Wednesday, July 9, 2025

“Every time we think of you, we thank God for you. Day and night you’re in our prayers as we call to mind your work of faith, your labor of love, and your patience of hope in following our Master, Jesus Christ, before God our Father. It is clear to us, friends, that God not only loves you very much but also has put his hand on you for something special. When the Message we preached came to you, it wasn’t just words. Something happened in you. The Holy Spirit put steel in your convictions.” (1 Thessalonians 1:1 -5, The Message Bible)

           When I retired from pastoral ministry, 10 years ago, I was fairly certain that I was absolutely done with church work.  Church ministry had become mostly unfulfilling, unsatisfying hard work for me. I wasn’t getting much joy out of it anymore and I suspect my people were not getting much joy out of me either. Call it burnout or what you will, I knew it was time to hang up my pastoral cleats. Furthermore, I vowed that I wouldn’t take any interim work once I retired.  I just wanted to disappear for a while. I became a recluse, more or less.

            But this spring, I received an email, out of the blue, from First Baptist Church, Port Hope, inquiring whether I would be open to doing some supply preaching for them, this spring and early summer.  They had gotten my name from our Convention office. We had just decided to sell our house and all that which it entailed. I wasn’t sure I wanted this in the midst of all that. I was tempted to just send back a polite refusal, but some financial practicalities and a nudge from some inner voice made me stop and rethink. In the midst of the impending chaos, I said yes.

            Instead of just doing the job of preaching, I have discovered this little gem of a congregation. Small but mighty!! They welcomed me into their fellowship like a lost soul. Their worship style is simple but energetic and best of all, it’s real and authentic, comes from the heart and soul of the people. They listen intently to the sermon and can reflect back after the service with smart and insightful comments. In fact, I think they may be the best congregation I’ve ever had for attentive listening. It calls out my best efforts. They are warm, friendly, embracing. For a small church, they are very unselfishly active in their community, which for me is vitally important for a church. So, like Paul, “Every time we think of you, we thank God for you.”

            I may be back in the Fall although they are looking for an interim pastor for a few days a week.  I really don’t have the energy or stamina to do that. Be that as it may, I applaud this church’s “work of faith, your labor of love, and your patience of hope in following our Master, Jesus Christ, before God our Father.”  I pray that they will keep it up and I expect they can and will.

            They are a very different from our home church, Yorkminster Park Baptist Church. In fact, one lady, after my first Sunday there, commented to me that she had been concerned that I would be too stuffy for them, coming from YPBC.  I love my home church and all that they do in the community and their excellence in worship but I equally love the simple, unassuming joy of my experience in Port Hope.  I have learned a few new worship songs and sang some golden oldies in hymns and enjoyed them so much.  “It is clear to us, friends, that God not only loves you very much but also has put his hand on you for something special.”

            Actually, if I put on my dusty, old Area Minister’s hat, I hope that no new pastor comes along and tries to change any of that. Don’t mess with it. Rather, go along with the amazing ride off faith, love and service. They don’t even take up an offering during the service – what church has done that!  Love it! Churches like FBC give me hope for the Church in general.   I wish, - no, I pray - that there were far more like them.

If I was twenty years younger…

Dale