Reflections on my last days in Fresno...

To my dear Woodward Park family,

The temperature is in the mid-seventies and it is gently raining. I am sitting on the front porch of some friends' house (yes, in a porch swing) and I am watching four wild turkeys chasing each other across a green field.

Even with all this, it is difficult to believe that my family is in Tennessee to stay.

Even though Dana and I spent several days packing up our house and three more days loading the moving truck, the whole thing was very surreal, almost like we were just getting ready for a vacation.

Yet as I write these words, I realize that my tenure as the preaching minister for Woodward Park has come to a close.

The last few weeks have really been a whirlwind; a trip to Tennessee, a trip to Oregon, a week at YBC...it still makes my head spin to think about it. Yet there are some things that really stand out in our last few days in Fresno.

• The awsome sight of a whole family being baptized together in the YBC pool
• Experiencing my first baptism hidden by a castle, where I heard it rather than saw it 
• Having fresh tongue tacos delivered to my house (yes, tongue)
• Sharing midnight feasts of cold tri-tip and large amounts of leftover bacon in the dining hall
• Receiving a "family set" of quilts, stitched with love

More than these things, however, the thing that is most special is the time I spent with dear friends whose last act of service was to pray over us. Yes, we talked about moving. We talked about ministry. We talked about memories. But the last thing you wanted to do for us was to speak to God and ask his blessing on us. I had a 93-year-old man tell me through tears that he had never stopped praying for me and my family. In a real way, that defines our time in Fresno; Godly people who loved us with the Love of the Lord.

As we begin our work with the Maple Hill church, I want you to know that we will never be the same because of our time with you. You have helped us to be closer to the Lord than ever before. You helped restore my love for ministry. You provided exactly what my family needed. You lived Christ in front of us. You taught us, even (or especially) when you did not know you were teaching. And you loved us from the first day you met us.

I was so moved by your acts of kindness and service. You literally took care of us til our very last day in town. We will always love you, and pray God's richest blessings on you.  We will continue to be in prayer for you. And I know without asking that you will keep on lifting us up before God as well.

Until we meet again...