Brothers and Sisters, It is in Jesus’ Name that I send this letter to you. What a Mighty God we serve!  Heaven and Earth adore Him, and angels bow before Him.  I want you to know that I am joyful and at peace knowing that our God will prevail and speak His word as He did in the beginning and everything will cease. I always pray and put “safety, health, and faith” at the top of my prayers. Let me say that there is hope, joy, peace and love. We must love the Lord our God with all your heart, soul, mind and strength. We must believe that our God is in control!   Be encouraged and have faith to know that this current situation will soon come to pass as we believe. Isaiah 65:24 (KJV) says: “And it shall come to pass, that before they call, I will answer; and while they are yet speaking, I will hear.”  I would like to share with you some updates, as we plan the church schedule, services and special events during the month of April and in the future. The church is still in a two-week schedule. I am working together with our Leadership and Communication Teams to come up with various ways to keep in touch with everyone as we all deal with these uncertain days and the future to come.  It is very important that we all stay prayed up and remain in the Word of God with the love of Christ in our hearts.  Besides the online services, mailings, email or phone calls.  We have seniors who do not use or are not savvy with the computer or phone.  You can request a DVD of each of the services.  Just call the office (813-988-1501) and let the Church Secretary know which service you would like to receive. There will be services for Good Friday (10 April) at 6:30 PM and Easter (Resurrection Day) (12 April) live online at 11:00 AM.  Both services will be posted on the Belmont website at www.belmonttampa.org/live.  Please join in and invite your friends and neighbors to celebrate with us. Future plans for a drive-in church service in the front parking lot.  Pastor, deacons and staff are planning a drive-in service in the very near future.  More to follow on this plan as we finalize the logistics.  I would like to have some feedback from you on your thoughts.  Please call the church office with your thoughts and plan to participate. Assistance and Support.  As the pastor, I know we all need spiritual encouragement and assurance you will get some help whether food, clothing, financial or prayer.  We are God’s Family and are here to provide support and assistance in time of need.   Please call the church office and we will do the best we can to help.   I’d like for you to consider the below thoughts to meditate upon:
  • There is NO STORM that God won’t carry you through, NO BRIDGE that God won’t help you cross, NO BATTLE that God won’t help you with. Trust GOD and Never give up.
  • “Behold, the hour cometh, yea, is now come, that ye shall be scattered, every man to his own, and shall leave me alone: and yet I am not alone, because the Father is with me.” John16:32 (KJV)
  • Easter cannot be canceled. 2000 years ago, all the forces of hell tried that.  They failed.  Glory to God!
  • Like the ocean, we can see where God’s love begins, but we never see its end.
  • Make sure you aren’t social distancing from God. Crisis cannot stop the cross.  What hasn’t changed?
Keep your faith and stay focused.   God is always there and will never leave us.   Be blessed! Pastor Larry Smith