"Keeping a Holy Lent...Together"

This weekend, I heard a powerful message on fasting. The church is in a sermon series around our spiritual disciplines, as well as what we know as the Means of Grace. The scripture was around Matthew 6:16-18.

The gospel account gives instruction to how we are to fast and ultimately, that our fasting is not about us, but how we might come to experience God more fully in this season. How do we come to know the living Christ in this season?

We are a few weeks in, and depending on what you have given up or taken on, the comfort also comes in knowing that we do not journey this path alone. Perhaps you are participating in a study or small group, or are making intentional efforts to grab coffee with friends or make that phone call that won't make itself. Either way, the connection of Lent is personal and social. It is the connection that deepens our faith and the connection that shares Christ's love with others.

I am grateful for the ways that we are keeping this holy season together. Through worship, action, study, prayer, and fasting. May we draw nearer and nearer to God as we draw nearer to the cross and tomb.

grace upon grace,

Lindsey

Renew • Restore • Refresh with Side Porch

Side Porch Information

Clergy Evaluations should now be completed on Unity. Instructions are available on the district website under Resources. The deadline is June 1. Every clergy must have an evaluation completed - whether they are staying, moving, retiring, etc.

District Scholarship Applications are available on the the District Website (https://www.missionriversdistrict.org/) by clicking the down carat on Resources. The deadline is March 31, 2026.

2026 Charge Conference dates are posted on the District Website (https://www.missionriversdistrict.org/) under Resources.

Spring Lay Servant Classes start soon. Details under Events and then Lay Servant Ministries on the District Website (https://www.missionriversdistrict.org/).

Upcoming Reviews and Deadlines: Annual Housing Allowance Review and Annual Parsonage Review instructions and links will be available on the district website on April 1. Deadline for Housing Allowance Review is June 1. Deadline for Parsonage Review is June 15.

Mission Rivers United Methodist Men

Men’s Organizations of the Mission Rivers District. The District United Methodist

Men leadership is holding an organization meeting via Zoom on 22 April 2026 at

7 PM. It is important that a representative (clergy and/or laity) for each churches

men’s organization participate in this meeting. The purpose of the meeting is to

discuss what the structure will be for our District UMM organization, what is

expected from this organization and adopt our by-laws, since the Mission River

District has adopted the cluster concept.

Meeting connection Information will be published NLT 18 April 2026

POC: Bob Pickett at bob.pickett1@verizon.net or 540-834-3068

Upcoming clergy gatherings

As always, all Mission Rivers District Clergy—actively appointed, on leave, serving in extension settings, and retired—are invited and encouraged to join us! For questions, please contact Rev. Deborah Lewis: deborahlewis@vaumc.org. Check the new page on our website for ongoing updates to upcoming gatherings: https://www.missionriversdistrict.org/clergy-events

“Rooted in Grace” VAUMC clergy retreat, 3/10-11/26

District clergy are encouraged to gather with our colleagues from around the conference, for this overnight retreat in Richmond. More info and register here:

https://vaumc.org/clergyretreat/

Fort Monroe visit, 4/16

Meet at the Fort Monroe Visitor Center & Education Center in Hampton to explore the site, including Point Comfort (where the earliest documented enslaved Africans entered Virginia in 1619). Learn about the convergence of Indigenous, African, and European cultures in this location, and the role of the Fort’s role in changing the direction of the Civil War. There will be time to take a tour and walk in and around the Fort at your own pace. We will end our time with a Dutch treat lunch in a nearby restaurant. Let us know if you’re coming:

https://www.cognitoforms.com/VAUMC/MRDFtMonroeClergy

Clergy, family, & friends baseball game, 5/8/26

*For this event only, clergy are encouraged to bring friends and family.* Mission Rivers District is subsidizing the cost of tickets, which includes a buffet dinner and a game in the brand new stadium of the Richmond Flying Squirrels. Cost: $25/ticket for anyone 18 or older; $15/ticket for those 4-17 years old; children 3 and under get in free. Purchase tickets for yourself and your crew by 3/26: https://www.cognitoforms.com/VAUMC/Squirrels

The following items are now available on the district website:

District Scholarship Applications

https://www.missionriversdistrict.org/scholarships

2026 Charge Conference Schedule

https://www.missionriversdistrict.org/charge-conferences

Lay Servant Training Registration

https://www.missionriversdistrict.org/lay-servant-ministries

Grief Support Group

Find support, fellowship and hope among others experiencing grief. Join facilitator Rev. Meghan Roth Clayton, graduate student intern, for a short-term grief support group.

On Tuesdays, March 3-April 21, we will meet at Peninsula Pastoral Counseling Center in the conference room from 2:00-3:30pm. The group will use the Alan Wolfelt book Understanding Your Grief and its accompanying journal.

If you have any questions, please reach out to PPCC at office@peninsulapastoral.org or 757-873-2273.

Learn More & Register

Pinnacle Living News

RJ, Director of Church and Community Relations at Pinnacle Living, set up a display table to share that Pinnacle Living and its six senior living communities are available as partners with our churches and are willing to become the main resource for aging ministries for the local church.

About Pinnacle Living Pinnacle Living, formerly known as Virginia United Methodist Homes, Inc., was founded in 1947 and began serving residents in 1948 as part of the church’s mission to serve seniors. Since then, it has grown from a single senior living community to six Life Plan communities that offer Independent Living cottages, villas, and apartments, Assisted Living suites, Memory Care suites, and private and semi-private health care rooms. Pinnacle Living, guided by its mission, Enriching Life’s Journey, continues to honor its faith-inspired roots and welcomes residents of all faiths. Pinnacle Living communities are home to more than 1,200 residents and employ more than 1,000 team members.