Ordination

            As most of you probably know, last week I was ordained as an elder in full connection to the Dakotas Conference of the United Methodist church.  The ordination was made complete at a worship service held in conjunction with Annual Conference at First United Methodist Church in Sioux Falls.

            

            In the weeks before the service, I wondered whether I would actually feel anything about the ordination.  I don’t mean that in a critical way, but what I was thinking was that it really would not change anything about the job I do.  It would not change anything about the people I serve or how I serve them.  Being ordained would not make me better at delivering sermons, or at reaching out to people, or at any of the other things I do as a pastor.  So, I wondered, would I really feel anything at all about being ordained, other than just relief that it was finally over?

            

           Well, I did feel something.  I felt a lot of things.  Relief was one of them, I’ll admit, but it was not the main one.

           

            One of the things I felt was gratitude.  Lots of people came to the ordination service.  There were people I’d known in Wessington Springs.  There were people I’d known in North Sioux City.  There were people I’d known in seminary.  There were people I’ve come to know from the Wheatland Parish.  There were relatives who came from a long way.  And, of course, there was my incredible wife, who has been a major part of everything I’ve done, including being ordained, for over twenty-two years.

            

            It made me very thankful to God for all the people God has put in my life.  As I look back on it, it seems like God has always put the exact people I’ve needed into my life at the exact time I’ve needed them.  All those people who came, and of course many more who could not come, are people who’ve touched my life in some way.  I’m so lucky and blessed to have them all in my life.  I would not be who I am today without them.

            

             Another thing I felt was acceptance.  After the ceremony, lots of pastors came up to me and congratulated me on my ordination.  Some of them are people I’ve known for a long time, and that obviously meant a lot to me.  Some of them, though, are people I hardly know at all, and that meant a lot to me, too.  When those people congratulated me on my ordination, it was like they were welcoming me into the group.  They were saying that they could see the call God gave me to be a pastor.  They could see that I was worthy of it, and that I really do belong as a pastor.  That’s a pretty great feeling.

            

             What all of that meant, and what I think ordination did for me, was give me a renewed sense of purpose.  It made me grateful for the wonderful people with whom I am in ministry, both in the conference and in the Wheatland Parish.  It also made me more eager to do all I can to work with those wonderful people to do move God’s ministry forward.

            
             So, I would like to thank everyone who has helped me reach this point in my life.  It has been a wonderful journey, but it’s only beginning.  There are lots more adventures to be had on this journey.  I look forward to all of them, and I look forward to having them with you