Ministry Licensing

 

Good morning, friends! I have some stories for you this week, and the first one I want to tell you is from a week ago Sunday.

                Different churches/denominations have different procedures for those who serve in ministry, and since being hired on our church staff last December, I have been working diligently to make my way through the steps of what our denomination requires.

                I’ve mentioned pieces of it along the way, but the short version is that I had a series of meetings with our district minister, with a cohort of people working with me specifically, and with a credentialing committee. I answered questions, I shared my testimony, I wrote long answers to essay prompts…and do you want to know something? I really enjoyed every little step of it. I truly did. I took it seriously, recognized the weight of it all, and tried to absorb every piece.

                After all the meetings and questions and interviews and essays, our district minister traveled to our church to do a special ceremony within our worship service that signified I was licensed for ministry within our church.

                There were so many things about the day that were meaningful to me. Ryan was on worship team that morning, and I loved it that he was able to sing on this day that was special to my heart.

                Pastor Jonathan shared with our church about the journey I had been on, and then he turned it over to Laura, who is our district minister.

                Laura said some very sweet things that were completely humbling to hear – and a gift to my heart. Then she read some vows to me which I committed to honoring as I serve.

                After that, she invited the congregation to come forward and pray over me. We do this often in our church as we commission people for ministry (short or long term), so I knew what it would look like, but as I saw the people come forward…my goodness, was it hard to not just fall apart crying. And from where I stood, I couldn’t even fully see everyone. When I watched the service back later online, this was overwhelming. I took a screen shot that I will be framing and putting in my office.

                Laura prayed over me and then so did my dear friend Julie and my sweet Ryan. I soaked up every word they said.

                I love this picture of Ryan hugging me after the prayer time.

                I said a brief word of thanks to the congregation and enjoyed the rest of our service.

                (A big thanks to my friend, Tenley, for taking pictures of the licensing for me!)

                After church, I grabbed some pictures with a few of the people…

                …Laura, our district minister. I have really appreciated her encouragement and advice along the way!

                …Jonathan and Julie. They’ve been friends, they’ve been encouragers, they’ve been mentors, they’ve been prayer warriors. I could not have made this journey without them.

                …my parents! They were able to be present, which was so meaningful to me.

                …my beloved Ryan. I could write for days about his support, love, prayers, and kindness as I have walked each step of this. Everybody on this earth needs a Ryan when walking into what God has asked.

                I am grateful for this day, for what it represented in my heart, and for the people who surrounded me.