September 20, 2011
Dear Friends of EveryDay Life,
This is an important and busy week for me, and that necessitates that I take a few days off from writing EveryDay Life for the remainder of this week. I have no worry that your life will be unfulfilled or that you will suffer spiritual depletion without my daily thoughts and comments for a few days, though I know how much I will miss writing EDL and sharing it with you.
Here’s the deal: this is the last week of my responsibilities as Senior Pastor at Trinity Church, where Gayle and I have served since 1975. This concludes a process of transition our family and church families have been prayerfully and obediently walking through together for eighteen months. There are not the usual reasons for this change – not tired of pastoring, not finished with ministry, not weary, not of ill health, have no less love for Trinity Church, and no less a shepherd’s heart for its wonderful people.
There is one reason only: “It is the right thing, at the right time, for the right reason” – God asked us to do so. Gayle’s and my understanding is that we are to continue to serve Trinity Church, but in a different capacity than in our previous years. I have been asked by the Elders to continue to serve among the Spiritual Leadership here and provide pastoral oversight for the three schools that are an integral part of the life and ministry of Trinity, as I have done since their founding in 1980.
Just a week ago with a clear and certain voice, the church members elected a new Senior Pastor, Pastor Scott and Lori Olsen, who have served on the Pastoral Team here for 21 years. Gayle and I anticipate great things for Trinity and its ministries under Pastor Olsen’s leadership.
This next weekend Trinity Church is hosting a time of celebration, called “Milestones of Ministry,” to honor our ministry years here in San Antonio. We have many friends who were formerly staff at this church, friends formerly of the congregation, and Missionaries, Pastors, and Teachers who have been significant voices into the life of our Fellowship who are coming to join the “Milestones of Ministry” Celebration events later this week, and Gayle and I want plentiful time to savor their company.
Please excuse me from writing the remaining days of this week; meanwhile, you can always visit the archive of more than 650 EveryDay Life devotionals available at www.allenrandolph.com. Glad you have chosen to be a part of this much enjoyed aspect of our life and ministry, and I always appreciate your responses and comments on a devotional when God strengthens some understanding of His character and truth to you along the way. You honor me by your fellowship in this ministry of EveryDay Life.
Blessings! Allen Randolph