Thanks for the Journey

 If you could see the journey whole,
you might never undertake it,
might never dare the first step
that propels you from
the place you have known
toward the place you know not.
                                 ~Jan Richardson

Through my own experience with the churches I have been privileged to serve, and in the process of calling pastoral colleagues to join the staff of Bryn Mawr Presbyterian Church, I have learned a couple of things about what becomes, as we say in church lingo, a sense of call.

First, search committees that get elected by a congregation are made up of a diverse group of people who undergo a process of discernment to articulate a vision, draft a position description, and search for and converse with candidates. Together, they pray, dream in abstractions, argue, laugh, debate, and, over time, they become more than the sum of their parts. It’s a Holy Spirit thing.

Likewise, pastoral candidates begin with companion emotions of reluctance and readiness to leave one place of ministry and journey into a new venture. This too is a Holy Spirit thing – hard to pin down, complicated to explain, a mixture of risk, fear of the unknown, excitement for the journey. As Jan Richardson’s poem suggests, we can never see the journey whole when we take that first step.

What a joy it is for me now to look back and recognize that our mutual sense of call, between BMPC and me, feels whole. Thirteen years ago, I could not see the contours of the journey, but today I can say with confidence that the work to which I was called feels complete. The church is healthy, well-staffed, and poised for a bold new chapter with fresh leadership. Last Sunday’s reception of 30 new members, bringing with them 12 new children, is a clear sign of continuing growth and vitality for this congregation!

I am so grateful for the journey here and for your partnership along the way, and now feel ready to step forward into a new season. In Presbyterian polity, a departing pastor, the Clerk of Session, and the presbytery sign a Covenant of Closure, in which I have promised that I will refrain from any pastoral involvement with BMPC going forward. This, too, is a sign of trust that our mutual relationship is complete. Thank you for all your expressions of love and appreciation, and know that while I step forward into the new season of retirement, I do so with much love and affection for you and the corporate ministry of this great church. From a distance, I will continue to give thanks for our journey together.