Dear Swift Church family,

Last Sunday I mentioned in my sermon that fear is strong but God is stronger. Fear and anxiety have been running rampant, especially these last few days.

I read something today that reminded me that experiencing anxiety is a sign that we care about something beyond our control. There are so many things that we cannot control. What we can control, however, is how we respond to those things that are out of our control.

Time and time again throughout Scripture, we hear Jesus speaking peace to us. Reminders to not fear are woven all throughout the biblical texts. As Christians we do not have a need to fear because we know who is in control.

Halloween is over and we are racing toward Christmas. First, however, is Advent. During Advent we wait in hope for Jesus to come. Come, Lord Jesus, we pray. Fill our hearts with joy and our world with light that shines in the darkness.

As the evenings grow longer and darker, it can be difficult to find the light in the darkness. Here is the truth: Light always overcomes darkness. We have a hope that is larger than this country, this world or even this lifetime.

I leave you with these words from the book of Romans:

“May the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace in believing, so that you may abound in hope by the power of the Holy Spirit.” (Romans 5:13)

God’s Love and Peace,

Pastor Alexandra

Dear Swift Church family,

Paul wrote these words in 1 Thessalonians, Chapter 1, verses 2–3:

“²We always give thanks to God for all of you and mention you in our prayers, constantly ³remembering before our God and Father your work of faith and labor of love and steadfastness of hope in our Lord Jesus Christ.”

I feel a lot like Paul. Every time I pray, I give thanks to God for all of you and mention you in my prayers. Following last Sunday, I am feeling overwhelmed with love and joy for each of you. I was surprised and honored to receive cards, gifts and flowers from you for Pastor Appreciation Day.

I have never felt as appreciated, loved, respected, and regarded as I do as the pastor of Swift Presbyterian. As someone who began ministry as young as I did and as a woman, I have often struggled with my pastoral authority, even doubting myself at times. I often felt like my young age was especially looked down upon as if it made me less of a pastor because of my lack of life experiences.

Your appreciation, love and respect for me has taught me the opposite. I feel trusted as your pastor despite my age. Instead, I see my age being reframed into a new light: a gift that is full of energy, new and fresh ideas and many years ahead in ministry together.

Before I even began as your pastor, I felt uplifted by this congregation every time that I filled your pulpit. My love for you has only grown as we have begun our journey together in ministry.

You have not only welcomed me, but you have wrapped your arms around my entire family, nurturing them and loving them. You, my friends, are the Body of Christ and you live it out each and every day.

You are my most meaningful gift.

From the bottom of my heart, thank you.

Peace and Love,

Rev. Alexandra Hutson

Dear Swift Church family,

I am not sure if it is me getting older and wiser, if it is motherhood or pastoring that has done it to me, but I find that I wear my heart on my sleeves these days.

You may find this hard to believe, but there was a time when I was not great at sharing my whole self with my community. I won’t go into detail on what it means to be an Enneagram 7 personality type (we’ll save that for another day), but what I will tell you is that it is not always easy for me to sit with my emotions.

This has been a learned process for me. At a certain point, however, I started realizing that showing up with my whole self is better than not showing up at all. There was a time when I was afraid to go to that place or to sit with those hard feelings.

Maybe like me, you too wear your heart on your sleeves. I’ve found that what that means is that I have been opened up and my heart broken open to fully embrace the whole of emotions. Having my heart wide open is not always easy because it means I feel those emotions much deeper. I share all of this with you to say that my heart feels heavy.

Devastation is vast throughout Florida, the Carolinas and Georgia. Every picture I see of my beloved mountains and Appalachian region breaks my heart a little bit more. Toilet paper and paper towel aisles are looking bare from what I’ve been told. (Did we not learn from the great toilet paper hoarding of 2020? Ports are closed. War is raging on. Closer to home, in our own community, we give thanks that we are able to feed hundreds of individuals weekly in our food pantry, but the flip side of that is the sheer amount of food insecurity in our own back yard.

It is enough to make us want to cover our heads in the sand and give up. As Christians, however, we know that we have a hope beyond this world. A hope that drives out darkness and says that death does not have the final say.

