“Because Jesus was raised from the dead, we’ve been given a brand-new life and have everything to live for, including a future in heaven – and the future starts now! God is keeping careful watch over us and the future. The Day is coming when you’ll have it all – life healed and whole.” 1 Peter 1:3-4 (The Message)
Today, October 21, 2015, is “Back to the Future Day,” when our day will finally catch up to the tomorrow depicted in “Back to the Future, Part II.” In that 1989 film, Marty McFly (Michael J. Fox) and Dr. Emmett Brown (Christopher Lloyd) appear with a flash in their DeLorean time machine from 30 years in the past. Suddenly, they find themselves in the same town, but surrounded by impossible technology and outlandish cultural changes.
October 21, 2015 also marks one month that I have been your interim pastor. We are beginning our interim journey together, and like Marty McFly and Dr. Brown we find ourselves in the same church and same town as 30 years ago, but we are now surrounded by impossible technology and seemingly outlandish cultural changes. A pastor transition, such as the one we are beginning, provides a congregation with an excellent opportunity to observe the changes happening in the world around us. This will help us intentionally plan a future for St. Mark that addresses these changes rather than planning a future based on assumptions that no longer work
But this really isn’t anything new for us. As Christians, we live in an interim time, looking back to the first Easter and headed to the fulfillment on God’s kingdom. We may have to put up with some changes, and with a fair bit of aggravation, in the meantime, but it’s important to remember that we are involved in something that will even outlast us. So we will begin our work with confidence, trusting God for the results and believing that “The Future Starts Now!”
In my short time here with you I can see that this is a vibrant church with a committed, caring congregation. God’s Spirit is being poured out in all sorts of ways. As we go forward together, we will continue building on the many gifts of this congregation as we actively await the bright future God has in store for this church.
My job as an interim pastor, in addition to being your pastor and regular preacher and teacher, is to guide and support you during a time of self-study and reflection. This time of self-study and reflection will help St. Mark embrace a new beginning and prepare for the next season of ministry.
Over the next couple of months, I will be working with the church elders to identify people to serve on a Mission Study Team. Beginning in early 2016 the Mission Study Team will lead the congregation in intentional conversations about St. Mark. Those conversation’s will help the church gain clarity about its core values; recognize the cultural changes taking place in the world and how it affects our current and future possibilities for growth; and identify our hopes and dreams for the future so we can develop a strategic plan for the next 3-5 years. From this process, which should take about 6-8 months, we will be ready to form a Pastor Nominating Committee and begin seeking a new installed pastor.
The interim time can be stressful, as most transitions are. But this is also a time of great excitement and wonder, the kind that always comes with something new. So as we begin our journey during this interim process, let’s see what we can accomplish together through prayer and the Holy Spirit. God can use this time in surprising ways. We have important work to do in the next few months. I ask your support, your prayers, your gifts and your presence on Sunday mornings as together we face the future with its hope and its great promise.
Pastor Jim Poinsett
