Marcus and Rebecca with daughters, Marissa and Marilyn
Whenever John Kraus’ children ran across the Rev. Marcus Zillman, they always made a point to greet him.
That is not uncommon for children and their beloved senior pastor.
But Kraus was referencing encounters at the local elementary school, not inside the church.
Zillman sets aside Thursday of each week to serve in the community.
Quite often, you’d find him wiping down tables and clearing trash at Heights Elementary School in Fort Myers.
“Marcus is a person that can connect with anyone,” Kraus said. “I jokingly tell my wife that he is everyone's Dad. He has a dad’s sense of humor, a dad’s level of care, and a dad’s style of fashion.”
The story of how he became a dad speaks to the faith of Zillman – who begins his role as senior pastor at First UMC on July 1 – and his wife Rebecca.
It is a story of trust in the plans God has for you, of the impossible becoming possible when you’re asked to step out in faith and say yes.
Zillman began serving as senior pastor at Hobe Sound UMC north of West Palm Beach in 2009. They arrived with plans to start a family.
“Rebecca and I were not able to have children,” he said. “We tried a lot of things over the years, and it’s just not possible.” CONTINUED
Andy Whitaker Smith Associate Pastor
First UMC
2017-2026
At the end of the iconic story The Lord of the Rings Bilbo, and the wizard Gandalf set out to the Grey Havens, leaving their home and those they love. As Frodo’s friends gather around them, Gandalf offers one last gift of wisdom:
“I will not say ‘do not weep’—for not all tears are an evil.”
One of the difficulties of Itineracy in the United Methodist Church is the length of time it takes and the multi-layers and levels of saying Goodbye. There’s the Announcement, the Normal Period, the Notes, the Reminders, the Planning, the Packing, the Celebrations, the Emptying Office…and the Real-izations. Not long ago, I was told from some staff they heard for the first time my referring to First UMC as “your church,” instead of “our church”; it wasn’t something I did consciously, but was a realization to me that another level had come to pass.
As difficult as these transitions can be, it’s important that they are not all at once. The multi-levels give us time to process and acclimate. What we feel may remain the same, but how we feel it may evolve as we go through the season. I know I’ve needed the time to wade through this season, and I’ve not fully arrived.
I was not ready for how this church would graft onto me. I was not ready for how much it would teach and grow me; I was not ready for how large the Sanctuary would seem on days when I just needed to be in there; I was not ready for how all of you would show me the beautiful diversity of how God works.
I was not ready for how much my family and I would belong.
Thank you for all the ways you have shown God to me. I know you will extend that same love and care to Pastor Marcus and his family.
Keep going through the levels, and be that Sanctuary for each other.
Love Always,
AForrest White Director of Mission Ministries
“I will be with you”
uthor Dave Adamson posts tremendous daily devotions on his AussieDave Instagram account.
He recently wrote this about Gideon who, with the mighty presence of God and only 300 men, defeated the massive Midianite army, which had oppressed the Israelites for years. (Judges 6-8)
(Gideon) was overwhelmed, afraid, and unsure what God was doing. But God met Gideon in the middle of that fear. Not with a detailed plan or instant relief. God just promised, ‘I will be with you.’
Gideon responded by giving God the name YHWH Shalom ‘The Lord is Peace.’
And here’s the detail I missed for years. Gideon called God ‘peace’ before he experienced victory and before anything got better.
When Gideon went back to the real world the same uncertainty was still waiting for him. But now he knew God was there, too … The thing causing Gideon fear didn’t disappear, but God’s presence became bigger than his fear.
Sometimes the situation doesn’t change overnight. But everything feels different when you remember you’re not facing it alone.
Like you, I’ve wrestled with my faith throughout the years, at times as intensely as Jacob’s wrestling match on the bank of the Jabbok River. (Genesis 32)
Two constants have emerged for me over time, the first rooted in God’s promise to Gideon found in Judges 6:12-16.
