A Letter to Memorial UMC

Dear Friends of Memorial UMC,

As many of you know, it was announced at the end of March that Corey and I will be moving to Morgantown, IN to start a new season of ministry in July. This is an emotional time for me.  It is a time of anxiety, facing the unknown, and grieving as we say goodbye to the wonderful people of Memorial UMC.  In my four years here, you all have taught me so much about what it means to be church, and what it means for me to be a pastor.  You all have allowed me into your lives, have given me room to grow, and we have done wonderful ministry together.  I want to thank each and every one of you for everything you do to make Memorial UMC such a wonderful place to call your church home.  Corey and I will certainly miss each and every one of you and will think of our time here as filled with wonderful memories and experiences.  Thank you for taking the journey with me.

This is also time yet again to think about the United Methodist system and what it means that we are a connectional church.  It is never easy for pastors and congregations to say goodbye to one another, especially when the church becomes such a big part of our lives.  However, I keep remembering the popular scripture from Ecclesiastes 3 which tells us, “For everything there is a season, and a time for every matter under heaven…a time to plant and a time to pluck up what is planted, a time to seek and a time to lose , a time to keep and a time to throw away.”  My season at Memorial may be ending, but this also means that a new season is beginning for both of us.  I will move onto another congregation where new seeds will be planted and new transformations will begin, and Memorial will enter into a new season as well where the possibilities will be endless.  I hope that we can see this as an exciting time as we continue to seek to make disciples of Jesus Christ for the transformation of the world.

I hope that you will be in prayer for Corey and me as we enter into this time of transition.  I am certainly holding this congregation in prayer as you enter into this new season of the church.  It’s like that old phrase, “Whenever God closes a door, somewhere God opens a window.”  May God open the windows wide for each of us during these exciting new seasons!