This
past Sunday the congregation presented my family and me with a basketful of
cards and Cincinnati Reds themed gifts for Pastor Appreciation Month, which our
congregation has aptly renamed Pastor and Family Appreciation Month. We were very touched as we read through the
cards and letters that afternoon. We
were very appreciative of the gifts that were enclosed within some of the
cards, but the words of appreciation were of much more value to us. I am being completely truthful with you in
saying that, while the congregations I served previously were wonderful, this particular
congregation has done the best job of making a pastor feel welcome and
appreciated that I can imagine. In
return, I’d like to tell you and any other readers of this blog how much I
appreciate this congregation.
A
lot! Okay, maybe I’ll expand on that a
little.
My
appreciation for this congregation began before I was even called to serve you
as your pastor. During the interview
process I sensed very early on that the Pastor Nominating Committee was
different than others with whom I was in conversation. This group exuded trust in God that
regardless of what happened they were in God’s hands, and they knew what they
were looking for in a pastor. They
seemed to be on the same page, which was not true of most PNCs with whom I had
spoken. They seemed to care about my
family before they even knew us. More than
anything else, I came to appreciate this congregation (through the PNC) when
Christy Wall directly contacted Danielle and communicated with her. Very few churches would have done that. If you’re glad I’m here, which at least the
people who wrote cards seem to be, then you have not only God to thank for that
but Christy Wall. As the old saying
goes, “If momma ain’t happy, ain’t nobody happy.” Christy’s emails and calls made Danielle very
happy. Christy’s gesture of
communication and hospitality showed that this congregation sees Danielle as
her own person, not just the pastor’s wife.
Danielle never wanted to be a pastor’s wife. I kind of sprung that on her after we’d
already been married a couple of years.
Just as I’ve never grown into the traditional role of pastor, she has
never grown into the traditional role of the pastor’s wife. Personally, I’m glad for that. We can be misfits together.
In
addition to the PNC, every single minute of work that was done on the manse in preparation
for a new pastor was an act that showed appreciation for whoever was
coming. When we walk around in the house,
we know that you appreciate us. The only
other manse I lived in was quite nice, but I have been in a lot of manses in
which not one elder on the session of that church would have been willing to
live but they expected their pastor and the pastor’s family to live there as
some sort of vow of Christian poverty.
That is not the case with this congregation. My family and I appreciate this greatly.
I
could go on all day about what I appreciate about this congregation, but I don’t
have all day. So I’m just going to throw
out a kind of random list.
I
appreciate this congregation because…
Those
of you who stuck around through the tough years didn’t give up on the ministry
of this congregation when you could have and when others did.
You
respect my days off (Saturday and Monday), but you know that if there is an
emergency that you can and should call me no matter what day it is.
You
don’t act like the manse is just part of the church for you to use however you
want. You treat it as though it is our
house.
You
actually listen to my sermons. I put in
a lot of work on those. It is terribly
disheartening when you work hard all week and then people don’t seem to care
while you’re preaching. You seem to
care.
You
are open to seeing the Christian faith in different ways. I’ve been very encouraged by our congregation’s
openness to new ideas. A lot of small
town congregations wouldn’t be that way.
This congregation has a lot of open-minded people who don’t feel the
need to have answers to everything. I
appreciate that more than you’ll ever know.
You
think of us at certain times of the year when it is difficult for us to be away
from family. You invite us into your
homes and support us whenever we feel the need to make a visit back home.
Even
after two years you still ask us questions like, “Do you really like it
here? Are you all doing okay?” Just the fact that you care makes me want to
hug you when you do that.
You
love and accept our kids. As you’ve
probably heard, being a pastor’s kid can be a pretty tough gig. You don’t treat them any differently than the
other kids. You don’t expect them to be
saints.
You
care about people in need. You’re not
always in agreement as to how that care should be lived out, but you do
care. A lot of pastors have to push that
on a congregation. I don’t have to do
that; you all are more generous than I am.
You
have made worship music a priority. I’ve
been to churches in which the music is neglected or just plain bad. It doesn’t matter how good the prayers and
sermons are in a worship service if the music is bad. People will suffer through bad sermons for
good music, but people don’t usually suffer through bad music for good
sermons. I truly appreciate Dick and the
whole music staff. They set the tone for worship, which is of utmost importance.
Again,
I could go on and on, but I won’t. I
just want you to know that
MY
FAMILY AND I APPRECIATE YOU TOO!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
