Dear Saints,
I am writing to you again to give you some insight into the hearts and minds of the Pastors and the Session as they have the joy of being the under shepherds of the Lord, keeping watch over the flock of God for which Christ died. This is an awesome and fearful call that is totally dependent on grace! The Lord is the Chief Shepherd and the Head of the Church, which is his body.
Therefore, I want to talk to you about plans, pastors, and providence. By faith, we believe the Lord is doing in us what pleases him while we are making plans. So, whether we are reacting or pro-active, God is leading. Proverb 16:1 and 9 shows us these twin truths when it says, “The plans of the heart belong to man, but the answer of the tongue is from the Lord.” (Pr.16:1) and “The heart of man plans his way, but the Lord establishes his steps.” (Pr. 16:9) God is always accomplishing his will as we are making our plans.
In 2019, while we were making the Pastoral Transition Plan and thinking we were providing cost-saving measures that would last through 2023, God was at work bringing about growth in young families, children, and young adults. Having pastors retire and replacing them with part-time staff, and hiring Joshua Suh as an associate, we fulfilled the objectives of the transition plan. Now new plans were made to respond to the growth God had given us.
Now 5 years after the plan was set in motion, we have been blessed to be a growing congregation with new emerging needs, gifts, and talents than we had in 2019. We currently have 59 children under the age of 10, 70 young people between the ages of 10 and 19, and 23 young adults. Along with these children and young people, there are their parents, totaling approximately 104 individuals. Now when we were thinking of reducing payroll by hiring non-pastoral staff, were we planning for this to be a permanent staffing solution, while simultaneously working and praying for growth?
Now there are those who believe a church should grow to staff while others believe a church should staff for growth. We embrace the latter. We made plans and the Lord established our steps in beautiful ways. And we are commanded to disciple these children, young people, young adults, and families to obey all that Christ commands. Each of these souls has gifts that need developing. Our workers in both the youth and music have done amazingly well in filling these roles for the last four years. But the plan wasn’t that these people would go on in perpetuity fulfilling these roles. For even while those workers have been a tremendous blessing serving the church, there were gaps in shepherding, and areas of ministry that were underserved.
In response to this, over the last three years the Pastors and Session, seeing the growth and trying to listen to those workers filling the shoes of the retired pastors, began the search for shepherding help. The pastors, along with a group of selected ministry leaders and stakeholders, have interviewed, networked, prayed, and pursued an Assistant Pastor for Youth and Families and a Worship Director/and or pastor. After three years of planning and praying, the Lord provided, Rob Wolfe as Assistant Pastor of Youth and Family and John Stephens as Worship Director. In our hearts we were planning our way, but the Lord was establishing our steps. We can’t escape his leading and we don’t want to!
Now someone might say, “But why fund more pastors?” This is a valid question since years ago a survey revealed that there were some who thought we shouldn’t have more pastors. However, we were funding staff, nonetheless. But you ask, “So why pastors instead of workers?” Pastors are gifts from Christ that are called to equip. Ephesians 4:11-12 reads, “And he [Christ] gave the apostles, the prophets, the evangelists, the shepherds [pastors] and teachers, to equip the saints for the work of ministry, for building up the body of Christ…” Do you see? Pastors are gifts from Christ that are called to equip. So, once again the plans of the heart belong to man, good plans, plans that were working for a while, but the answer of the tongue is from the Lord. (Prov. 16:1) This leads us to believe that hiring a pastor and a worship director is not the wrong thing nor is it going against the plan, but we are responding to the grace of the Lord leading us in fulfilling his vision.
The growth that we pursue isn’t numbers, but Christlikeness. Ephesians 4:13 explains the work of pastors, “…until we all attain to the unity of the faith and of the knowledge of the Son of God, to mature manhood, to the measure of the stature of the fullness of Christ.” So, you see, we staff for growth! And if the Lord is pleased to add to the church such as should be saved, we are ready to receive them and disciple them into the image of Christ.
Brothers and sisters, it is a glorious time to be in the body of Christ at 350 McKee Rd. And as your shepherds, it is a joy to watch what the Lord is doing in his people. We press on along with you, in making plans that we submit to the Lord so that he may establish our steps.
Will you join us in a Town Hall Meeting on September 1 after the service to talk further about these plans and the future of Grace Church? Come prayerfully and joyfully in anticipation of the Lord giving the reply of all our tongues in praise of his great name. Amen?
Kenny Foster, Associate Pastor
On behalf of the Session