Transitions

Well, it's really official- today at closing session of Annual Conference, my name appeared under my new church on the 2012-2013 appointment list.  This has been a really busy few months, hence the lack of blogging.  Corey and I learned of our new appointment, my 2nd grandmother died, we have celebrated the weddings of two couples who are good friends of ours, Corey and I are getting a grant for his education debt, I went on a fantastic trip to New York, and above all, we are packing, packing, packing.

I've decided that transitioning out of a church is like going through the basic stages of grief (although probably not as intense!).  There is the denial, anger, sadness, and acceptance (and not necessarily in that order!)  I have felt all of these feelings and more.  I told Corey at one point that at times it's felt like I am breaking up with someone!  The question I keep getting asked is, "Are you excited?"  Well, excited isn't really the word I would use.  Anxious, yes.  Nervous, yes.  Scared, yes.  Scared of feeling isolated in a rural setting, scared of getting bored, scared of not knowing the ins and outs of being an only pastor, scared I'll mess something up out of ignorance or not being prepared.  Scared that Corey won't find a job that he loves, and even worse, that he won't find a job at all.  I feel guilt that we are being uprooted from a stable environment.  You name it, I've felt it.

So now our floors are covered in boxes, the walls are getting bare, and our things are getting packed away for our new life in Morgantown.  Who knows what the future holds, who we will meet, where this new adventure will take us?    There are things I'm looking forward to, such as preaching every week, starting something new, not having sole responsibility of a praise team (which has worn me out for now!), our beautiful new house, being a little closer to Indy and Bloomington, especially when my parents come to visit, and I'm looking forward to the challenge of becoming a better church leader on my own.  I am grateful for those who have mentored me up to this point, and who will continue to be there for me and mentor me through this new journey.  I look forward to the new people and situations I will encounter, and the things I will certainly learn from them.

Today at the ordination service the Bishop's sermon was called, "But If Not..."(MLK Jr. preached a sermon with the same title right before he died BTW), and our bishop focused on the story of Shadrach, Meshach, and Abindego in Daniel- that when they were thrown into the fire, they said that they would pray to be saved, "but if not," they would still be faithful to God.  That should be our attitude and prayer for our lives in ministry...we hope that we would be the pastor that could be all things to all people.....but if not...we will still be faithful...we would hope that all the people we serve would love all the sermons we preach ;)...but if not...we will still be faithful to our call and to God...we would hope that the bishop and cabinet would send us to appointments that are a perfect fit, perfect geography, would provide opportunities for our spouses...BUT IF NOT...we will still be faithful to God and our call.

I needed to hear that today....