Hello my friends.

Our time together is quickly coming to an end and I want to reflect on this… out loud.

Last night at Thursdays, Anthony and I taught together and served communion together for the last time.

Tonight many of us will spend the evening together at the “Farewell to the Pastors” gala.

On Saturday I will say goodbye to many of you. And on Sunday I will say goodbye to the rest of you.

Some of us will say goodbye for a season, but many of us will say goodbye for the final time.

I’m not terribly good at goodbyes. I find myself wanting to linger: eat one more dinner, play one more game,  have one more meeting, give one more hug…

I want you all to know that I love you.

I thank you for allowing me the honor of being your pastor these last few years.

We’ve successfully navigated some significant changes in these last couple of years:

• we moved into a new church building
• our average weekend attendance has increased by over 200 people
• we have seen multiple staffing changes
• we created a new organizational/leadership structure
• we’ve seen a renewed focus on evangelism
• etc.

As with all change there were multiple levels of excitement, fear, understanding, misunderstanding, etc., and yet here we are…  still loving, growing, and moving ahead!

We’ve laughed together and cried together. We’ve hugged and hit one another. We’ve asked forgiveness and forgiven one another. We’ve walked through the valley of the shadow of death together and celebrated new life together. We’ve done life together!

We’ve consistently moved ahead, sometimes stumbling and sometimes running. Sometimes we went to slow and sometimes we went to fast. At the end of the day I realize we’ve been shaped by one another… you by me and me by you, and that’s what families do.

To my church family…

• Thanks for the friends you gave me and my family.
• Thanks for the lessons you taught me.
• Thanks for being the first to welcome two of my four “Ladies” into the world, and for loving the others like your own.
• Thanks for entrusting me with the high honor of being called your pastor.

As we prepare to say what will be the final “goodbye” for many of us I think about the words of St. Paul in Acts 20:24, “My life is worth nothing unless I use it for doing the work assigned me by the Lord Jesus – the work of telling others the good news about God’s love and wonderful kindness.”

God has called me and I must go, but the knowledge that I am answering God’s call does not eliminate the sadness I feel as we prepare to say our final goodbyes.

So I say to you, my church family, as we prepare to say our final goodbyes thank you friends for all the memories. I will carry you in my heart for the rest of my life.

Your servant in Christ,

Paul