Yes, I know I am a day late on this blog. But there is a reason, which I will get to in a bit.

If you think everything is going to remain the same, you are fooling yourself. A baby is born. You don't expect the little critter to stay little forever, do you? No. They pass through stages. Little grunt to rug rat to WHAT ARE YOU DOING to heartbreaker to adult. Everything just moves along. You buy a house and in a few years you are replacing the hot water heater and then the siding and then the stove and on and on. Everything just moves along. Of course, there are memories along the way. But time always wins.

In 1975 I was called to a church as minister of music and Youth. Oh, yeah! I had arrived. Or so I thought. But everything just moved along. In time I became a pastor of a small country church, then a home missions pastor, then pastor of a city church, then a pastor of a larger church in another city, then a pastor in a small town. All along the way I did other things to help pay the bills, but the ministry was a constant. I spoke at conferences, wrote for a couple of Christian magazines and got a killer education, both scholastic and experiential.  

And even though it was good and fulfilling and I never wanted it to stop, the truth remains; Everything just moves along.

I retired. I could no longer be the pastor I needed to be. I wanted to be that pastor. Desperately. But I was sick and weak and worn out. Tired. It had all gotten away from me.

Retired. No way I could retire. NO!

I retired and got really sick. Had surgery. Very weak. Finally, coming up on Christmas, I was feeling good again. And on Christmas day, I began to experience the effects of COVID.

Even though I have had a difficult retirement so far, I keep in mind that everything just moves along. For me, someone who gave his life to the Lord over fifty years ago, everything moves along as He wills, in His time. And, about five weeks ago, the time arrived.

I was granted permission to start a worship service here at my apartment complex. It is a retirement complex. Getting out on Sunday morning to go to their own churches, some many miles away, is hard for folks, and they still want to worship. It starts this Sunday, April 7, 2024. I cannot wait.

I have to keep telling people that it is not church. This area is strongly Catholic and Lutheran and Methodist with various European faiths thrown in. There are some Baptists and Episcopalians and some non-denominational types in the mix. All of these have different denominational beliefs and traditions, so if it is a church, many would be turned away. In my mind, it will be better than a church---it will be a worship service, based on Biblical principles.

Imagine......no Board meetings, no committee meetings, no concern for a Youth program, no denominational meetings, no squabbles about lighting or carpeting or drapes. No annual reports. No finance committees (because there will be no offerings).....Nothing but the Word of God.

So that is why this blog is late. Dozens of little details. But it is going to be great. And I can be a real pastor again! When someone gets sick, I can just walk down to their room. I don't have to drive in the dark and then walk over uneven ground. I don't have to fear falling. I am stronger than I have been in years. And, as a benefit, the ladies here make really good cookies.

I have been attending a couple of great churches, and I hate to leave that behind. But at 10:00 on Sunday morning, this old retired guy starts a new chapter. I keep you folks in prayer, now I ask you to keep me and this worship service in prayer.

Blessings.