When suffering and devastation take place in our world, God’s heart is the first to break because God is love. All of creation was created by God purely out of love.

What that also means is that we are made of love. It is within us, waiting to break free. So friends, love with your whole hearts, show up with your whole self and allow God to shine your light in the darkest places of this world. Your light is needed and your love makes a difference.

With love,

Pastor Alexandra

Dear Swift Church family,

Last Sunday I spoke in my sermon about being a “doer.” I briefly touched on an example of the “doers” in this congregation who painted my house for me. While this was one story, I know that this congregation is full of others like it.

I mean it wholeheartedly when I say that I am blown away each day by those in the church who have a heart for service. As humans, there are places we each fall short and we all are certainly guilty of missing opportunities.

But from what I see (behind these beautiful new office windows — yet one more example of the work of “doers” in this church), there are more opportunities taken in this church than missed. You inspire me every day and I proudly sing your praises to friends of mine who pastor other churches.

One of the things that I love about this church that I am especially reminded of when we are in the chapel is the history here. God has been at work in this church for a long time, and yet … this is still just the beginning. For you and me, we have only just begun our ministry together. I am counting my blessings for how God is at work in our lives together.

I look forward to the ways that we will continue to grow as we discover the many paths that we are called to take as “doers” in the body of Christ.

Grace and peace,

Pastor Alexandra

Dear Swift family,

Last week I traveled with Jacob and Elsie to visit Jacob’s family in Tennessee. We had a wonderful trip and enjoyed breathing in some cooler air toward the mountains of East Tennessee.

While I was away, I could not help but think of you all. In fact, it was hard to completely shut off my phone and email. I wanted to know what you were doing, how food pantry was going, if procedures were successful, who had come by the office, etc., etc.

This is not because I am bad at creating boundaries for myself or “turning off work.” But instead, it is because I care for and love each of you so deeply. Even when I am away, I want to know what is going on in the life of this church because it is such a big piece of my life.

I have always heard it said that if you find a job that you love, you never work a day in your life. That for me is true.

Words can only express so much. I wish I could show you the depths of the love that I have for you in my heart.

I am incredibly grateful to be your pastor and to be in ministry with you. Thanks be to God!

We have some exciting things coming up in the life of this church and a lot that is in the works. Check out the dates below and look out for all that is coming up.

Grace and peace,

Pastor Alexandra

Dear Swift family,

We are well into summer, but that has not slowed us down. Things are busy and exciting at Swift Presbyterian. The food pantry continues to feed hundreds each week, prayer shawls are being delivered, meetings are happening, home communion is being shared and Bible studies are taking place. The Spirit is moving!

This month on July 14, we will welcome several friends into membership at our church. We will also celebrate communion on that day. The Spirit is moving!

Have you looked at the calendar lately? Committees are busy taking care of church business and holding meetings. The Spirit is moving!

We have been working our way through a summer sermon series. We have revisited stories we heard as children through an adult lens. Several have gathered each week following fellowship for more study and a craft. The Spirit is moving!

We celebrated Father’s Day with a luau. We laughed and enjoyed fellowship. Our men even put on a hula dance. The Spirit is moving!

Following our last celebration of the Lord’s Supper, the deacons and I took home communion to several of our members worshiping from home. The Spirit is moving!

Over the last month I have begun a summer women’s Bible study. It has been a blessing to study God’s Word with these ladies and fill their cups. We had 27 women attend on Tuesday, June 25. The Spirit is moving!

Friends, it is undeniable that the Spirit is in this place. The future is bright here at Swift Presbyterian. It is our job to continue to invite the Holy Spirit in and to go where we are led.

Grace and peace,

Pastor Alexandra

Dear Swift Church family,

What a wonderful month! May has been full of celebrations — from Mother’s Day to installation, it has been joy-filled.

Ministering with you is a gift. I thank God for each of you every day.

When I think of our future together, it brings a smile to my face. Friends, we have an exciting summer ahead.