When the angel of the Lord appeared to Gideon, he said, “The Lord is with you, mighty warrior.”
“Pardon me, my lord,” Gideon replied, “but if the Lord is with us, why has all this happened to us? …
The Lord turned to him and said, “Go in the strength you have and save Israel out of Midian’s hand. Am I not sending you?”
“Pardon me, my lord,” Gideon replied, “but how can I save Israel? My clan is the weakest in Manasseh, and I am the least in my family.”
The Lord answered, “I will be with you …”
I. Will. Be. With. You.
Gideon replied to the angel’s announcement, as most of us do when we’re facing hardship, pain, grief, or loss.
If the Lord is with us, why has this happened to me/us?
We focus on the why of our circumstances rather than the Who of the One walking with us. We default to a misguided belief that God has made the bad things happen to us or failed to protect us from them, even though we know Jesus’ first disciples were not shielded from suffering while in this world and scripture does not promise us immunity from pain.
So, my first faith pillar is quite simply – God is with us, always.
It is even the promise of Jesus’ birth announcement!
“Look! The virgin will conceive a child! She will give birth to a son, and they will call him Immanuel, which means ‘God is with us.’” (Matthew 1:23)
My Second Pillar
I’ve got a friend on Facebook who often uses the phrase “God is good.”
Of course, she’s right.
James, the younger half-brother of Jesus, put it this way: “Every good and perfect gift is from above, coming down
“I
from the Father of the heavenly lights, who does not change like shifting shadows.” (James 1:17)
God is good – He doesn’t change with the passage of time or a change in circumstance, both of which account for the shifting shadows of which James wrote.
So, why then, when my friend posts “God is good,” do I almost always squirm in my seat?
It’s the context of her posts.
A family member gives birth to a healthy baby … God is good.
A seriously ill loved one gets better … God is good.
No damage from the storm … God is good.
I realize that phrase might simply be my friend’s way of expressing gratitude and praise to God whom she dearly loves.
But what if the baby had been born with an awful disease?
What if the sick loved one died?
What if the storm smashed the house?
In those times of sorrow, in those times when things don’t go our way, we aren’t as quick to say, “God is good!” are we?
But if I praise God for being good only when good things happen, does that somehow imply He's turned bad or
indifferent when bad things happen? I simply don't believe it works that way.
My second faith pillar is this – God is good. Period. We live in a world of never-ending change. Seemingly nothing stays the same, from moment to moment, breath to breath.
Nothing, that is, but God’s abiding presence and God’s perfect goodness.
"We may ignore, but we can nowhere evade the presence of God,” C.S. Lewis wrote in Letters to Malcolm: Chiefly on Prayer. “The world is crowded with Him. He walks everywhere incognito.”
The reassuring presence of our great, good God always invites us, always nudges us, to join Him in the Kingdom work He does all around.
With our mighty God working through us as He did Gideon, all things are possible, including change for the better.
May the reality of God’s presence be bigger than our fears always.
All the best,
Marcus Zillman
In the midst of accepting that reality in the spring of 2014, Zillman’s district superintendent called to see if he would be open to a move.
He and Rebecca prayed about it. They talked about the good friends and connections they would have to leave behind. He recalled Bishop Cornelius Henderson asking a question at his ordination – Are you willing to move as your gifts and graces are needed?
They agreed on the answer. It was yes.
Zillman told the superintendent they weren’t asking to move but they were willing.
From Hobe Sound, the Zillmans moved to First UMC in Boca Raton, which had two campuses, three associate pastors and five worship services.
God had a plan awaiting them, too, one He began to reveal within a couple of weeks of their arrival.
“A church member said there was a huge need for foster parents in the community,” Zillman said.
Rebecca was more open to the idea initially, Zillman said.
I MARVELED AT HOW HE ALWAYS MADE TIME TO BE AT EVERYTHING.
John Kraus, friend
He was struggling with what it might be like to fall in love with a child, then let the child go, he said.
