Two Years In – Ministry Update
A “Brief” Update
Sometime right before COVID-19 reared its ugly head, I adopted the practice of journaling. Not just journaling for journaling’s sake, but intentionally chronicling what I saw happening in, through, and around me and periodically returning to reflect on what had happened since. It’s been a wellspring of life for me as time and time again I’ve returned to stories of the Lord’s providence and faithfulness in my life, in our family, and within and through The Parish Church.
As I was preparing to write this post, I did something similar — I went back and read through our ‘Year One’ update that went out in October of 2019. We had a lot to celebrate that first year! God was beyond gracious in moving in and through our young church. He sustained us, built us, and moved us onward in this journey. We saw folks profess faith in Jesus, dive into Missional Communities, and really commit to growing together as disciples who increasingly submit all of their lives to the empowering presence and lordship of Jesus Christ and teach others to do the same. We were awarded a $20k matching grant — of which our folks and many of you stepped up to and helped us raise. We hit the 50% mark in terms of our budget coming from tithes and offerings. It was truly overwhelming.
We also had a TON of things that we were excited about heading into 2020. Then, as we’re all very much aware of, the new year came in all of its glory. A global pandemic turned the world as we all knew it nearly upside down and we’re still trying to figure out how to adjust. And if that wasn’t enough, it’s an election year. Contention, animosity, vitriol, and chaos seem to be at an all-time [perhaps unprecedented] high in the US — and especially amongst Christians. Divisions have been widened over how to respond to systemic racism and injustices that have been long-rampant in our country. Now our state is on fire and we’re seeing unprecedented wildfires wreak havoc. (To give you an idea of just how historic these fires are, 2018 set the all-time record for fire destruction where we arrived at a grand total of 1.9 million acres burned by year’s end. And yet in 2020, we’ve already seen nearly 4 million acres of land burned — and we’ve only just officially begun fire season!).
You would — or at least you probably should — expect that to put a damper on ministry. We’ve been unable to gather as a whole church since March (lest one special occasion), the local economy is in constant flex, anxieties are off-the-charts, and so on. And yet… AND YET… The Lord has been so incredibly faithful to our church that despite ‘Year Two’ looking nothing like what we would have imagined, we have many evidences of grace to share with you. I hope and pray that some of the brief updates below will encourage you that your partnership has helped in incalculable ways in making disciples who make disciples here in Sonoma County.
Meet the Graham Family
A huge portion of the Matching Grant that we were able to raise last year was done so with the vision of hiring a co-pastor for The Parish Church. Someone that would come alongside me and serve our church faithfully as a co-laborer, shepherd, and elder. We knew that we were asking something that seemed impossible — for a candidate who had a heart to minister in the Bay Area, would be willing to raise over half of their salary, and be a good fit. Someone who had the four C’s (calling, character, competency, and compatibility). Essentially, we were asking for a miracle.
Shortly after we wrote last year’s ‘Year One’ update, I was introduced to Kelly Graham. Kelly and his wife, Carissa (a Petaluma native), had long sensed the call to move to the North Bay to plant a church. Being the eternal dreamer that I am, I pitched him the idea of coming on as a co-pastor with The Parish Church and then planting out from us within a few years. Kelly was a good sport and was open to the idea, although, initially, his time-frame was admittedly a little further out that I was ‘dreaming.’ But we kept in touch for the better part of the first-quarter of 2020 and as a friendship blossomed and more and more discussions were had on life, philosophy of ministry, family, and so on, the Lord began to open up an avenue to get the Grahams here even quicker than either of us had anticipated. He put a vision in our hearts and minds that seemed absolutely insane (and it was) to have Kelly and Carissa start fundraising in June with a goal of moving to Petaluma by the end of July (functionally 2 months). He was faithful beyond measure and Kelly and Carissa got here right on time and Kelly started as a full-time pastor with The Parish Church the first week of August! We are so excited to have him, Carissa, Hunter, Sage, and Silas with us! It feels like we’ve always known them and we’re thanking God for his providence in adding them to our church family and preparing them, and us, for their eventual church plant here in the North Bay.
Baptisms
Earlier this year we got to baptize three people into the faith. Hope and Kinley (Jessica and mine’s oldest daughters) and Keenan boldly stood before the church and declared their allegiance to Jesus and His Kingdom. In June (despite the pandemic) we got to baptize another sister, Hanna, into the faith. And we’ve got another baptism scheduled for the next few months. God is moving and it’s so cool to be a part of it!
The Huskeys
Because our whole life is basically a fishbowl and so intertwined with our commitment to doing ministry in the everyday stuff of life, our last year as a family has been about as crazy as it has been for the church. But, similarly, it’s been overwhelmed by evidences of God’s grace everywhere.
Many of you knew that Jess and I had been selected to purchase a home here in Petaluma at a BMR (Below Market Rate) price back in early 2019. It felt like an answer to prayer. Details were skimp for many months as to the timeline because it was both new construction and part of a special program, but we were crossing our fingers for a Fall/Winter 2020 move-in. That was all fine until our Landlord at 1421 Capri Ave told us that they wanted to sell the house. Despite being offered first-right-of-refusal to purchase it, it just wasn’t feasible at our income. We were forced, reluctantly, to rent a 2 BR/2 BA apartment (with 3 kids and a dog, mind you) on the 3rd floor in anticipation of having to move again into the new condo. We lamented having to move out of the neighborhood that we’d spent so much time building relationships and planting seeds. But we trusted the Lord with it.
The day that I was loading the moving truck, our neighbor across the cul-de-sac approached us and asked us if we’d be interested in buying her home from her off-market. Her home was an identical floorplan to ours and we loved it. We were both excited and hesitant as just a few months ago we’d already realized this neighborhood was out of our price range (as was everything in Sonoma County). BUT, the Lord was up to something. Our neighbor sold us her home at nearly $50k below the market price AND agreed to pay closing costs. “Are you kidding me?” we thought. That’s unheard of in this market. But that’s exactly what happened. The Lord opened every door and we purchased the cheapest home in Petaluma somehow and got to stay in our cul-de-sac with our amazing friends and neighbors. God is so good.
We spent 6 weeks in the apartment while escrow closed and we did a few minor touchups on the house. But by God’s grace, we’re in and have been busy with upgrades and getting it ready for lots of life and ministry as soon as this global pandemic winds down. The kids have been outside with the neighbor kids nearly every day and we’re still relishing in the blessing of this miracle from the Lord. You can add this as yet another evidence of His grace that you’ve been a part of with your support!
Stories of God’s Grace
The Garrisons have been a part of our church for nearly two years and it’s been one of our greatest joys to grow in Christ alongside them. Their story is remarkable in how they’ve put full hope and trust in Jesus through an unspeakable tragedy.
Every pastor prays for families like the Joneses. They are salt-of-the-earth people who have an obvious love and trust in Christ and His Kingdom and are wholly committed to His local church.