Dear Grace Anglian Church,

I have good news. Despite the pandemic, the Kingdom of God is still not in trouble and the Gospel of Jesus Christ is still the power of salvation for all who believe. I know you’ve heard me say similar things often in the preceding months. That’s because we need constant reminders to keep our focus on the most important things. “But seek first the kingdom of God and his righteousness, and all these things will be added to you” (Matthew 6:33). To many in our culture, things look dark, but not for our church. We are always moving forward with the ministry God has given us. Here are a few examples: 

• New members have joined the church and small group participation has grown even while we’ve had to adjust our worship services and small groups. Over 30 new members have joined this year and about half of our congregation participated in 2020 Small Groups. 
• 70 marriages have been strengthened through The Marriage Course. 
• We recently baptized 8 people on All Saints Sunday. 
• For the last five weeks, there has been an increase in student participation at weekly youth events. 
• Children’s Ministry was able to safely resume in September on Sunday mornings, exploring Daniel along with their families to correspond with the sermon series.
• Prayer ministry successfully transitioned online by offering personal prayer appointments on Zoom.
• We’re planting two churches, one in Maine and one in St. Johns County. 
• Our support of global missions has not waivered. We continue to give to our missionaries and ministry partners to advance the Kingdom worldwide in India, Guatemala, and the Middle East.

Although year-to-date giving is down by about $40,000 from where we were last year, spending is down even further than that. This means that we are heading into the last two months of 2020 in the black (more income than expenses). In short, “abundance for others” is still the theme over our ministry. Since the local church is the hope of the world, I remain convinced that a financial investment in a church such as this one is the best investment you can make. How will you invest in 2021?

The Parable of the Talents (Matthew 25) makes it clear that God sees his people as stewards of his possessions - think ‘investment managers.’ As such, we are responsible to invest “our” resources with God’s Kingdom priorities in mind. Every year, the members of Grace Anglican are encouraged to take inventory of their expected income for the coming year and prayerfully make a financial pledge to God’s work through the church. These pledges are entirely anonymous, but supremely important for our spiritual lives. This year’s Pledge Sunday will be November 22^nd. Please submit yourself to this spiritual discipline. 

How to Pledge: 

This year’s pledge cards can be submitted online or in-person. Choose one of the following options:

1. Download and print the card below and place it in the special offering baskets on Sunday, November 22^nd.
2. Download and print the card below and mail it to the church office (5804 Hwy 17, Fleming Island, FL 32003). 
3. Submit a pledge card digitally here.

I look forward to seeing you in church Sunday in-person or being seen by you online. 

In His Name,

Mike McDonald
Senior Pastor