In September 2014, he preached a sermon on fear.
Over lunch that day, he and Rebecca talked once again about foster parenting and wrestled with a question through the lens of the sermon he had just preached …
“Is this something God is calling us to do?”
They believed it was, so they completed training and became foster parents.
Over six years, the Zillmans had nine foster children in and out of their home.
“The church fell in love with every child we brought in,”
Zillman said. “Every time one of the children left, three-fourths of the congregation was in tears. They walked through the fostering journey with us.”
The years of foster parenting led them to adoption.
God brought two forever children into their arms in 2020 – Marilyn and Marissa – while they were still in Boca Raton.
Zillman doesn’t want to think how different life might be if he’d said no to the move and stayed at Hobe Sound.
“We would not have Marilyn and Marissa in our lives today,” he said.
Once again this spring, a district superintendent called, this time about a potential move from Cypress Lake UMC, a growing church he has pastored since 2021.
Six hours before that call, Rebecca accepted a year term on the Parent Teacher Association (PTA) at the girls’ elementary school. Zillman had recently been elected to a two-year term on his Rotary club’s board of directors.
“We were planning to be connected in that community for a long time,” he said.
But once again, they talked and prayed and said yes.
Zillman found out a couple of days later that he would be coming to First UMC.
“I’m excited to see what God has for us here,” he said.
A similar question looms among congregation members at First UMC …
“What does God have for us in the new senior pastor?”
Energized by Relationships
When asked to share three things he strives to be, Zillman chose authentic, relational and one who leads by example.
“He is one of the most genuine and deeply caring people I know,” said The Rev. Chris Schmidt, senior pastor at Parrish UMC. “He demonstrates this not only with his words, but more importantly, his actions. Marcus shows up. If the need arises, I know he is someone I can count on.”
Zillman designates Thursday as his community day, often spent “pushing a trash can, giving fist bumps to
Marcus Zillman
the children, just helping out” at the elementary school.
Wherever he might serve in Lakeland, know this: He would love to have you join him.
“When someone who writes a check gets involved, they will write a bigger check and they will want to get even more involved,” he said. “Because their hearts have been touched.”
“We’re called to go out and love, go out and serve,” he said. “Not just talking about it but actually doing it.”
Involvement leads to investment, Zillman said.
The Rev. Mark Caldwell has known Zillman since they were fraternity brothers and active in campus ministry together at Florida Southern College.
“I find his dedication to pastoral care truly inspiring and his managerial skills impressive,” said Caldwell, senior pastor at North Naples Church. “We share stories and I love to hear his laughter as I embellish yet another story that I am telling him. (First Lakeland) is going to love his presence, his smile, his encouragement and his faith.”
Authenticity matters deeply, Zillman said.
“I get energized by relationships,” he said. “I love being with people. I love sharing stories.”
Zillman said he wants to empower and encourage the
Wife: Rebecca, married 24 years
Daughters: Marilyn, age 9, Marissa, 8
Florida Southern class of 1994
Emory University Candler School of Theology class of 1997
laity and staff at First UMC “to do the ministry that’s before us.”
“I want to be the number one cheerleader.”
When he arrives, he plans to spend time listening to the congregation. He has also discussed forming small groups of First UMC members to hear their perspectives on the church and their hopes for its future.
The focus will be on Jesus, he said.
“It’s amazing what happens when we keep Jesus as the primary focus of who we are and we desire to model and reflect the light and love and grace of Jesus Christ,” Zillman said.
He described Cypress Lake UMC as a sandbox.
“We have people right of center who have learned from people left of center,” he said. “They’re in small groups together, listening to one another, respecting one another. About 70-80 percent of the church members come together really in the center. We can learn and respect holiness, learn and respect justice, learn and respect service.
