born on the steps of the Supreme Court and then joined with more than THREE HUNDRED THOUSAND of their closest friends in order to protest legalized abortion in America. The youth then returned after midnight early on Tuesday morning.

Daniel Fowley, the youth pastor at the Pro-Cathedral Church of the Intercessor in Malverne, New York, has created THIS VIDEO.  It features at least three of the five youth as well as a chaperone here and there.

The Youth Group wishes to thank each and every member of Church of the Messiah who helped raise funds over the last year.  Everyone who ordered food in the gumbo and pasta lunch sales, the pancake breakfast, and the poinsettia sales helped us raise over $1,000 to offset the cost of the very expensive trip.  Find a youth this Sunday and ask them about their trip.

The Second Diocesan Women’s retreat for the State of Florida and the Caribbean well be held, once again, at Camp Wingmann, Avon Park, FL on May 10^th – 12^th, 2012. Last year’s retreat was a wonderful experience for all who attended. Drawing close to God, listening to His voice, it was a time of retreat from the pressures of the world and a time of refreshment.
Registration forms will be available at the beginning of February.

February 22 – April 1, 2012

A focused pro-life campaign with a vision to access God’s power through
prayer, fasting, and peaceful vigil to end abortion in America. This year’s 40 Days for Life Vigil will be held in front of A Woman’s Choice of Jacksonville, 4131 University Blvd. S, 7 AM – 7 PM. Contact Pastor Ed Martin at (904)214-4908 or visit www.40daysforlife.com/jacksonville

Pro Life stand,12 Noon – 1 PM, Federal Courthouse, 300 N. Hogan St., Jacksonville, Monday, January 23rd.