Somehow I do have a sense of peace with this in my life because I trust God will provide both for the congregation and its mission as well as my family.
There will be a new opportunity to serve at another church in the area at some point.
As of this writing I am still too shocked to think clearly about many things. My family has been very supportive through this and will continue to be my rock through this transition.
My prayers go out to the entire congregation, both the leaders who had tough recommendations in difficult times and all who took part in the 5 hr. meeting.
May God's peace be with us all.
Pr. Durk
5 comments:
Pr. Durk.... I'm shocked by the decision made by our congreation;
Ethan and I have always found your personal touch, sense of humor, and general optimism to be of such value. Thanks for all you've done for the church and for us...
Pr. Durk,
I am disappointed that our church has been put in a position that warranted the tough decisions that were made last Sunday.
It seems tough decisions are the norm these days in personal as well as professional lives. Recently, I was part of the decision making process at work that affected the employment of two individuals on my team as part of "right-sizing" efforts. As much as you try to look at the positions and numbers objectively, it is virtually impossible to not consider the individual and the relationship you have with that individual. I believe that when one is faced with these decisions and state, "It's not personal.", they are obviously fooling themselves.
Personally, I am grateful for your time of service at Maple Grove Lutheran Church. You are compassionate, intelligent, optimistic as well as realistic. I found your sermon messages to not only be delivered in a style that made it interesting but relevant as well. I liked your leadership style and feel you were an effective lead pastor.
Your departure is MGLC's loss and I am certain you will receive a call to serve at another deserving church family soon. You will definitely be missed.
Best regards,
Tex Cuabo
Pr. Durk, Thank you for your service to MGLC. I will keep you in prayer, and our church too, as the decision made by the congregation does not solve the financial problems we face. I certainly agree with the other postings, you are the most personable pastor/minister I have had, by far, since I was a child.
I think it is shameful what happened at that meeting. The congregagtion chose to honor the commitment it made to the land, but not the commitment it made to people. In these tough economic times, all we have is each other, and we need to support each other. Things are just things. Whether we own the land, or the bank does, it is just a piece of land. However, relationships have been broken. The message of Christianity is all about people. Jesus said, "Love one another." Unfortunately, this did not happen last Sunday.
Pastor Durk,
Thank you for your service to Maple Grove Lutheran church and compassion for it's members. You are in our prayers as you make this transition. I would like to personally thank you for your support to our family as we experienced a job loss during the past year. Attending church and hearing encouraging words gave us strength to continue trusting in God. May you find strength as you worship in the coming days.
The Zigmans
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