Pastor's Blog: While I'm Away
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My sabbatical leave begins this coming Sunday. As I’ve written earlier, I see this opportunity as a “time out, time off, and time away.” My hope is that I’ll return more revigorated for the work that we have before us at MBBC. But while I’m away there are some things I’d ask you to do.
One, please support our staff. As you are well aware, our church is blessed with a gifted staff. I’ve done my best over the years to empower them to develop their gifts and callings and so I am supremely confident that they are more than able to hold the fort down during my absence. But they will need your help. One way you can help them is to be present in worship as much as you can. I know the summer months are times when people are in and out of town (which is why I scheduled my sabbatical for this period of time), but your presence in worship when you’re home will be a great source of encouragement to them. Plus, we can anticipate guests on most Sundays, even in these summer months, and the majority of our guests will be present with an eye to finding a church home. You can understand how strong attendance will enable us to make the best impression on them and represent our church’s vitality.
Secondly, please remember our church with your financial support. As we move into the summer months, we’re a tad behind last year’s giving to this point in 2019. Fortunately, we have managed our expenses to where our cash flow is still positive, but if our summer slump becomes too great, our ministry efforts could be constrained – a possibility none of us wants and one that we have the power to prevent. I made the decision way back at the first of the year to initiate a bank draft that enables me to honor my ministry plan pledge each Sunday so that even over these ten weeks when I’m away, I’ll still be supporting our church’s ministries. I invite you to consider doing the same. While we may be gone, the demands of our ministry plan still go on.
Lastly, please pray for Judy and me. Pray that we will have a restful time and be renewed for the years ahead. Pray that as I read and study and visit other churches that I will glean insights that will bless my leadership in our church for the opportunities that are before us.
Again, I will be back for the two guest speakers we will host on June 16 and 23. Until then, consider these three requests so that the coming weeks will be profitable ones for us all and our church will not miss a beat in honoring our commitments to God, to one another, and to the good future we all believe He has for us to know.
“May the LORD keep watch between you and me when we are away from each other” (Genesis 31:49).