A letter to Fellowship Church

Today marks the beginning of the 2nd year of a new pastor at Fellowship Church – me.

I wanted to take some time to write out my thoughts about our church, and try to convey my deepest appreciation for who we are as a group of people seeking to lead others into a growing relationship with Jesus Christ.
First of all, thank you for your patience and understanding in my first year in this position.  I realize it is only that, a position, and God uses anyone to do His work, but I also believe that pastors have a great responsibility to be an earthly leader of the kingdom of God.  This involves humility, courage, patience, self-sacrifice, and love.  In fact, a pastor who does not have these characteristics would probably be best suited using his or her gifts in another way.
My prayer is that my ministry to you is washed over with these qualitites, and that they would not only occur in my every day life, but they would be clearly evident as I talk and minister to you.
Also (and this is for the future), I hope that as a church we can begin to grab on to our culture – that is, our strengths, personalities, likes and dislikes, and the dominant gifts we’ve been given – and, in doing so, we will unite in such a way as to spread that culture to make a difference for Christ in the New England area in which we find ourselves.
That being said, I look forward to seeing and participating in where God brings us as a group of people who love and genuinely want to have relationship with Him and with one another.
You see, one of the greatest triumphs of Fellowship to date, I believe is the relationships that have been created and have given us even more potential to grow than we would have had without those relationships.
As we grow in our walk with Christ, let’s move forward with our mission by igniting a movement here in Central Massachusetts.
How?
The easiest way to “ignite a movement” is to be passionate about what unites us, which in this case, is Jesus.
Grab on to this:  I’m not talented or handsome enough (can I get an amen?)for a church to be united around me, and if I was, I’m sure some day it would fall apart anyway.  If I am anything it is simply this: I am a single part of what God is doing here at Fellowship…

I almost said Fellowship Church, but I think I’ll say Fellowship movement this time.

Thanks for your love and care to Carie and I, and please feel free to respond to this letter any way you see fit.  Let’s ignite the movement!

Marty

Abba Father from Marty Holman.

Related posts:

1. Fellowship Church and the Grand Canyon
2. Old people in Church
3. Summer Break (for church)