Note from the Pastor

May 2008

Dear Friends in Christ,
With this letter, my ministry as the pastor of White Memorial Presbyterian Church in Willow Springs begins. Writing this to you is my first official act in what I hope to be an extended and faithful pastorate. But the clear message I want this letter to convey is not only my joy at becoming your new Minister of Word and Sacrament, but also my respect for the ongoing ministry of many faithful lay people who have carried on the work and worship of this congregation for years now without a full time installed pastor. If there is a celebration in the plans, it should be the celebration of what you have accomplished in past and present, not what you hope I will accomplish in the future.

This emphasis on lay ministry has been a key theme of my recent years in the pastorate. In my previous congregation in Iowa, we intentionally emphasized what we and others call “equipping ministry”, in which we seek to know the hidden talents of members according to a kind of profile they fill out, and then we try to equip those people to do the ministry they feel called to perform, rather than just “filling a slot” that a particular committee structure says we need to have. This process has seen many members blossom in ministry and a wave of new ideas bubble to the surface.

I admit to you that it took a long time for this new vision to captivate and motivate me. For the first decade or more of my professional ministry, I was unconsciously led by a sense that all ministry had to go through me, that I was the lynchpin or keystone that held all programs and processes together, that I had to have my finger on every pulse and my ideas on the plate of every committee. While those were productive years of sorts, I found that churches were not well equipped to carry on ministry without me, and that I was denying people both the privilege and responsibility of their own genuine ministry and a sense of true ownership of the church’s program. So, little by little, I changed. And I think it has been a change for the better.

One of the most attractive aspects of the position at White Memorial is your strong lay leaders, who will guide a strategic planning initiative, who will lead a capable pastor nominating committee, who have spurred evangelism in the membership and outreach to the community. I am amazed at the massive undertaking of the area vacation Bible school led by your members. I am delighted to come and be a pastor to people like you.

In the weeks ahead, I hope to get to know you personally, visiting in your homes, or over lunch or coffee, as you see fit and proper. We will discover together the gifts God has granted you, and I will do my best to see that you are well equipped to return your thanks to God by exercising those gifts and carrying his Word in its many forms out into the world around us. Thank you for your welcome into this fine church community. As befits the greeting at the top of this letter, I do hope that we can soon become “dear friends in Christ”. Shalom,
Rev. Duane Hix