Dear Friends and Members of Watkins Glen Presbyterian Church:
As you know, an Interim position is always a temporary position. I have been blessed in my ministry with you these past 15 months or so. My last day in the office will be March 31, and my last day of service will be April 7.
In this interim time, you have said good-bye to Rev Bev, and sent her off to a good retirement. You worked through the developmental tasks of the interim period:
• coming to terms with your history,
• discovering who you are, as a church, right now,
• shifts in leadership,
• reconnecting with the denomination, both local and national,
and, your next task, which will be committing to your new pastoral leadership and a new future.
At the end of every worship service, I give both a charge, and a benediction. A charge is a word of instruction before we part, and a benediction (which means "good word") is a blessing to keep you until we meet again.
So here is my charge to you all:
Continue the race God has set before you. Give glory to God in all you do, in word and deed, and remember: remember your past, remember where you have seen God along the way, but do not get stuck in the past. Look forward, to new things, new ways of being the church, new ways of showing God’s love in this community and the world. (and yes, even some new hymns!)
I will miss you all, and hold you in my heart. I am thankful for this time we have had together in ministry. I pray God’s blessings on you, and on your future ministry as a church, together with your new pastor.
So here is my benediction, adapted from the 2nd letter to the church in Thessalonica:
"May the Lord of peace himself give you peace at all times in all ways. May you know the deep strength, comfort, and unity of the Triune God, Father, Son, and Holy Spirit."
Amen
