Dear Congregation,

On Sunday 65 members of our congregation met prepared to come back and worship together. Unfortunately, we will not be gathering for worship or any activities throughout March and perhaps even longer. We will keep you posted. Fear is on our minds as we face this new global pandemic, which has caused us to take serious measures to insure our health and wellbeing.

As your pastor I want you to take serious the concerns coming from our local, state, and national government and the CDC. But at the same time I want to help you to “stay calm and shepherd on” in the wake of this global crisis. We are all in this together as a family.

These are uncertain times, but humanity has survived global pandemics throughout history. By staying isolated we hope to see this virus slow down. As your pastor, I am committed to preaching and teaching the Word of God. Our weekly audio sermons will continue to be available on our website at www.fumcboinita.org. This Sunday’s message is: Living Unafraid in the Face of Fear. Then we will begin a new series: The Walk: Spiritual Practices Rooted in Jesus’ Own Walk with God. This will be a way for us to daily follow Jesus, and faithfully serve him.

Did you know there are two forms of worship? First, community worship is gathering together to respond to a Creator worthy of our admiration, praise, thanksgiving, and reverence. When we gather for worship we honor God (see Psalm 95:6-7). Second, individual worship is daily praying and taking action as the hands and feet of Jesus Christ. When we give thanks to God we are creating an attitude of gratitude (see 1 Thessalonians 5:16-18). If we can’t physically worship God together, we can all worship God daily through our prayers and actions of love toward one another.

Before COVID-19 (Corona virus), our church leadership was already working on a new website and creating a live stream worship service. We realized that technology and online worship as a new means to reach new and unchurched people, and a way to keep our shut-ins and northern family connected to their church.

We will stay in touch, host meetings, and Bible studies from home using online meeting sites; and Facebook at: First Bonita United Methodist Church of Bonita Springs FL.

As many of you prepare to head back North, we would like to thank you for calling First Bonita your church down. We will pray for your safe return, and hope that our new forms of communication will keep you connected to us from afar.

We created a new E-blast via Constant Contact. If you have not received this email, check your spam folder to see if it is there; if not, please send me your email address to pastor@fumcbonita.org. If you don’t use email, smart phones, or a computer – this may be a great time for you to start. It looks like communicating this way will become our “new normal.”

New online giving options have been set up so that we can continue God’s mission of building disciples of Jesus Christ to transform the world. Please continue to tithe; we cannot let this pandemic deter the work of the Church. We will continue providing necessary resources to people in need, especially the children in our community. Your first option is giving through our website. Just click on the “donate” button, a variety of options available. Second, we set up an App for mobile devices. Go to the App Store Icon: then search/download Give+

You’ll can locate First UMC using the 34135 zip code. Once you are on our website or in the Give+ App you’ll need to set up an account and choose a giving option. It’s pretty simple and these sites are secure.

A new church directory and mobile directory will be available in coming months.

The Church Office will remain open
Monday – Thursday from 9am – 1pm. Contact us if you need assistance. You can call or text me at (239) 572-2768. Let’s keep in touch! Thank you and God bless!!

Lovingly in Christ,
Pastor Kim

Rev. Kimberly DuBreuil
Senior Pastor