Pastoral Letter: Growing Into Service
Dear SUM Family,
Grace and peace to you in the name of Jesus Christ.
Because of my teenage son, I recently returned to the gym after a long time away. We talked about why he wanted to exercise. Did he want to build muscle, improve his fitness, or try something his friends were doing? Over several days, he made his case from different angles. Eventually, he became a member and began working out.
At first, I planned to be the primary member and bring my children as guests. But during registration, we changed the plan. We put the membership in my son’s name, and I would use the gym as his guest when he went to work out.
When we arrived, my son scanned his membership card and went in first. I wrote my name in the guestbook, and he stood beside me and signed for me.
That small moment stirred an unfamiliar feeling. Usually, I had been the one taking the lead, with my son coming along. This time, he was the member, and I was the guest. I was arranging my time around his plans.
He still needs his parents’ help, but he is learning to make his own choices and find his way in the world. The child I had so often taken places was now the one whose activity I was joining. Watching him, I began thinking about how we grow in faith.
When we begin our life of faith, we learn from those who have walked that path before us. Through the prayers, care, and faithful work of church leaders and others who serve, we experience God’s grace. As our faith grows, we too are invited to care for and serve others. We continue to learn and receive help, even as we become people who can support someone else and help nurture their faith.
What kind of heart do we bring to that service? In Philippians 2, Paul calls us to humility: to regard others with respect and to look beyond our own concerns to the concerns of others. At the center of his invitation is Jesus Christ, who humbled himself and took the form of a servant. Paul calls us to share that same mind as we serve alongside one another (Philippians 2:3–8).
Each of us has gifts God has entrusted to us. Sharing them with the mind of Christ means attending to other people’s needs and efforts. We offer our ideas while listening carefully to someone else’s. We use what we can do to support another person’s work. With different gifts, we can work together to fulfill the mission entrusted to us.
Service is not simply a way to fill a vacancy or complete a task. It is a way of recognizing that none of us is asked to carry the whole work alone. Sometimes our contribution is visible; sometimes it is a quiet act of preparation, encouragement, or prayer. When we offer our gifts with humility, we make room for someone else to offer theirs as well. In this way, the church becomes not a place where a few people do everything, but a body in which each person can belong and take part fully.
These days, I am seeking God’s guidance in prayer and listening to your voices and ideas in conversations with church leaders and members as we plan our ministry together. Bringing those plans to life through service requires your participation and cooperation. Faithful collaboration among God’s children is always needed, and it feels especially important in this season of our church.
Please share with me the gifts you have to offer and your hopes for our church. I will listen with care. May we keep learning from and caring for one another, growing into lives of service together with the mind of Christ.
Grace and peace,
Pastor DH
Simsbury United Methodist Church
sumct.org | pastordh@sumct.org