This week, I attended an onboarding session hosted by my annual conference. This is an event designed for pastors going to new appointments. Mainly, the time is meant to offer guidance for serving a new congregation.
Now, I appreciate what the event represents. There are many things to consider when going to a new church. And I know there are colleagues for whom this is a new journey.
Between you and me, I could have skipped it. I've had several new congregations over the years. And I hate to sound like the old guy who thinks he knows what he's doing and can't or doesn't want to learn anything new. I know I can, and am grateful for things I am still learning.
Still, experience matters.
More than that, though, I go to every appointment with the same posture. My mindset is not to get there and show those people what they're missing or doing wrong. I'm not there to stir the pot just to rile people up. I go with one leading mandate: Love the people you serve.
Love connects me to them in ways data and consultations don't. Love will guide what we do together and make room for us to grow in God's grace. Love. Love. Love.
Personally, I can testify that I have loved my congregations well. That is, I know I have offered myself to them in the most loving way I could. Tin Man showed me how I know.
We all remember when Dorothy was ready to say goodbye to her new friends. As she gives her "galvanized friend" his oil can, she kisses him on the cheek. He immediately realizes what the wizard warned him about. He says, "Now I know I've got a heart 'cause it's breaking."
This week, I'm preparing to say goodbye to another congregation that I have loved. This time it's people I've been with for 11 years. We have been through so much together, and God has blessed us in many ways. Now that our time together is drawing to a close, I know I have loved them because my heart is breaking.
Stay blessed...john
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Go be a blessing 🤗