Dear Peace Community,
Greetings on this fine Friday morning! This new Interim Pastor survived his first morning of worship last Sunday, and then gathered the very next day to meet with the Transition Team. We’re off and running!
At that initial meeting, we discussed the importance of doing our work slowly and carefully, without rushing through it. The immediate work ahead is not simply about “filling a position” but rather it’s about “catching a vision” of God’s Spirit leading us forward. Calling a pastor is important work, and we want to make sure the congregation has done its homework before extending a call!
This means that the Transition Team, Church Council, and entire congregation will spend some time doing three simple things: 1) Honoring the past, 2) Exploring the present, and 3) Looking to the future. In other words… We’ll ask questions about our history and the decisions that were made that brought us to this current moment. And we’ll also look at this current moment and the membership, programs, and activities that comprise our current ministry. Finally, we’ll dream together about where we imagine God is taking us in the future so that we can call a leader who will help us get there. As the old saying goes, “If you don’t know where you’re going, then it doesn’t really matter where you end up!” Proverbs 29:18 puts it a different way: “Without vision, the people perish.” And we’ll accomplish all of this TOGETHER, through one-on-one visits, small group conversations, large group gatherings, and written surveys.
I’m excited about the process ahead, with the next step taking place this Sunday morning when we’ll gather as we always do to pray, to sing, to hear God’s Word, to share in Holy Communion, and then gather in the Parish Hall for conversation. And in the sermon we’ll explore what it means to be surprised by God… in surprising ways… that surprise us daily. I’m looking forward to seeing you there!
God’s Peace,
Pastor Jeff Engholm
P.S. All of the above is why we’re referring to this leadership group as a “Transition Team” rather than a “Call Committee.” In these early stages of our work, we want to focus on the work of the “transition” before turning our attention to the work of calling the next pastor.