Thank You
19 years ago I was sitting in church one Sunday morning at Jefferson Church of Christ. I don’t recall anything that seemed different about that morning other than Patrick was speaking, not our senior minister. But then I realized that this was no ordinary Sunday morning. Patrick started using phrases like “church planting”, “Reaching a new community”, “church in Pfafftown” and “we need people to join a launch team.” I had never heard of “church planting” before. I was 12 years old at the time and went to a church that was founded in the 1800’s as I assumed all churches had been. The Pfafftown part intrigued me as my family was in the process of moving to Pfafftown, so the practical part of me thought that it would just make sense to join the launch team for this new church in the same town where we were moving to.
I remember being excited during the service that day (to be honest, that wasn’t normal for me - a 12 year old that sat through the early service with my parents each Sunday.) I remember thinking I don’t really know what all this means, but I really think my family should be a part of it. So, in the car ride on the way home from church that day, I remember trying to casually bring it up to my parents, saying “So, you know how we are moving to Pfafftown this summer? It’s kind of cool they are planting that church there as well. What else do you know about this new church? Do you think we will be a part of the launch team since we already will be living in Pfafftown?” I’m sure I played it as cool as I remember it in my head and my parents had no idea I was in the back seat playing chess while they were playing checkers.
To my surprise, my parents had already decided our family would be a part of the launch team for Bridges Church. I had no idea that day what God would do over the next 19 years in and through Bridges Church to impact my life.
I could go on and on for a long time talking about the people that God has put in my life through Bridges Church that helped me understand what it looks like to follow Jesus. I can’t begin to fully explain how the opportunities and the trust placed in me to lead the Youth Group and Family Ministry has helped shape who I am today in ways I am understanding more and more everyday. Maybe the greatest impact Bridges has had on my life came in the form of teenagers. The ways they challenged me by asking hard questions, encouraged me by living lives that exemplified Christ, and pushed me to be a better teacher, mentor, and leader have made me a better version of myself.
All of that is why I am writing this next part with a lot of mixed emotions. After taking a lot of intentional time over the last month to pray and listen to what God is doing in my life now, I have decided to resign as the Family Pastor here at Bridges Church. My family and I will continue to attend, serve and worship at Bridges, I will just no longer be filling the role as the Family Pastor.
When I was in High School I felt called to work with students in some capacity. Youth Ministry was very much on the table as an option, but so were other avenues that I was passionate about pursuing. After college and getting married, it was quite clear to me and my wife that youth ministry was what God was calling me to do vocationally. However, at some point over the last 10 years that calling and my vocational job at church merged together without me realizing it. While I really enjoy working with the children’s ministry and with the facilities team at Bridges, my passion and calling has always been with students, but now the youth ministry at Bridges looks a lot different than it used to. After taking some time to reflect I’ve realized that in my other job I am actually able to live out my calling of working with students. Granted this is in a different way than I have at church, but it is time to embrace my calling through that job and really lean into my passions and giftedness there.
I don’t know what role, if any, I will ever have again in youth ministry, but the time I spent in it at Bridges has been the most rewarding and fruitful experience of my life so far. So thank you to each and every parent who over the years entrusted me and Jill with your students. Thank you to each Family Ministry volunteer who gave your time, energy and gifts to investing in the next generation. Thank you to each student for showing up, being open to hearing what God wanted to say to you, trusting that I was on your team and believing that I was for you even if we had to have some hard conversations occasionally. Thank you to the leadership team for trusting an inexperienced kid like me to lead the youth group but most importantly for investing in me so I could invest back into those students. And a big thank you to each of you for supporting and praying for me and my family and my ministry here at Bridges. It was felt and much needed. I could not have asked for a better support system.
We will continue to be in communication with parents and volunteers as we work through building out a transition plan and make decisions about what is next for the Family Ministry. We are all committed to transitioning well and making sure we take the time needed to train new leaders and have good conversations about the future of an important ministry of the church. Your prayers and support are needed as we seek discernment and wisdom about next steps for the ministry.
Thank you all again for everything you have done and will continue to do to support me and my family. Life has many seasons, and a really good one for my family is ending, but we are so glad to enter into this next season worshiping and serving alongside you all.