As the deadline for the latest issue of the New Horizon drew near, I was trying to think of an inspirational or uplifting message. I also thought about sharing something about the recently concluded Annual Conference session or requesting prayer for some need in our church or in our world. Instead, I am going to try to answer a question that I thought was answered long ago, but which I have been asked several times in the last few days. The question is: “Are we going to get another Associate Pastor when Nancy Kollhoff leaves?” The answer is “No.” First, I want to thank Nancy for her four years of ministry here at Lowman UMC. (I will say more in the next issue of the NH.) She has graduated from seminary and is ready to begin her full-time ministry. At one time it was said that if Lowman grew enough in the time she was here, there might be adequate money in the budget to allow her to stay as a full-time Associate Pastor. Well, due to many factors that have negatively affected our church’s financial situation, we cannot offer Nancy a full-time position. |
Secondly, we have not paid our Conference Apportionments in full for several years. As we looked to the rest of 2004 and the years beyond, the Finance Team has been searching for ways to reduce expenditures in our local church and try to direct more of our offerings toward those obligations. An Associate Pastor appointed by the Bishop is entitled to a housing allowance, health insurance, and pension benefits in addition to salary. We just couldn’t afford to provide those benefits for another pastor. Finally, for the last year Nancy has been spending a lot of her time working with the youth. Since an Associate Pastor would not be appointed to Lowman UMC, our next best alternative was to fill the Youth Director position that has been vacant for some time. Kyle Stueven has been hired for that job, and we are enjoying getting acquainted with him. He will be able to take over some of the responsibilities Nancy has been dealing with, but not all of them. I originally didn’t plan to write about this subject, but I hope I have adequately answered everyone’s questions about our staffing decisions. If you have more questions about this or any other church issues, please ask. That’s one of the things I’m here for! Grace and Peace, |
I
like to use this space on the website to promote upcoming events in
the life of Lowman UMC or to share good news about things that are
happening
in our congregation. Sometimes I even attempt to share the “Good
News” of Jesus Christ through my column.