My senior pastor is 'DA BOMB!! So is our board...betcha never thought you'd hear me say that, did you?
DH talked to our SP today at work (as friends!), and here is what he and our board decided about Mayor McNasty (the latest CA situation):
They are planning to tell him that unless he is willing to humble himself and speak with YP and her husband face to face and make it right with them, he will not be welcome in our church. He'll never do that unless he has a MAJOR Damascus road experience this weekend, so basically, I'm guessing he'll be leaving. The only thing we'll miss about him is the occasional use of his minivan for a youth or kids' activity. Waa, waa. Other people in the church have minivans, too. Minus the attitude!
Here's the only problem: SP needs to call the guy first and inform him of what's going on, and then he wants to be the one to tell YP and her husband. DH swore me to absolute secrecy - I can't even tell YP. And I'm going to see her this evening and all day tomorrow. She is a nervous wreck over this - we've both been all week. DH and I are SO never going to be able to keep this a secret from her. He shouldn't have told me. I have a horrible poker face. She's going to start talking about it, and I'm going to start smiling and giggling, and it'll be all over. My husband is the most amazing man on the face of the earth, but he's also clueless. He knows that she reads me like a book, anyway. He knows that I am horrible at keeping secrets. I'm going to just have to keep talking about Alice in Wonderland and the theatre and try to keep the topic OFF church politics.
DH told SP how proud he was of him, and how he's really grown by leaps and bounds as a senior pastor. Our church is certainly a "baptism by fire" for him. I'm sure he wishes about a thousand times a week that he was still a music pastor, lol!
Anyway, just wanted to keep you all updated. Thanks for all your prayers...keep praying...God is on the verge of doing something amazing in our little church!!!
Our SP called us all into the office before church yesterday to update us all on where the situation was...
He did tell the guy that he needs to apologize, BUT he is not at the point where he feels he needs to remove this gentleman if he won't cooperate.
Lots of decision making is happening right now...as a staff, we don't know if we feel safe in that place anymore. It's like we don't have our covering - our protection. We've done nothing but defend our senior pastor to the death...we only wish he'd do the same for us.
To top it all off, we're working for a church that pays us next to nothing and where we're always dodging bullets from the people of the church. YP and I both want to start families, but it's absolutely impossible when we have to work so many jobs, and so do our husbands! It's like we're putting our lives on hold for people who don't really care one way or the other if we're there. I'm a dang good children's pastor, and she's a dang good youth pastor, but we're at the point where our self-esteem has been so dragged through the mud in that church, we don't even know if any other church will take us.
The thing is, I really and truly love my senior pastor. I am just wondering if maybe it's time to go. Maybe I just need time off from the ministry. I know I've just gotten my license, but I have been DOING ministry for about five years straight now, all for somewhat antagonistic churches. I don't know. Like I said, there's a lot of decision-making that needs to happen...
I know of a growing church in the panhandle of Florida that is praying for a children's pastor and I know without a shadow of a doubt "would take you" in a heartbeat...
Just know that I'm continuing to lift you up in prayer. I know how discouraging all of this can be. Through all of this, remember that God is getting ready to do "exceedingly abundantly above all you can ask or think" through you. I'm here waiting to hear all about it....
But my DH is still feels called to the Twin Cities (MN) area. If any of you A/G people know of any pastors in my vicinity who are hiring a CP or a YP, throw 'em at me!!
I haven't made up my mind yet. I need to pray about it more. I haven't talked to SP or the board about how I feel nearly as much as YP has (at least recently, only because she's the latest "whipping boy"), and I think it would come as a shock. I process things internally, and I tend to think and psychoanalyze things to death before I say them. A lot of times, I don't speak at all until my own mind is made up, and I've examined the issue from every possible angle. Only my husband and my closest friends (and my mom!!) know the thought process I'm going through.
YP has been accosted by board members (just today!) who have told her that,
a.) She just needs to take a few days off and go off and pray about this;
b.) There's a series of CDs that she needs to listen to about "perfect love casting out all fear," because that's apparently her problem; and
c.) She's covered by the blood of Jesus and doesn't need any other kind of covering, from the SP or the board.
So as you can see, with that reaction, I really don't want to talk to the leadership until my mind is completely made up. Once that happens, no one will be able to convince me of anything different - whether I decide to stay or go.
Everyone we know and respect in the ministry is telling us, "Get out now!!!" I would probably tell someone else the same thing. But (another showtune analogy ), in the immortal words of the musical Chess, "The trouble is, the girl is me!"
I'm on a fact-finding mission right now - I have e-mailed my district's CE director, as well as Dan Rector at NCU to see if there's anything available in my area...and there is at least one opening - maybe more.
Anyway, it's 12:30 am and I have to be back up in 5 1/2 hours to go to work, so I'm signing off right now. Until next time, America...
