Pastor Zach Terry
First Baptist Church
Fernandina Beach, FL
Sponsor: Rep. Aaron Bean, (R-FL)
Date of Prayer: 02/15/2024
One Minute Speech Given in Recognition of the Guest Chaplain:
Mr. BEAN of Florida. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to honor First Baptist Church of Fernandina Beach, Florida, and our bold spiritual leader, Pastor Zach Terry.
My wife and I have discovered that First Baptist is a place to find strength and hope in times of adversity and to feel God's love. It is an incredibly welcoming place, and I challenge anyone to make it from the parking lot into the sanctuary without getting welcomed at least twice.
First Baptist is a cornerstone of our community, having reached and transformed countless lives, both in northeast Florida and, really, all over the world. Through its outreach programs and compassionate ministries, the church has been a steadfast advocate for the greater community, serving neighbors and sharing God's grace.
On October 7, Hamas had its attack in Israel. There were 54 members of the First Baptist Church of Fernandina Beach who found themselves stuck in Israel. Airports closed. Roads shut down. There was limited travel. It was indeed a scary time for getting these pilgrims out of that country safely.
Every day, we would text or communicate with the group, including Pastor Terry, about options, how we do it, what we could do. There was a lot of hunkering down. After a very, very long bus trip to Jordan over a week later, the team made it out.
During that time of chaos, Pastor Zach made several videos saying: We are calm. We are good.
Being a spiritual, dedicated shepherd, he reminded everyone what Mark 11:22 says: "Have faith in God." By faith and hope in a God who never fails, our congregation did make it safely back home.
Mr. Speaker, I am proud to welcome Pastor Zach Terry; his wife, Julie; their children, Cole, Caitlyn, and Carly; and Pastor Zach's mother, Ms. Teresa Terry.
There are dozens of members of the congregation here in our Nation's Capital. It is a big day for everybody from the small town of Fernandina Beach.
Opening Prayer Given by the Guest Chaplain:
Heavenly Father, as we gather in this Chamber, recognizing You as the only sovereign over these United States, we acknowledge our dependency upon You alone.
May Your holy spirit awaken within our Representatives those timeless truths of scripture, whispered from the lips of their ancestors and thundered from the sacred desk.
Those principles of liberty and justice transcend both time and culture and serve as a beacon amid the stormy seas of governance.
May this Congress embody the most sacred ideals of their constituents and honor the legacy of their honorable predecessors.
The good citizens of this Nation have elected them, but You, O Lord, have appointed them for such a time as this.
May the decisions that they make this day honor the prayer of our Lord, "Thy will be done on Earth as it is in Heaven."
I ask all these things in Jesus' name. Amen.
To learn more about Members who have sponsored a Guest Chaplain, please visit the Congressional Biographical Directory