PASTORAL STAFF UPDATE AND APPRECIATION
Our new Associate Pastor of Missions and Pastoral Care, Terry Delaney, began serving with us this week (his first Sunday will be this Sunday), so I wanted to use this space to share an update about the make-up of our pastoral staff. Terry’s role is to serve our church by leading, coordinating, overseeing, and continuing to develop our evangelism, missions, and pastoral care ministries. This involves equipping us for evangelism, missions, and caring for one another through visitation, prayer, and service ministries, as well as serving as the pastoral point person for our benevolent ministries.
Terry’s arrival comes a few months after our last pastoral staff calling. Jacob Chilton, our Associate Pastor of Family and Children’s Ministries, joined us in July, and his role is to serve our church by directing, coordinating, overseeing, and continuing to develop the church’s total ministry to children, the next generation, and families. Jacob directly leads our children’s ministry, works to equip parents to disciple their children, and gives oversight to our entire discipleship effort up through college age.
Terry Delaney, Associate Pastor of Missions & Pastoral Care
Earlier this year, Josh Hall transitioned into leading our post-college discipleship ministry. As our Associate Pastor of Adult Discipleship, Josh leads and helps develop our discipleship activities, including Sunday Morning Bible Study, new member ministries, Bible study groups, and discipleship cohorts. He also serves as the pastoral liaison for our women’s and men’s ministries.
Penny Folsom continues to serve as our Minister of Music, leading our overall music ministry in all its different facets. Clay Mason continues to serve as our Interim Minister of College Students while also helping to lead our International and Senior Adult Ministries. Alberto Santiago continues to serve as Interim Minister to Students. We are continuing to seek God’s will for those who will serve as permanent, long-term ministers to college and youth (and are conducting interviews), but praise God for Clay and Alberto’s continued willingness to serve Him and our church in those vital areas of ministry.
October is Pastor Appreciation Month, and I also wanted to take a moment and say how thankful I am for our pastoral staff. Our church is blessed with a wonderful pastoral staff. I get to minister alongside them every week, and I praise God for their love for him, for our church, and their areas of ministry. If you get a chance, drop them a note and let them know how much you appreciate them, and be sure to be praying for them and their families as well. As 1 Thessalonians 1:2–3 states, “We give thanks to God always for all of you, making mention of you in our prayers; constantly bearing in mind your work of faith and labor of love and steadfastness of hope in our Lord Jesus Christ in the presence of our God and Father.”