“At a church of (First Lakeland’s) size we have people all over the spectrum. That’s exciting. That’s the Kingdom of God. The key for us is to respect one another and desire to reflect the light and love of Jesus Christ. That’s why we’re different than a service organization. We have Jesus as our center. We have that mandate to go out and love and do and serve.”
Zillman said he loves the United Methodist Church’s commitment to diversity.
“We desire to be a welcoming place, we desire to be a place where all people can walk in the door and hopefully be touched by the love and transforming grace of Jesus Christ,” he said. “That’s a beautiful thing.”
“Service over Self”
Midway through his sophomore year at Florida Southern, Zillman found himself reflecting on his life at the end of
Pastoral Service
Cherry Lake (FL) UMC and Greenville (FL) UMC, two-point charge, 1997-2000
Groveland UMC, 2000-2003
Chaplain at the University of Miami, 2003-2009
Hobe Sound UMC, 2009-2014
First UMC Boca Raton, 2014-2021
Cypress Lake UMC, Fort Myers, 2021-2026
a candlelight Christmas Eve service.
“I was watching the candle flicker, thinking ‘I’m missing something in my life and it’s God,’” he said.
He had been a leader in the youth group at East Naples UMC during high school but drifted during his first three semesters at Florida Southern, focusing on fraternity life and student government, he said.
He left that Christmas Eve service determined to rekindle the flame of his faith and he did, becoming actively involved in the campus ministry.
HE IS ONE OF THE MOST GENUINE AND DEEPLY CARING PEOPLE I KNOW.
Over those last five semesters, Zillman went from someone who had never heard of seminary to deciding between attending seminary at Emory University in Atlanta or Duke University in Durham, N.C. He graduated from Florida Southern in 1994 with a degree in Business Administration, and it was off to Atlanta.
“I chose to go to Emory because the Olympics were going to be in Atlanta in 1996,” Zillman said, with a laugh. “And the Braves were there. I love baseball.”
He’s a diehard Chicago Cubs fan.
He is also a devoted Miami Hurricanes fan — sorry, Gator and Seminole fans.
From 2003 to 2009, Zillman served in campus ministry at the University of Miami in Coral Gables. Along with pastoring and mentoring students, he was often asked to deliver invocations at campus events and always said yes.
“I knew how to do an invocation,” he said. “Some pastors get out there in front of a whole bunch of people and try to preach a sermon for their prayer. I did a nice 40-50 second invocation. I didn’t try to preach. And I did it in a very inclusive way.”
Zillman does not preach from a manuscript. Instead, he prepares throughout the week using this model:
• Monday and Tuesday – study and sermon preparation
• Wednesday – write a detailed outline
• Thursday through Saturday – internalize the message
“People say, ‘You must have a great memory,’” he said. “I have a terrible memory. I just internalize the sermons.”
Zillman sees his Sunday sermons as “one of the first offerings I give God each week.”
Saying yes to seminary meant meeting Rebecca in 1998. Zillman’s roommate while at Emory married Rebecca’s sister that year, and they met at the wedding. He was 24. She was 18. Two years later, they met up again, began dating and were married in 2002.
“If you think that Marcus sounds great, just wait until you meet Rebecca and their daughters,” Caldwell said.
Kraus speaks of Rebecca’s behind-the-scenes involvement in the life of the church and its affiliated preschool.
“(First Lakeland) got the deal of a lifetime getting that family through one hire,” Kraus said. He said he wonders at times if Zillman is “a secret triplet.”
“I marveled at how he always made time to be at everything.”
When all of Fort Myers was scrambling after a devastating hit from Hurricane Ian in September 2022, Zillman reached out faithfully to check on congregation members, including Kraus who owns a couple of Dairy Queen franchises. He loaded up the family van with gallons of soft serve ice cream mix and pounds of chicken strips and helped move them across town to a working cooler.
“Service over self, every chance he got,” Kraus said. “Life isn't about the fancy programs or even the pin drop sermons. It's about having a human being that understands he serves a God that is greater than all of the details individually and (embodies) every day what love is through his steady action. That is who Marcus is.”
