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Welcome to
First United Methodist Church of Fredonia!
Reaching, Teaching
and Loving
Because of Jesus Christ
Pastor Rev. Matt
Stengel
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We are located at:
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25 Church Street, Fredonia, NY
We're just one block from Main St
(Rt. 20), on the park
Click here for map... |
"To
every thing there is a season, and a time to every purpose under heaven."
(Ecclesiastes 3: 1)
The Greek language has two words for time:
Chronos
and
Kairos.
Chronos
is linear time, time that passes and accumulates (we get the word
"chronological" from this kind of time). It can be said to be horizontal time.
If you think of a timeline,
Chronos
is the line along the bottom that is marked off in ten-year increments.
Kairos
time might be described as vertical time.
Kairos
is a significant moment that has importance in the life of a person, a people,
or the world ("such
a time as this",
Esther 4:14). If you think of the timeline again,
Kairos
is each of the significant events that occur along the timeline (think of July
4, 1776; December 7, 1941; September 11, 2001). On July 27, 2008, I will add
one more
Kairos
moment to my life as I embark on my trip to Kamina, Democratic
Republic of the Congo. I ask your prayers during the following sixteen days of
Chronos
as I seek to encourage and be encouraged by, the people of the North Katanga
Annual Conference.
On June
30, 2008 I complete one year as your pastor, and 22 years as pastor of United
Methodist churches (Chronos).
On July 1, 1986 I received my license as a Local Pastor and was appointed pastor
of the Limestone United Methodist Church in Limestone, NY, near the Pennsylvania
line on Route 219 (Kairos).
Since that time, I was appointed to Medina UMC, Marilla UMC, and Macedon Center
and South Perinton UMC’s, before coming to Fredonia. I graduated from seminary;
I was ordained a Deacon in 1988, and then an Elder in 1990. I have baptized 145
persons, received 167 into membership, performed 106 weddings, and conducted 199
funerals. The youngest person I baptized was on their birthday, over 3 months
premature; the oldest, 64. The oldest person for whom I had a funeral was 101;
the youngest 5 months. The oldest combined age for a marriage was 141. My
oldest new member: 91.
These are
just numbers, however. They are not even all that impressive when held up
against those of some of my colleagues. They describe moments in time (Kairos).
And they do not begin to tell the story of the people with whom I have walked
this journey. Most of life happens in
Chronos
time, in between
the big, significant events. Most of ministry happens there, too. I have no
idea how many prayers I have said, even less idea of how many have been said on
my behalf. I don't know how many tears have been cried on my shoulder, how many
hands I have held, or how many burdens I have helped to carry. But these are
the
truly
significant events of my ministry.
Thank you
for being a part of the most recent year of the
Chronos
of my life. Thanks for creating some
Kairos
moments too. May there be plenty more of both as we journey on in ministry
together.
In Christ’s
love,
Pastor Matt Stengel
News from our missionaries in Africa and New Orleans:
click here
-Missions News
Biloxi
Mission Team, March 2007
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For the summer (July and August),
there is no Sunday School
and
Sunday Church Service is at 9:30 AM
Our Sunday worship service is
broadcast on local cable access channel 5 three times a week-
Sunday evenings at 6 PM ,
Mondays at 5:30 PM
and
Wednesday afternoons at 2 PM
We are a Purpose Driven Church!
Our Purpose is helping people to form a
relationship with Jesus within the fellow-ship
of the church in order to focus on God,
find a ministry in the church,
and fulfill a mission in the world.
Pastor Matt Stengel is leaving July 27
to attend the North Katanga
Annual Conference in Africa. North Katanga is in the Democratic Republic of the
Congo. For more information,
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