Greetings from
Florida and the Caribbean Islands
December 13, 2023
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Here's a quick look midweek to strengthen your faith and connect with your CBF family. | |
Friends, how are you experiencing this 2nd week of Advent? This week we are reminded to dwell on peace. Like most people, I regularly find it hard to find peace as I wait. Right? But, every single time, I let go of a situation or something I cannot control, such as waiting, I experience God most fully!
During these next few weeks of Advent, while you wait in line, in traffic, on hold, for an appointment, for a flight, in the school pickup line, on food at a restaurant, for a package, on a response, or on test results, may you spend this time waiting with God, who is always waiting on you.
| Last Sunday, Bill and Leta Tillman opened their lovely and welcoming home to friends and family. I couldn't wait to go :) | |
La Poza del Obispo, Puerto Rico
prayer from Daily Feast, Meditations from Feasting on the Word
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Worshipping with Circle of Faith | |
Circle of Faith, led by Rev Courtney Jones, opened their arms and their doors to welcome me to their Saturday evening time of worship. With a sandwich in one hand and amazing banana pudding in the other, we dove into the practice of Visio Divina, "sacred seeing" using Pieter Brudghel's, St John the Baptist Preaching to the Masses in the Wilderness as our focus. Thanks, Circle of Faith! | |
Bayshore Baptist Church in Tampa, Florida is hosting a screening of “Midwives of a Movement,” a new documentary from Baptist Women in Ministry which chronicles the stories of the women who boldly birthed a movement to seek greater visibility and opportunities for women in the Southern Baptist Convention (SBC) over 40 years ago. Despite great opposition, their courage blazed pathways for advancing women in ministry and leadership among Baptists. The film includes heartfelt stories, painful anecdotes, profound insights, and lighthearted remembrances which will inspire continued advocacy efforts for women to find equality and equity among Baptists. As women in ministry have once again been targeted by the SBC in the past year, the stories found in “Midwives of a Movement” are as relevant today as they were four decades ago. | |
A dinner in Puerto Rico
and so much more...
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Last Friday, Ruben Ortiz and Xiomara Reboyras hosted a Q&A Dinner with Iglesias Bautistas of Puerto Rico.
Iglesia Bautista Ebenezer in Gurabo Puerto Rico hosted this event where CBF Latino Network/FAMILIA and the CBF Thriving in Ministry Cohort for Pastoras in PR gathered with pastors from 23 congregations to continue conversations and collaboration with CBF.
Since the 2021 CBF and Baptist Church of Puerto Rico missional covenant was signed, alliances and ministry opportunities have been emerging.
Most recently, in 2024 pastor Xiomara Reboyras from Comunidad Cristiana Nuevo Pacto in DeLand, FL will lead a 2nd Cohort for Pastoras in Puerto Rico.
These are not simply opportunities but also responsibilities for CBF FL/CI as a region to respond intentionally to what God is inviting us to do in in the Caribbean, specifically Puerto Rico.
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Worshipping with
Waters Avenue Church
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Waters Avenue Church, led by Pastor Chris Kravitz, welcomed me with amazing hospitality on Dec 3. They are doing church VERY creatively. While they own the building, during the week it is rented out to local nonprofits, including Kinship. Kinship hosts FREE popup food markets Monday through Saturday throughout Tampa. In addition, as I was leaving the worship service, another church was waiting in the lobby to begin worship in the same sanctuary. Members shared, at one time, three different groups were using the same space for worship! #usingchurchspacewisely #helpstopaythebills #letslearnfromthem | |
Paul Baxley featured on
"Leading and Thriving in the Church" podcast
Alban Duke Divinity school hosted CBF Executive Coordinator Paul Baxley on their new podcast, "Leading and Thriving in the Church." Rev. Prince Rivers, editor of Alban Weekly and pastor in Raleigh, North Carolina sat down with Baxley to discuss what it means to lead faithfully, effectively and sustainably in today’s church.
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Following the Star Advent devotion
Following the Star, the devotional series for Advent and Christmas is available at d365.org. This series features scripture, prayer and meditative thoughts accompanied by gentle music. This year’s writers are active members of our three sponsoring denominations.
Following the Star is part of the year-round devotional website and app, d365, a ministry of Passport, Inc. d365 is sponsored ecumenically by the Cooperative Baptist Fellowship, the Presbyterian Mission Agency and the Episcopal Church.
CBF's writers are Kelly Rhodes Adams, Director of Clergy Support Ecosystem at CBF, and Chris Aho, Director of Thriving Congregations at CBF.
Find the Advent devotional series here.
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CBF of South Carolina and Florida / Caribbean Islands, together, are offering this inter-generational mission engagement opportunity to families, singles, young, old and everyone in between. Spend this 2024 holiday weekend making a difference and making new friends. "Credit" is available to FL students seeking community service hours.
$100 per person (covers lodging and food) to engage in this joint mission endeavor.
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What should I expect? Our SC/FL teams will be working on projects ranging from painting and light household repairs to building wheelchair ramps. There will be projects for everyone and all skill levels. All meals on Saturday and Sunday are covered in your registration fee. There are two lodging options - motel rooms (at an extra cost) and cabins with bunk beds. You can indicate your preference when you register.
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In 2024, it is time
to attend to your soul...
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Five Day Academy for Spiritual Formation
SOUL CARE
Cultivating an Awareness of Divine Presence
MARCH 3-8, 2024
Fruitland Park, FL
Read More Here
Scholarship assistance is available to members of
CBF churches in Florida and the Caribbean Islands
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Between the Listening and the Telling: How Stories Can Save Us
Stories tether us to what matters most: our families, our friends, our hearts, our planet, the wondrous mystery of life itself. Yet the stories we've been telling ourselves as a civilization are killing us: Fear is wisdom. Vanity is virtuous. Violence is peace. In the pages of Between the Listening and the Telling, storyteller, author and activist Mark Yaconelli leads readers into an enchanting meditation on the power of storytelling in our individual and collective lives. We tell stories to remember who we are. We tell stories to savor the pleasure of living. Stories can be medicine, and they can transform entire communities.
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This year’s theme, “Equipping With Every Good Thing,” is based on Hebrews 13:20-21: "Now may the God of peace … equip you with every good thing to do his will, by developing in us what pleases him through Jesus Christ. To him be the glory forever and always.” The Offering for Global Missions equips the Cooperative Baptist Fellowship with the gifts and passions of 46 Field Personnel in 17 different countries and the United States, spreading the hope of Jesus Christ. When you give to the Offering for Global Missions, you also participate in this mission of Jesus Christ around the world.
This year we have a goal of $4 million. Every gift helps us reach this goal to support the presence of Field Personnel.
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Get your copy of the
OGM Prayer Guide below
| "Writers were invited to share about someone who has made a significant impact on their lives, a spiritual guide so to speak - one who has shaped their faith, their theology or their prayer life." Thanks Meg Lacy Vega for compiling these beautiful Spiritual Guides. | |
Pathlight -
a weekly CBF curriculum
for children
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On the road...
Jan 7 - New Covenant, Deland
Jan 21 - First Baptist Gainesville
Jan 25/26 - CBF Global Missions Council, Decatur, GA
Jan 28 - Bluewater Community Church, Niceville
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To stay connected, a few links for you to explore with a quick click. | |
[813.810.7499] [tsnyder@floridacbf.org] [www.floridacbf.org] | |
A direct and compelling headline | | | | |