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The one who calls you is faithful . . .
– 1 Thessalonians 5:24a, NIV
As I assume most of you know by now, I shared with our Session Monday evening that I will be retiring on February 1, 2022. If you have yet to hear that news, either through the email that went out or the letters that are in the mail, you can click here to read about it.
Now we are in the midst of the transition -- and by “we” I mean all of you who are part of the JCPC family and me -- though our next “destinations” are different. As a congregation, you are preparing to say goodbye and start the process of looking for the next pastor. While I, too, am preparing to say goodbye, my transition is to another calling in life. And while I do not have another church that has called me to serve them, I believe the next season in my life is a new calling.
Barbara Brown Taylor wrote in her book, Leaving Church, about what it was like when she decided to leave parish ministry. She said that some people assumed she was going to stop serving God, which she was not. While she did not know it at the time, she would soon be called to teach undergraduate students Religion at Piedmont College. She also continued to write wonderful books. One of them which I recommend called Holy Envy, talks about all she learned while teaching undergraduates about the world faiths.
You have heard me talk about the word “vocation” coming from the Latin word vocare, which means “to call.” I believe that we often have different callings in life at different times -- each of which is part of God's timing. So, I am looking forward to God's calling in my life which will be different from what I've done for almost 40 years, including my study and preparation. So, wherever we are in our lives, whatever age we may be, I want to invite us all to listen for God's calling, which I believe continues as long as we have breath on this earth.
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