Coming Home Revival: Rooted and Sent
There is nothing like coming home.
This fall, we have the joy of welcoming one of Statesboro’s own back home. From September 29 through October 1, Bishop Sharma D. Lewis Logan will lead us in a Coming Home Revival as the United Methodist churches and ministries of Statesboro gather for three nights of worship, fellowship, and gospel preaching.
Bishop Lewis Logan grew up in Statesboro and was shaped in the pews of Brannen Chapel UMC, in a congregation that taught her the faith long before anyone imagined she would become the first African American woman elected bishop in the Southeastern Jurisdiction of The United Methodist Church. Today, she serves the Mississippi Conference, and at the end of this month, she comes home to preach.
For three nights, Brannen Chapel, Statesboro First, Pittman Park, and the Georgia Southern Wesley Foundation will worship together.
Three nights. Three sanctuaries. One city.
Rooted and Sent
“Rooted and Sent” is more than a tagline. It describes who we are called to be.
We are rooted in the faith we have received in Scripture, in the gospel of Jesus Christ, and in our Wesleyan tradition that has shaped generations of Methodists. Our congregations in Statesboro carry that inheritance forward in distinct ways.
But we are also sent.
The people called Methodist were never meant to stay inside the room where they encountered God. They went into their communities to preach, serve, feed, teach, visit, and love their neighbors. Faith was never something to keep to ourselves. It was something to share.
A church that is only rooted becomes a museum. A church that is only sent becomes exhausted and unmoored.
We need both. The Spirit who roots us in a story is the same Spirit who sends us out the door.
What We’re Hoping For
It would be enough to gather for three nights and celebrate a shared heritage. But we are praying for something more.
Our churches sit within a few miles of one another in a community with real needs. Families need support. Students at Georgia Southern are looking for places to belong. Neighbors are hungry, lonely, and searching for hope.
And our churches are already doing good work.
We have simply rarely done it together.
Three nights of preaching will not solve every challenge in our community. But three nights of standing in one another’s sanctuaries, singing one another’s songs, and hearing the gospel proclaimed by a daughter of this community might begin to loosen something.
Revival, in the Wesleyan tradition, was never mainly about a feeling. It was about a people being renewed and made ready to live out their faith.
We are praying that these three nights will help us become more deeply rooted and more faithfully sent.
The Schedule
Each night follows the same rhythm:
5:30 PM — Fellowship & snacks
6:30 PM — Worship
8:00 PM — Worship concludes
Night One — Tuesday, September 29
Statesboro First UMC
101 S. Main Street
Night Two — Wednesday, September 30
Pittman Park UMC
1102 Fair Road
Supper that night is Open Table, our regular Wednesday community meal. Come hungry and come early!
Night Three — Thursday, October 1
Brannen Chapel UMC
20 Elm Street
Bring the Kids
Families are part of this revival, too! And you do not need to find a sitter.
While the adults are in worship, children will participate in Power Camp, featuring worship, Bible stories, a memory verse, crafts, games, snacks, special guests, and movie clips.
Families gather together at 5:30 PM, and the kids head to Power Camp at 6:15 PM before worship begins at 6:30.
Nursery care will also be available all three nights with trained, background-checked staff.
Wesley’s revivals were never adults-only affairs. If we hope to see the church sent forward for generations to come, we need to form the people who will carry that mission into the future.
If you would like to help with Power Camp, the volunteer form is available at pittmanpark.org/revival. Megan Hopkins is coordinating accommodations for children with special needs. If your child would benefit from additional support, please reach out to Megan ahead of time so we can make sure every child has what they need.
Come Home With Us
Come for one night. Come for all three. Bring someone who hasn’t been to church in a while. Bring someone who has never left one. Bring your kids. Bring a friend. Come hungry. Come expectant.
Most of all, come ready to worship. We are rooted here. We are sent from here.
Let’s discover together what that still means.
God bless,
Jonathan
For Jesus. For People. For Community.