Month: August 2023

The two week notice is in and we’re off and running.  As you may already know, my two week notice was to a congregation of about 50 people.  Yup, I’m a pastor. 

The difference is we own the church building, lock, stock and barrel as they say.  We’ve become overwhelmed with caregiving responsibilities, personal responsibilities and retirement age issues.  Our biggest challenge is taking care of my mother and father, who are 85 and 90 respectively.

Our mission is to Love God – Build Relationships – Change Lives.  Part of this mission is to maintain the current events at the church, yet not host Sunday service.

I’ve found as a pastor, your next Sunday’s sermon starts as soon as you walk out of the church on the Sunday after you’ve preached.  The next sermon seems to be a haunting, nagging feeling pastors must deal with as the week goes on.  What to say.  How to say it.  Who are we talking to, and so on. 

I admire pastors who have all this under control, but right now my wife and I are totally overwhelmed, so we are taking a break from Sunday service. We will continue hosting support and fellowship events; Ladies Group twice each month, Circle of Hope support group, Pastor’s Lunch and the Mens’ Group.

That will be the extent of our involvement with the church for now.  We don’t want to close the church; we need to step back from the Sunday goings on.  Additionally, I’ve ordained six men and two women to be pastors, and we’ve grown several people to be church leaders.  This way the congregation can decide if Sunday service continues.

When I gave my notice, people in the church stepped up to take over pastoring and running the church which made me feel wonderful.  I can’t wait to see how the church will flourish in the coming months without me at the helm.  God is so good!  ALL the time.  He will ultimately decide what happens with the church.  Your comments are greatly appreciated. GB    

This morning I woke up next to a lake in Missouri.  No worries, no cares, just sitting on the southern deck watching the fish jump.  As the sun starts warming this July summer day I had to retreat to the air conditioning while still sitting facing the water surrounding our small cabin on the lake. 

Is this retirement?  It surely feels good.  No worries, other than how soon to return to civilization, which is only a few hours away.  For me retirement is not having to rush to the next thing and having and having time to watch the fish, or the next flock of birds fly over without saying “gotta get ready to go.” 

There are so many things God puts in front of us that I feel we are in such a hurry or so preoccupied that we miss His beauty.  His beauty is all around us and He tries to show His beauty as other things fight for our attention.  Some of those things make us upset and keep us from His glory. 

Sure, there are compelling reasons to be upset and not like something that is going on the world, but we cannot let it get into our bubble; the space where our thoughts and emotions lie. That is your space and something you can control.