John Kraus (Friend in disguise)
The Rev. Chris Schmidt
Our LOCAL MISSION Partners
THE REV. MARCUS ZILLMAN DESIGNATES THURSDAYS AS HIS Community day.
Rev. Zillman makes sure to get outside the walls of the church each week to put Christian love in action (1 John 3:18) by serving.
Instead of a traditional gift (like a gift card) for the incoming senior pastor, why not give the gift of joining him in serving others?
Pick a date of the week and make it your day to serve!
We are blessed to be in partnership with so many amazing ministries around Lakeland and beyond.
Here’s information on how you can get involved with some of them.
If you feel called serve in other ways, please contact Forrest White, director of missions, via email (fwhite@firstumc.org)
Better Together — We had an enormously successful job fair on April 23, 2026, with 553 jobseekers on campus, 107 of whom were offered jobs. There were 17 employers and 12 resource agencies in attendance along with 51 volunteers from First UMC. It was the largest in-person job fair in the 10-year history of Better Together Jobs. We have set two dates to partner with Better Together for additional job fairs – Oct 22, 2026, and April 22, 2027. If you’d like to join First’s job fair team, please email team leader Barbara Herr (herrb2@verizon.net). You don’t have to wait until October to help with this partner’s mission! You can serve now with the Better Together Families component, which keeps families together – and children out of foster care by providing them with a temporary loving home — while helping parents work to build a better life. For more information contact Forrest White (fwhite@firstumc.org). Website: bettertogetherus.org
Blessings and Hope Food Pantry — Provides food to families via Tuesday morning distributions. Volunteers can help with car line, food distribution, sorting, and paperwork. Contact: Pastor Alan Fretto, blessingsandhopefoodpantry@gmail.com Website: www.blessingsandhope.org
Dream Center of Lakeland — Exists to bring hope to neighbors in need through service, resources, and education. In addition to neighborhood outreach and cleanup, it offers Kids’ Club to children around Lakeland as well as a weekly food distribution. To serve contact: Mike Cooper, mcooper@dreamcenterlakeland.org Website: www.dreamcenterlakeland.org
Gospel Inc. — Christ-centered community providing a home and micro-enterprise work opportunity to the formerly homeless at Gospel Village. Help with food pantry, community dinners, campus serve days. To serve email info@gospelinc.org Website: www.gospelinc.org
KidsPack — Provides a backpack of nutritious food each Friday to sustain children who do not have access to subsidized school meals over the weekend. Website: www.kidspack.org. We pack meals for children on the first Wednesday of each month (Sept-May) at 4pm in the Welcome Center (setup at 9am). Contact: Skip Stevenson (safetyskip@gmail.com)
Lakeland Volunteers in Medicine (LVIM) — Does not require medical training. Needs include greeters, translators, admin helpers in addition to those medically trained. To serve contact: Eva Hawkins, ehawkins@lvim.net Website: www.lvim.net
Lighthouse Ministries — “Set apart by the Spirit of God to communicate the Gospel of Jesus Christ to meet the physical, emotional and other needs of the poor and at-risk population.” To serve email: volunteer@lighthousemin.org. Website: www.lighthousemin.org
Migrant Ministries – Serve with RCMA Mulberry Community Academy. Classroom support, administrative help, unique events. Contact: Dani Higgins, Principal (dani.higgins@rcma.org)
Options for Women — Opportunities range from being a patient advocate to playing host to a baby shower to yard work to helping around the office or at a clinic. To serve call: 863-682-5763. Website: www.ofwsupport.com
Peace River Center — Volunteers play a vital role in offering services to survivors of sexual violence and domestic violence. Background screening, drug testing, and training required. To serve email: Volunteer@PeaceRiverCenter.org Website: www.peacerivercenter.org
Philip O’Brien Elementary School –
