And so Goodbye…. But not just yet
When I was settling in to theological college in the early 1990’s I became aware that an number of my colleagues had fallen in love with fellow Ordinands or with eligible United Reformed ministers. “Ho ho, that will never happen to me.” I thought. God often takes delight in proving us wrong when we put limits on our view of his love. However, ministerial couples do make life more complicated for the Church, especially if they insist on wanting to live in the same house together. It is very rare, and not necessarily desirable, in the United Reformed Church, for a husband and wife team to be able to work together in the same pastorate. When a couple want to move on it is not always easy for the Moderators to find two vacant pastorates close together. We were very fortunate when we moved here that the Blackburn and Bolton pastorates were vacant at the same time. When a couple have no intention of moving, but one of them gets headhunted, life becomes extra complicated and demands a lot of soul-searching and prayer.
In the few weeks since Kirsty and I announced in Bolton and in Blackburn that we would be leaving in the autumn, we have heard a lot of interesting rumours spreading about our future, so I think I had better tell you a bit more about it. It took Kirsty and me by surprise as much as everybody else. Neither of us were thinking about a move at all. The church at Wilmslow had been vacant for over two years since their previous Minister retired, and the Moderator asked Kirsty if she would think about the possibility of becoming their minister. At first we weren't at all sure about it since neither of us were sure if God wanted us to move on, but as the introduction process went on it became more and more clear that it was God who was inviting Kirsty to consider his call. When she preached with a view and the church called her to be their minister, we felt it was quite clearly a definite call from God and a matter of obedience that she should say yes.
It's not at all certain just yet what I will do. It's too far to commute between Blackburn and Wilmslow, so I am looking for vacant pastorates near by. The trouble is there is nothing obvious just at the moment. When I told the Elders, and asked for the announcements to be read at Trinity and Revidge Fold, I made it clear that although I will definitely be leaving some time in the autumn, I cannot yet say exactly when. It is usual for ministers to give at least three months' notice when they are leaving a pastorate, and it will take several months before I have a new job to go to, so bad luck if you thought you were getting rid of me quickly.
I realise that when my predecessor left, everyone felt left in the lurch when he suddenly announced that he was going. That is why I have wanted to give you as much notice as possible and also to emphasise that I will honour all the commitments I have made so far. There is a temptation to feel uncertain and anxious about the future. The important thing to remember is that our great God loves me very much and loves Revidge Fold very much. The job of the Church, and of individual Christians, is to celebrate and proclaim that Jesus Christ is the Lord of the past, the present and the future. We live in the light of his victory, in the big things of life and in the everyday things. His purposes cannot fail.
With this in mind I would ask you to pray for me and my future, and entrust the future ministry of us all at Revidge Fold into God's hands. (This does not mean we leave it all to God, but that we put him first so that everything we do is an obedient response to him, rather than taking things into our own hands and then expecting God to rubber-stamp it.) It is a mark of personal discipleship but also of witness to the community around us, that we keep our confidence in God and expect him to surprise us with his generosity.
Martin