2026 is my twelfth year of ministry at CLA and twenty-seventh year of full-time pastoral ministry. I’ve learned many things over this time; one is that you can’t stop change. Change is inevitable for the health, pruning and fruitfulness of The Body of Christ. This week I had my final “coffee break” with Pastor Debbie as we recalled all the times of ministry, the people we’ve walked with, the paths we’ve navigated, the happy stories and the sad ones. It was a bit emotional for us. There was a lovely gathering on Wednesday sponsored by our ladies to thank Pastor Debbie for her leadership, hard work and love.
Change brings two emotions at the same time, both grief and hope. They are not opposites; they are more like companions. Change in our lives, all of us will face it in 2026, means loss. Loss of the familiar, loss of certainty, and a loss of meaning tied to the past that was like an anchor. Grief is not a sign of weakness but health. Our soul must honour the past, what really mattered. Give yourself time and space for that. Change in our marriage, family, career, or ministry must be given room “to feel” as one chapter closes and a new one opens. That is where hope comes in, especially for children of God. In our soul and circumstances we must make room for possibilities – new relationships, new understanding and new pursuits. We look to the future with faith in God. There is both freedom and renewal in this. Freedom to write a new chapter is life giving. Change invites reinvention and healing. Hope does not deny loss, it looks forward while carrying the past with gratitude. It says the story is not over.
Last week, I completed my “top 10” of 2025 for CLA and “staff transition” was #1. It was a season of change in the “garden of God”. Friends and co-workers moving into new areas of responsibility across the nation. This has demanded faith in God, prayer in the Spirit and faithfulness in leadership (I’m not going anywhere). As quarterback of the team, I observe there is a realignment, new pastors and volunteers coming forward to help us with CLA’s unique mission. That mission is almost 90 years old, people have come and gone but the need to “make disciples” and “be the salt of the earth” remain. Therefore, we have hope! Last week we announced Anna Armitage was coming on for six months as interim pastoral support for Women’s ministry, a beautiful thing. Tuesday Rev Youth Ministry started, and Pastor Jonah Inman and Pastor Katie Shimmin, both Summit Pacific Bible College students, are working interim to give leadership to High School and Middle School. Tonight, in Recovery Church, both Garrett Cahoon and Sam Stanley work diligently during this season of transition. Some change brought an immediate and clear direction, like Pastor Tim Young, our Maple Ridge Campus Pastor. Other transitions are slower, with a constellation of leaders stepping up and giving stability. I have hope. Continue to pray for me as I lead this great church through this season of adjustment to God’s preferred future. 2026 will be a time of “new beginnings”.
