Several members of the Anguilla Retired Persons Association (ARPA) visited the Seventh-day Adventist Church in Mount Fortune, on Saturday 2nd April, and participated cheerfully in the church service that morning.
The visiting group was cordially welcomed by the church’s hostess, Ms. Charmaine Rogers, who distributed to each of them special keepsake tokens. Pastor Howard Simon expressed his admiration for the Association and said that on behalf of the church, he was delighted to have them visiting.
In responding, the President of the Association, Mrs. Mona Fleming, told the church: “We are very grateful to you, Pastor Simon, and the congregation, for hosting us, the Anguilla Retired Persons Association, as a group. We are indeed happy to be worshipping with you this morning. This is my first visit here, and I know it won’t be the last.
“As the president of ARPA, I represent some 130 retired persons on the island, and I bring greetings from our hearts to yours.”
She confirmed that the ARPA is a non-profit, non-partisan organisation which is affiliated with retired persons aged 60 years and over. “ARPA is dedicated to enhancing the quality of life,” she said, “for all as we age. We are here to support each other in whatever way we can, and we always welcome new members.”
Many members of the group sang heartily during the worship session. Pastor Simon prayed for the association, and delivered a stirring sermon with its text taken from 2 Samuel 9:31-39.
There, the story is told about an old man by the name of Barzillai whom King David invited to live in the palace with him. But Barzillai, who was eighty at the time, turned down the invitation for he wanted to reside in his own familiar abode, living around his own kindred and dying where his relatives had died. Besides, he did not want to be a burden to King David.
Pastor Simon, whose preaching style is often accented with alliterations, noted the kind manner in which Barzillai had once treated the King. He spoke highly of Barzillai’s recognition of his mortal makeup, his generosity, and his courtesy. “Now at this retired stage of Barzillai’s life,” the pastor preached, “he was mindful of his mortality, generous in his giving, and honourable in his hospitality” – common characteristics of a conscious, diligent retiree.
At the end of the service, many of the visiting retirees said that they enjoyed the worship and were encouraged by the sermon. One of them commented: “I am glad that we came. I feel uplifted by the spirit of the service and the sermon was wonderful.” Another remarked: “The service this morning was for us. The music and singing were inspiring and the message by Pastor Simon was just what we needed. It was just for us.”
Overall, the group expressed their satisfaction with the Sabbath service and, at the end of it all, many enthused church members were glad of the opportunity to mix and mingle with the ARPA guests, sharing with them in warm fellowship.