Read to kindergartners, serve in a classroom or the office, provide food for a teacher/staff breakfast, help with campus cleanups or with book fairs at our partner
elementary school. Contact one our O’Brien passion team leaders – Joleen Golden (joleengolden@yahoo.com) or Ann Skellenger (abraham409@aol.com)
Redefining Our Abilities and Relationships (ROAR) Florida — Formerly Noah’s Ark, ROAR exists to provide meaningful lifestyle options and housing for people with intellectual or developmental disabilities. To serve contact: Katie Orso, katie@roarflorida. org. First UMC members play games with residents each Tuesday morning. We also transport residents to worship here each Sunday. Website: www.roarflorida.org
Salvation Army — Offering more than a dozen programs for children and adults of all ages with various needs (mental, spiritual, physical), as well as disaster recovery and holiday assistance. To serve contact: Kayla Keen, Kayla.Keen@uss.salvationarmy.org Website: www.lakeland.salvationarmyflorida.org
Senior Orphans — For more than 25 years, providing for the immediate, daily needs of seniors on a fixed income of less than $600 a month. Recipients are screened through qualified local agencies. To serve call Bev Cornelius at 863-859-6547
Sunrise Community — Offering a wide variety of services with a common goal of treating adults with disabilities with dignity, respect, and compassion. To serve in Bartow contact: Bartow@ SunriseGroup.org Website: www. sunrisegroup.org/locations/florida
CONTINUED NEXT PAGE
Our Local Ministry Partners
Talbot House — Restoring hope and empowering homeless men and women in Polk County to achieve self-sufficiency through food, shelter, free medical and dental care, residential recovery programs, employment training and placement, and affordable housing opportunities. Volunteers can help with admin tasks as well as programs. Also doing outreach to homeless encampments. To serve email: assist@talbothouse.net Website: www.talbothouse.net
Volunteers in Service to the Elderly (VISTE) — Serving people 70 and older. Transportation, monthly commodity boxes, hot meals, and wheelchair ramps are some of the programs served by volunteers who help clients remain in their home and preserve their dignity. To serve contact: Terri Selz, volunteer coordinator (Terri@viste.org) Website: www.viste.org
Create Your Legacy
PLAN FOR YOUR FUTURE
Including First United Methodist Church in your estate plans may allow you to do more than you thought possible while also fulfilling your personal and financial goals
Many legacy gifts can offer tax advantages and help you maintain flexibility as you plan for the future.
Learn more about:
Bequest Gifts
Gifts from Retirement Plans
Charitable Lead Trusts
ORGAN
Gifts of appreciated stocks, mutual funds, or real estate held for more than a year, may provide meaningful benefits while strengthening the mission of First UMC Lakeland today These assets can be donated outright, or used to make a gift that also provides income
Learn more about:
Gifts of Securities
Gifts of Real Estate
Qualified Charitable Distributions
Donor Advised Funds
RESTORATION FUND 2026
Giving opportunities that continue the mission of First United Methodist Church Lakeland for generations to come.
RECEIVE INCOME AS YOU GIVE
A life-income gift such as a charitable gift annuity or charitable trust can provide future support for First UMC Lakeland while also offering payments to you or your loved ones, and tax benefits
Learn more about:
Charitable Gift Annuities
Charitable Remainder Trusts
Charitable Remainder Annuity Trusts
To discuss gift planning, please contact Rev Patrick Hamrick, Pastor of Church Administration, at phamrick@firstumc.org or 863-686-3163, ext. 213
For generations, the pipe organ at First United Methodist Church of Lakeland, valued at over $2 million, has helped lead our congregation in worship, celebration, remembrance, and ment so it can
Sandy Sheets Lori Nadglowski Susan Chandler
Sandy Sheets (Chair), Susan Chandler, Ben Darby, Kitt Elliott, Wade Harvey, Bettye Hunter, Lori Nadglowski, Bill Schichtel & Rev Patrick Hamrick
