The End of the Second Inning

This week I conclude my second appointment year as pastor of Burbank First. While it’s the middle of the calendar year, July 1 marks the beginning of a new appointment year in United Methodist churches in our conference. This plus the fact that things slow down a bit for the next couple of months in terms of programs and activities at the church makes this a natural time for reflection and evaluation.

I was asked by a number of friends a couple of weeks ago while I was at Annual Conference how things were going at the church and if I was happy. Annual Conference is a yearly four-day gathering of clergy and laity from about 375 churches in our conference and often the only time I run into colleagues who serve in other districts. I struggled to describe in a couple of words the status of our church and my feelings about such a complex organization.

If I just said the church was fine or good, which I usually did, it doesn’t seem to do justice to the multitude of dynamics our church is facing along with most other churches in America. I also fear coming across as arrogant and insensitive to suggest everything is fine because many churches and pastors are facing difficult financial, property, and membership issues.

I also found it difficult to claim one emotion to describe how I feel about the church and ministry. First, I don’t think those who enter the ministry should do so in order to feel happiness. I experience a lot of joy and blessings as a pastor but ordained ministry also provides amble experiences of frustration, conflict, and pain. Nevertheless, I affirmed I was happy to those friends who asked because in general I am happy, content, and like “coming into the office” each day.

At the end of the second inning I can say that there are many healthy, positive signs about our church status. We are blessed with a strong staff and many strong lay leaders. Our recent Vacation Bible School was one of the best I have ever seen; our Lenten dinners and studies this year were well-attended and seemed meaningful; and another group finished a nine-month study of two books of the Bible. On the finance side, giving and other income is much closer to budget than the last few years. In terms of membership, I am delighted that we have welcomed about fifteen new members since the beginning of the year and a similar number of others who have not formally joined but who have become very engaged in the ministries of our congregation. Two small groups met this year for an eight-week study of relational evangelism and members of these groups grew closer to one another and gained new insights of needs of persons in our culture.

Though the positives far outweigh the negatives or areas of struggle, we have those too. Worship attendance continues its long-term gradual decline, especially in our 11 a.m. service. We offer very little on-going educational opportunities for adults. And the average age in our congregation is much higher than the average age of the general population of Burbank and surrounding communities. I do see most of these conditions as opportunities rather than problems but it is important that we address them.

I look forward to the third inning and rejoicing together for all our blessings while we address and make changes in response to the opportunities I have named.