This Sunday begins the first week of our summer sermon series. It is called “Bible Stories for Grown-Ups” and is loosely based on the book by Josh Scott. Together we will look at some of the stories from our childhood and explore how we hear them differently as adults.

Following each service will be a Bible study and a craft in the fellowship hall.

I hope you will stay for a little more study in these stories and engage your creativity with a craft each week.

We will have a special hymn sing on Sunday, July 7, and Christmas in July on Sunday, July 21.

Also beginning this summer is a Women’s Bible Study. It will be focusing on the devotional book, “Finding Calm in the Chaos: Christian Devotionals for Busy Women.” The first meeting will be Tuesday, June 11 at 6:00 in the fellowship hall.

I sincerely hope you will consider joining me for this special time together and bring a friend. If you plan to attend, please RSVP to me at swiftpastor@gmail.com. I will ask that each person bring a small appetizer to share.

I couldn’t be more excited for the ways that we will learn and grow together this summer.

Grace and peace,

Pastor Alexandra

Dear Swift Church family,

I want to begin by saying that there are not enough words to thank you for what a special day yesterday was. It is a gift to be in ministry with you.

Each week in worship I ask you the question, “Good people of Swift Church, who are you?” You are good people — some of the best I know. I am grateful that God brought us to one another and I look forward to many years together.

I look forward to seeing you all in worship on Sunday.

Grace and peace,

Rev. Alexandra Hutson

Dear Swift family,

It has officially been one month since I began my ministry with you. A lot has happened in this short time. Each day, I think to myself that I could not be any more grateful to be your pastor — and each day, I am proved wrong.

People have described you as the “most praying church.” I have been told time and time again that if I just love you, you will love me right back. I have found both of these statements to be true. I have never received a welcome more warm than what you have given me and my family. We have been so blessed by the luncheon, cards received, texts sent and welcome gifts.

When I considered what my life might look like as your pastor as I discerned my call, I kept thinking that I could not imagine a better place for Elsie to grow up. As a pastor, a wife and a mom, it was not only important for me that this church be a good fit for me, but also for my family. As I have gotten together with members for lunches, I have learned what a faithful group you are, full of so much wisdom.

Last Sunday, I sat down during fellowship and watched as Elsie walked around the fellowship hall. I did not worry for one second about what she was doing or who she was with because I knew that she was being loved and nurtured. When she spent her first Sunday in the nursery, church members asked me, “Where is Elsie?” I truly could not ask for more.

I have been blown away by your dedication to your church and your ministries. I have volunteered in the food pantry and attended committee meetings. Each time, I have come away impressed with not only how much love there is in this church, but how well you embody it. Through the business of the church, the weedy details of church life, your love is exuded in all that you do.

I look forward to what our years of ministry bring us with hope. I believe that together we can spread the love of Christ throughout Baldwin County, and even further beyond.

Thanks be to God for each one of you.

Grace and peace,

Rev. Alexandra Hutson

Dear Swift family,

I am thrilled to be writing to you officially as your new pastor. I have been looking forward to this day for quite some time now and it is finally here.

Over the past year, I have enjoyed providing pulpit supply for you.

I am grateful that the opportunity to preach for you led me to experiencing God’s call to join you in the work of ministry.

Some of you may not know that it was in the midst of providing pulpit supply that I began to feel like there could be something more here. For several months, I fought that feeling as I was nervous to return back to work since I was enjoying being a full-time mom.

What I have learned, however, is when the Holy Spirit is calling you, that voice does not simply go away — in fact, it gets louder and louder. The more I came back to Swift Presbyterian, the stronger I heard God’s call. I felt it through the warm welcome I received each time, the way that you embody the love of Christ and the family feel that this congregation shares.

My heart could not feel more full at the thought of being your pastor. I look forward to all that we will do together as we journey through our lives in faith.

As I begin my time in the office this week, I hope that I will see many of you. Please know that my door is always open and my ears are ready to listen.

You can find me in my office Monday through Thursday from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. My “sabbath” day will be Friday. Do not worry if you are not physically able to come by my office because I will come to you.

See you soon.

Grace and peace,

Rev. Alexandra Hutson