Letter from Pastor Carl

Dear Friends,

I’m sure you have heard,“everyone is a minister” and then wondered what that really means. The pastor is also a minister, and all believers and disciples are called to be ministers on behalf of Christ, the one who calls us: “Come to Him a living stone, though rejected by mortals yet chosen and precious in God’s sight, and like living stones, let yourselves be built into a spiritual house, to be a holy priesthood, to offer spiritual sacrifices acceptable to God through Jesus Christ” (1 Peter 2:4-5).

Pretty soon, September 13, Sunday School will begin. Many of you have signed a “Safe Sanctuaries” application, which indicates that you have some understanding of the importance of protecting our children and teachers from any misconduct or misunderstanding concerning the relationship that exists between teacher and student. What is appropriate and what is not is not always easy to discern. So we have guidelines that spell that out. To avoid any situation that may jeopardize a loving and beneficial relationship between student and teacher, Pleasant Valley UMC has a policy that every teacher and student needs a witness.

This is where you may come in to be a minister and a witness. You will get to know some children and, by your presence, you will be participating in the building of that “spiritual house” that Peter wrote about. All of us, from one to ninety-two, are like those living stones, built together to be the church, here, in Pleasant Valley. To give up your time of worship to make this church a “Safe Sanctuary” is, indeed, a “Spiritual sacrifice.”

Please see Mindy Henry at 783-7737 if you are feeling called to minister in this way. If we have many volunteers, the time commitment will be reduced and many people will have the opportunity of participating in the ministry of “Safe Sanctuaries” while being built into the household of God.

Pastor Carl