Hello, Goodbye

Hello, Goodbye

June 26, 2016


This week has been an emotional roller coaster.  We started the week saying yes to a new congregation and ministry.  We ended the week bystarting to say goodbye to another.  Now we begin the long process in ministry of moving from one to the other.

We made the very emotional announcement to the congregation here at First Christian Church.  It did not help that they had planned a birthday celebration for me for after service.  There were tears, kind words and prayer.  Some were shocked, a couple were not surprised.  

We had the elders and wives over for dinner last night to break the news to them - it was hard, much harder than I thought.  We said goodbye to another congregation eleven years ago.  One would think it gets easier.  It does not, and I don't think I would much like myself if it did become easier.  Paul's farewell to the Ephesian elders comes to mind:

"And when he had said these things, he knelt down and prayed with them all. And there was much weeping on the part of all; they embraced Paul and kissed him, being sorrowful most of all because of the word he had spoken, that they would not see his face again. And they accompanied him to the ship." 
-- Acts 20:36-38

It will be several weeks before we leave.  There will be more opportunities for saying goodbye.  I'm going to miss a lot of people.  For some reason I'm thinking about the kids at LJHS and Fergus High.  I'm really going to miss them.  But for right now...

Hello Crossville, Goodbye Lewistown

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