The Pastor's Reflections on Ten Years

It is good to give thanks to the Lord, to sing praises to your name, O Most High; to declare your steadfast love in the morning, and your faithfulness by night... (Psalm 92:1-2)

A few months ago, our church had an anniversary of sorts that quietly slipped by unnoticed (which was fine with me). Though it’s hard to believe, I have now served as the Pastor of this congregation for ten years! And over these years, God has continually proved His faithfulness and steadfast love to me and to our church. He has provided for us and blessed us in countless ways, and I praise Him for the work He is doing among us. So I'd like to kick off this blog by reflecting a bit on some of my experiences over the last ten years, as a means to remind us of God’s faithfulness and to draw our hearts upwards in gratitude and praise for His grace.

I came to this church in 2006, fresh out of seminary and full of excitement, energy, and enthusiasm for the ministry that I hoped the Lord would accomplish through me. (As I look back, I must confess that some of my energy has subdued, and there have been times when my enthusiasm and optimism have waned. But despite some of the struggles that both I and our church have experienced, God has repeatedly used His Word, His Spirit, and His people to renew my zeal and to advance His ministry.) Both Deb and I were warmly welcomed and received, and have always felt supported and cared for by our church.

During that first year, we saw God bless several new (or at times renewed) ministry endeavors, including: making some changes to the order of worship, increasing the frequency of our celebration of the Lord’s Supper to monthly, Vacation Bible School, and the Balloon Rally outreach. In the subsequent years, God has used other ministry changes and additions to help lead the church to growth in both numbers and maturity, including: several small group Bible studies; ministry at local nursing homes; Christmas Eve services; the launch of a Bright Alternatives satellite office in Wellsville; the training and ordaining of three new Deacons and three new Ruling Elders; the opening of The Playroom; and the establishment of a monthly Congregational Prayer Meeting (please join us!).

Over these last ten years, we’ve had the joys of new births and new members, and the sorrows of members going home to be with the Lord or moving away. By my count, we received 36 communicant members, though there have been many more new folks who have not formally joined the church. When I got here in 2006, the only children we had in the congregation were three teenagers and one infant. But members had been praying that the Lord would bring us young families with children, and our faithful God has answered those prayers! Over these ten years I have baptized twenty children, and we have welcomed several others into our church family. We’ve seen our children’s ministry grow from one Children’s Sunday School class to four, along with the addition of Toddler Church and other ministries to children. It won’t be too long before we need to start planning for a youth ministry!

There are two other areas of the church’s ministry that I’d like to highlight because of how they have grown and developed over these years. First, our diaconal ministry of mercy has been blessed with new Deacons who share the load and help to expand this ministry both inside and outside of the church. They have served many people personally, organized efforts for members to serve others in need, and distributed your generous contributions to the Deacon’s Fund with wisdom and grace. I have always been impressed by how well this congregation welcomes visitors, and how you support and care for one another during times of illness or loss and times of transition like the birth of a child. Some of this is directed by the Deacons, but often it seems to happen organically (frequently spear-headed by some of the women of the church who serve so faithfully and graciously). My family personally experienced that compassionate ministry as I endured cancer and surgeries and radiation, dealt with the loss of my mother, and adjusted to the blessings of adopting two sons. I cannot thank all of you enough for the way that you cared for us through those experiences.

Second, our music ministry has expanded substantially over the years. When I arrived here ten years ago, the music of our Sunday worship was led by an electric keyboard and occasionally a guitar or violin played by a Houghton student. But God has brought several talented musicians to us (and, sadly, taken some away), allowing us to add more instruments including piano, organ, acoustic guitar, bass guitar, djembe, drum kit, and trumpet, and vocalists to lead and enhance the musical portion of our worship. We have been able to add more music to our worship services, and have significantly expanded our repertoire of songs to include more contemporary songs as well as several “modernized” hymns. The Music Committee has been instrumental (sorry!) in assisting me with selecting songs and coordinating musicians, and now I don’t need to lend my voice and my guitar as often as I did for a season.

Of course, I would be remiss if I did not again express my appreciation to the members, both current and past, of our Session. These gifted Ruling Elders have faithfully loved, served, and shepherded this congregation as a whole, and specifically the members of their Shepherding Groups (which were developed a few years ago).  I would not be able to shepherd the congregation without my fellow Elders sharing the load and also shepherding me!

So let me reflect briefly on some of the pastoral ministry that God has allowed me to engage in over these last ten years. In addition to all of the Adult Education (Sunday School) Classes and Bible studies I have taught and led, I have been blessed to proclaim God’s Word to you Sunday after Sunday. I have preached through twelve entire books of the Bible, as well as several shorter series on various Scriptures and/or topics. I have also been privileged to minister to individuals and families through visitation (in homes and hospitals), counseling, preparations for church membership or baptism or marriage, and countless informal get-togethers and phone conversations. Despite all of my shortcomings as a Pastor, I do believe that God has worked in me and through me for the benefit of this congregation. To the degree that you have been blessed, may God receive all the glory!

Perhaps the most obvious and significant blessing from God in these recent years is the purchase, renovation, and occupation of our current facility on Main Street. The Lord providentially prevented us from purchasing property a few times, but again demonstrated His faithfulness by providing the means for us to purchase this great building in a highly visible location in the heart of downtown Wellsville. We moved into the building in April 2012, and held a building dedication service and 25th Anniversary celebration centered on the theme of “Walking with the Faithful God”. And amazingly, by God’s grace, we saw the building paid off in seven just months! Last year, our church held a memorable 30th Anniversary celebration in Island Park.

To accompany the new facility, the Session led the congregation in creating and adopting a new Mission Statement for the church: “To make Gospel-transformed disciples who hope in Christ alone and proclaim Him through word and deed to the communities where we live and worship.” So as we rejoice in God’s past faithfulness, let us also look forward, and renew our commitment to carrying out that mission in humble reliance upon the grace of God and to the glory of the name of Jesus Christ. May we be able to look back after another ten years and find even more reasons to give thanks to the Lord, sing His praises, and declare His steadfast love and faithfulness! Amen!

*ADAPTED from our Monthly Newsletter. For more information regarding our Newletter, please contact the editor, Dorothy Achilles, at mdachilles@frontiernet.net