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Standing at the Crossroads

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by Cindy Waple

This weekend begins the in-person process of finding a new senior pastor for Elim. Don Rayman will be coming to meet with the elders and members of Elim. It will be our opportunity to “interview” him: to meet him and spend time with him, get to know him, ask him questions, and hear him preach. AND he will also be interviewing us. He will be meeting us and spending time with us, he will be getting to know us and asking us questions. He will hear us “preach”—actually, share—our thoughts about Elim, our past and present experiences of Elim, and our hope for Elim.

I recently was meditating on a passage, Jeremiah 6:16: “This is what the LORD says: ‘Stand at the crossroads and look; ask for the ancient paths, ask where the good way is, and walk in it, and you will find rest for your souls.’”

The context of this passage is wrath and destruction, but that is not why I chose it.

I chose it because we are at a crossroads and have been at a crossroads since Pastor Martin left. And I would say, even before Pastor Martin left. Change was coming. And we have been looking and asking the Lord, “What is the way You are calling Elim to go?” The elders and the Transition Team spent months exploring that question. And then COVID hit, then racial injustice issues, then reopening the church, then more COVID, then ramping up for the elections, and COVID is still with us and schools are not opening and Elim is trying to reopen, people are leaving, our leaders aren’t doing what we think they should do, and on it goes—and we still stand at a crossroads, looking and asking, “Which is the way to go?” And sadly, depending on who you ask, the answer is varied. Go this way—no, go this way—go my way—no, go that way. And now we stand at the crossroads, divided. More divided than I have experienced during my 18 years at Elim.

Another verse that I was reminded of is John 17:20-21:

My prayer is not for them alone. I (Jesus) pray also for those who will believe in me through their message, that all of them may be one, Father, just as You are in me and I am in You. May they also be in us so that the world may believe that You have sent me.

Jesus, before His arrest and crucifixion, had one prayer for His followers, that they would be one. And then He adds, “May they also be in us so that the world may believe that You have sent me.”

My dear brothers and sisters in Christ, we stand at a crossroads and we are looking and asking, “What is the way to go?” I believe with all my heart that there is only one way for us to go, and that is the way of Jesus. It is the way of love, grace, and mercy. It is the way of humility, surrender, and putting others before ourselves. It is the way of compassion, healing, and reconciliation. It is the way of saying, “Not my will, but Your will be done, Lord.” It is only as we seek to follow Jesus with all our hearts, as we seek to walk in His ways, will we find rest for our souls.

For me, and I pray for you as well, following the way of Jesus begins with examining my own heart and motives, then confessing and repenting of being led by my own pride and/or fear, of following my own agenda or the agenda of another on social media or the news, of judging and criticizing those I strongly disagree with (and for me, wanting to prove them wrong), of not loving well—first my brothers and sisters in Christ, and then those I adamantly disagree with (mostly people I don’t even know).

Following and walking in the way of Jesus means I am willing to come together with my brothers and sisters in Christ to lay aside our egos, agendas, latest reports, and stats supporting my opinion and humbly seek together God’s will and desire. To earnestly seek together to love God with all of our being and love one another, to be one in Christ and to truly desire to point others to Jesus, who is the Way, the Truth, and the Life.

Don Rayman will be interviewing Elim. And in this precious church, he will find people confused, hurt, and, yes, divided. But more importantly, I know he will find committed believers longing and desiring to follow and walk in the way of Jesus above anything or anyone else. And if Don is the man God is calling to Elim, then I pray his heart will join with ours and together we can walk toward love, healing, unity, and hope for a whole and vibrant church, walking in God’s truth, sharing the Gospel, and shining the light of Jesus’s love on South Hill. To God be the glory.

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Pastoral Search Adventure

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By Interim Pastor Steve McCoy

Our church is poised for a great experience. Our pastoral search team is hard at work, praying, poring over scores of resumes, making calls, and asking questions. It takes time—lots of it.

They are very aware that searching for a leader is a faith-filled, time-tested adventure. At the right time, they and the elders will bring you as a congregation into the mix as we explore together God’s choice for Elim.

Meanwhile we can relax, because the “Evangelical Free Church at Ephesus” had to go through a similar assessment process.

Acts 18:24–26 reads, “Meanwhile a Jew named Apollos, a native of Alexandria, came to Ephesus. He was a learned man, with a thorough knowledge of the Scriptures. He had been instructed in the way of the Lord, and he spoke with great fervor and taught about Jesus accurately, though he knew only the baptism of John. He began to speak boldly in the synagogue. When Priscilla and Aquila heard him, they invited him to their home and explained to him the way of God more adequately.”

As a quality leader, Apollos had multiple positives going for him:

  • He was educated—“a learned man” (v. 24).
  • He was biblically savvy—“instructed in the way of the Lord” (v. 25a).
  • He was a gifted communicator—“spoke with great fervor” (v. 25b). (Interestingly enough, great fervor is an idiom that literally means “to boil in the spirit.” He was eager, enthusiastic, and passionate about ministry.)
  • He was doctrinally astute—“taught about Jesus accurately” (v. 25c).
  • He spoke “boldly” (v. 26a) about Jesus in a religiously hostile context.

But there was one negative regarding Apollos—he was deficient in his understanding of Jesus (v. 25) and the “way of God” (v. 26). With a teachable spirit, he humbly submitted to the tutelage of Priscilla and Aquila and was brought up to speed.

In due time, Elim will look at a pastor’s character and his ministerial competency. In addition, we will assess if he has the right chemistry to serve at our church. There will be all kinds of pluses, but there may be a negative or two. That’s what you will have to weigh as you consider the prospective pastor.

Meanwhile, Elim is on a time-tested, faith-filled adventure in finding your next pastor.

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