I’ve confessed many times that I don’t like surprises. I like knowing what’s coming next and having a plan for how we’re going to get there. My wife and others I know love stepping into the unknown. I’m usually the one asking if we’ve thought through all the possibilities before I agree to go.
When I found out that Pastor Boston would be leaving our staff to begin a new chapter in ministry, I wasn’t exactly excited about the journey ahead. We were already facing some difficult questions about what we could sustain as a congregation, including the future of our staff and our ministry with youth and families. I wasn’t sure what the best path forward would be.
Thankfully, I wasn’t trying to figure it out alone.
With the support of our SPRC and Administrative Council, I continued exploring what it might look like for churches to share resources, relationships, and a passion for the next generation. I had already been talking with Vista Ridge UMC about Confirmation, Methodist Mashup, and other ways we might work together rather than trying to sustain separate ministries.
And then something unexpected happened.
Rev. Ashley Anne Sipe of Vista Ridge and I approached our District Superintendent and Conference staff at Annual Conference in Wichita Falls to share what we were thinking and explore what might be possible. Rather than simply wishing us well, they affirmed our ideas and encouraged us to dream bigger. Why think only about what two years of support might accomplish? What could five years make possible?
I’ll admit, I still had some heart palpitations!
But as the conversations continued and more pieces began falling into place, I found myself getting more and more excited. What began as a difficult staffing decision was becoming an opportunity to imagine something neither congregation could accomplish alone.
This past Sunday, we announced that Bishop Saenz has appointed Rev. Bill Mauldin as the Founding Director of Open Table Youth Collective, beginning December 1. I couldn’t be more excited to welcome Bill and his wife, Branda, into our church family.
But Open Table is about much more than sharing a youth director. We’re dreaming of a community outreach ministry that extends beyond the walls of our churches. A place where young people, including those who have never attended church or haven’t found a place where they belong, can build relationships, ask difficult questions, discover their gifts, and experience the transforming love of Jesus.
And I hope they will do more than participate in what we create. I hope they will help us build something we’ve never imagined.
In Isaiah 43:19, God says, “Look! I’m doing a new thing; now it sprouts up; don’t you recognize it?” (CEB)
I wonder how often we become so focused on what we’re losing or the challenges in front of us that we almost miss what God might be doing right before our eyes.
I still don’t know what Open Table will look like five years from now. There are plenty of questions we haven’t answered, and I’m sure there will be some unexpected challenges along the way. The part of me that likes predictability would love a detailed roadmap!
COVID taught me a lot about living with uncertainty and making decisions without having all the answers. I’d like to think I’ve gotten a little better at it, but deep down, I still struggle. I want to know how things are going to turn out. Yet through this process, I’ve been reminded again how much I can trust the people God has placed around me and the grace that continues to guide us.
I’m grateful for the leaders at Aldersgate and Vista Ridge, our annual conference, and everyone who has encouraged us to dream bigger. And I’m grateful for Bill’s willingness to join us on this journey.
Most Sundays, as we prepare to leave worship, I remind us that the good news is we don’t go alone. God goes with us, and we go together.
I believe that’s true for Open Table Youth Collective, too. We don’t have all the answers, and we don’t know exactly where this journey will lead. But we have each other, and we trust that God is already at work among us.
And for someone who likes to know what’s coming next, that’s a pretty exciting place to be.
Rev. Rodney Whitfield
Senior Pastor
Aldersgate UMC