Spring Transition Announced
Dear Brothers and Sisters,
In case you weren’t at Grace today, I shared the following information with our church. I wanted you to hear this first-hand from me.
The normal course of life in a church is that pastors will age and God will move them on. Sadly, it is not always done well. Sometimes it is not thought about before it happens. Over the past 5-6 years I’ve had people talk with me about this including, but not limited to our elders, Marshall and Will. Since that time I’ve always felt my transition plan was Marshall and Will and expressed that to our church a year ago. As you know, the Lord led Will in a different direction, so my transition plan became Marshall. I believe the time to begin that process has come. This is neither sudden nor new to us. The elders, Marshall, and I have discussed this at length for some time. Joann and I believe I have done what God brought me here to do and it is time for someone else to be the senior pastor at Grace.
After working on this for some months, we recently put together a transition team made up of men and women connected to different parts of the church, in different life stages and experiences to help us think through how best to enter into this transition. They encouraged us to give as many details as possible and provide some time for people to sit with all of this before it happens.
It is common for churches going through a transition to end up in real turmoil. Without a plan they end up having a transition thrust on them perhaps by a medical condition or just needing a change. This often leads to a search process to find a suitable replacement. The challenge with external searches is that no matter how thorough the interviews, how diligently references are checked and how closely resumes are examined, you really don’t know a person you are bringing in from somewhere else until they come. You don’t know if they will truly be a fit or if the community will be a fit for their family. In reality you don’t know them and they don’t know you. Of course there have been great transitions done this way, but also many that weren’t so great.
I’m not sure I could envision a better scenario than we have at Grace. Many years ago God led Marshall and Diane to move into the Glenwood neighborhood. While successfully leading Intervarsity in Greensboro Marshall started a tutoring ministry with kids in the neighborhood, began an inner city intern program for college students and eventually helped start Hope Academy. He came on our staff and served at Grace first as our outreach pastor, then as our discipleship and small groups pastor. In addition to his work on our staff Marshall earned a Master’s degree in Christian Leadership at Gordon-Conwell Theological Seminary. He has been leading our staff meetings for a year, preaching regularly in our pulpit and for the past two years casting vision and leading the church in a missional, disciple-making initiative. I love and respect Marshall, deeply. He is honest, gifted, compassionate and a mature disciple of Jesus Christ. He is an excellent husband and father. I’ve seen him in all kinds of situations and couldn’t imagine a better person to lead our church this next chapter. The elders unanimously hold the same opinion. My recommendation and the unanimous recommendation of our elders is for Marshall to become our senior pastor. What an awesome person to lead us in what I believe will be our best season yet. However deciding on our next senior pastor is not an elder decision, but a covenantor vote that will be held in January. In the meantime, we want to make sure we answer your questions and give you as much information as we can.
The plan is for the vote in January to happen and, if Marshall is affirmed, I will transition out of the senior pastor role. I will no longer attend staff and elder meetings as Marshall begins to take leadership. I will continue preaching, meeting with folks in the church, doing some training with staff and serving as a kind of mentor to Marshall as he leads us. The idea is for me to preach through Easter and then Joann and I will take some time away to seek the Lord about our next chapter while at the same time giving Marshall some space to lead without our presence. We believe we will return sometime in October.
What I’m not doing: I’m not retiring. I’m not using the r-word. I’m not stopping serving Jesus with all my life, all my abilities and any gifts He has given me. I intend to live the rest of my days on mission with the Spirit of Jesus Christ doing my holy part in the kingdom of God. I’m not leaving. Joann reminded me I said after church last week, “I don’t know why everyone doesn’t go to Grace Community Church. It is a great church.” I’ve been to churches all over and I always feel Grace is the best. It’s not the slickest church, it doesn’t hold performances, it isn’t the wealthiest or most impressive and surely we don’t have the most amenities. But it is an authentic honest place where the best people I know seek to live out the gospel crossing racial and economic lines. It is a place where disciples of Christ are willing to learn and grow into truly being a church of all kinds of people sacrificing both comfort and preference for Christ’s sake. This is the church we belong to, this is our family.
Why now? For several years we have talked about what we will do in terms of our church’s succession plan. How will we move into the next chapter as a church in a way that blesses the church and doesn’t harm it? I turned 66 on Oct. 31st and I believe the Lord has shown me I’ve finished what He gave me to do as senior pastor at Grace. It is a very big responsibility to be a senior pastor and I have borne it for 18 plus years (I’m in my 19th year). He has shown us the time is right for me to transition out. I believe it is the right time for Marshall to step in.
What will I do? The main thing I am going to do is less. I’m going to do what the sermon I just preached says. I’m going to listen to God. I’m going to take some time to rest, to listen and to seek the Lord for this next chapter of our lives with my best friend and lifetime love, Joann. God has led me to not make plans and commitments until I have truly listened and know what He is telling me to do. Honestly, as we have experienced Davy’s lay-off, Will’s stepping down, Ansel’s moving on, we have all taken on more and more. I am busier now than I have ever been. For that reason it will take some time away from Grace for me to know more about what is next. One thing I am sure of is that God will lead me as He always has. I know if I seek, I will find. If I knock, the door will be opened and if I ask, it will be given. The Lord will lead us in the days ahead, as He will all of you.
This is our favorite church. We were here 14 years serving as lay people before I came on staff. We would like to go back to doing that again with some good boundaries. We would like to join Will and Cam, Ansel and Englund, and Valerie Phillips who have all remained here after leaving staff.
We see all of this as not so much about Marshall or me, but about God’s sovereign hand, leading his church for His glory and honor. I want to bless Marshall and Grace Community Church in what I believe will be her best season yet.
The plan is for Marshall to share with you some of the things on his heart next Sunday and to meet with anyone who has further questions after the second service. Then on the 24th Joann and I and our elder chairman along with some other elders will meet with anyone who’d like to ask further questions upstairs following both services.
CAUTION: The devil would love to start rumors, cause division or make this a difficult time. We are not going to let that happen, are we? We want to bless Marshall, help Grace and see Christ do even greater things than ever before. Let’s pray,listen and follow Jesus in reaching our community bringing the good news in word and deed to our world.
I love you all very much,
Bill (and Joann)