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A Message from Pastor Jeff,
Dear Sisters and Brothers in Christ,
After worship Sunday I leave for Louisville for
a Seminar entitled, “New Vision for the Long
Pastorate.” Before attending I’m to write a
couple of papers reflecting on my ministry with
you here in Pickerington these last seven plus
years. It has me thinking! At dinner several
months ago, a member remarked, “You’ve only been
here seven years, it feels like forever.” She
said it as a compliment! Others may think:
“seven plus years – will we ever be rid of him!”
After all we get rid of presidents after eight
years. Next year I’ll be into my third cycle of
a three-year lectionary; I often ask myself,
“Have I told that story before, have I used that
quote recently?” I wonder, “Can I offer a fresh
word to you who have heard me often?”
We’ve traveled a long road together: some I’ve
confirmed are now married; others who I came to
love moved away, joined another church or died.
I’ve held your hands and prayed with you. You
applauded when I announced my engagement to Sue
and many helped with the wedding, you prayed
with and supported both of us when we each lost
our mothers.
There are more of us now than when I arrived and
we’re a more diverse lot. One thing that drew
me to POP was the age diversity – when I look
out on so many congregations they look the same
– some churches are filled with gray and bald
heads while others seem to be all families and
children and not a senior in sight. The
spanning of ages that brought me delight when I
first arrived has expanded to include diversity
of race and culture. I see the scripture “they
will come from east and west and from north and
south and sit at table in the kingdom of God”
lived out in our common life.
The
Pastor Search Committee affirmed my prior
mission experience saying the congregation
wanted to get more involved in mission. We have
– mission trips, POP Arts, Food Pantries,
Habitat, Red Cross and a host of other
opportunities. As we’ve grown we’ve also added
new ministries like the DOG and Bell Choirs and
Rockin’ Praise, Women’s Circles and dining out
groups. If it weren’t for dedicated volunteers
we would not have the white house for church
school and mission. These have been challenging
and growing years!
Where do we go from here? Where will our
journey together take us? What new ministries
does God ask us to accept? What new challenges
need to be faced? Are we willing to work
together in patience and love, can we accept the
changes, the divided votes, the set backs as
well as the successes? And are we willing to
risk or sacrifice for Christ’s church here in
Pickerington? We’ve got challenges before us –
in worship, regarding building and location, and
growth and program issues! As I reflect and
pray for God’s guidance for the years ahead I
invite you to join me in prayer and reflection.
Where will we be eight years from now!
God
Bless,
Pastor Jeff
Pastor's Words for July and August 2010
Dear Sisters and Brothers in Christ,
We worship God the
Father, Son and Holy Spirit as a diverse family
of believers, welcoming people of all ages,
cultures and abilities. We work together
to share God's love by word and service in our
community and beyond. We grow together in
faith through worship, study, and commitment to
helping those in need.
This is the new Vision
Statement for Prince of Peace approved by
Session at its June 15 meeting. The
process for a Vision Statement began with a
daylong session retreat with Presbytery
Executive Dana Knapp. A Vision Task Force
of elders, deacons and church members then met
nine times (twice with Dr. Knapp) studying
scripture, praying, reviewing area demographic
studies, reviewing mission and visioning study
materials and with the help of elders and
deacons gathering responses from over 70
worshipers during a Sunday service.
I came to really appreciate
this statement not when it was first written but
as I prepared the devotional for the June 15th
joint meeting of Session and Deacons. I
returned to a scripture the Task Force studied,
the Pentecost church in Acts 2. Here Luke
described the church:
They devoted themselves to
the apostles' teaching and fellowship, to the
breaking of bread and the prayers...All who
believed were together...they would give to all,
as any had need. Day by day, as they spent
much time together in the temple, they broke
bread in their homes and ate their food with
glad and generous hearts, praising God and
having the goodwill of all the people. And
day by day the Lord added to their number those
who were being saved.
Who were these early
Christians? Earlier Luke described those
who joined the first disciples as Parthians,
Medes, Elamites, and residents of Mesopotamia,
Judea and Cappadocia, Pontus and Asia, Phrygia,
and Pamphylia, Egypt...Libya...and visitors from
Rome, both Jews and proselytes, Cretans and
Arabs.
Now look at our Vision
Statement, it sounds downright Biblical does it
not! At the center of that diverse
community was worship and so our vision begins
with worship. Crucial to that community
was the apostles' teaching and crucial to our
vision is study. The Pentecost church grew
through acts of sharing and love and so we
affirm sharing and reaching out into the
community as the way we want to represent Christ
to our neighbors.
So on behalf of the Task
Force, Session and Board of Deacons I invite you
to receive this Vision Statement as a guide to
our life together; embrace it as a testimony to
the life we are to live as Christ's disciples in
this day and for this time. Join us
following worship on July 15 at a Town Hall
Meeting to hear in more depth what the Task
Force and Session learned and to ask questions
about the Vision Statement.
God Bless, Pastor Jeff
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