Dear St. Luke’s,

When I first arrived at St. Luke’s in January there was a mountain of major projects, events and transitions in the pipeline, and now many of these things are coming alive. The building project has officially started, we are preparing for the calendar year, and very importantly; the craft fair, pumpkins, and Shrine Mont are coming back! Seeing the effects of so much work and ministry is joyful, but in the midst of this joy is a somber change. At the end of August, Chip will be ending his ministry at St. Luke’s, and we will all have a chance to celebrate with him after the 10:00 am service on August 29th.

Chip began his ordained ministry in a very unusual and challenging time, and he consistently rose to the occasion to serve St. Luke’s and the greater Church. He was initially hired on a temporary basis to help with our technology during the pandemic, but his ministry expanded to include fulltime ordained ministry, and the Church was happy utilize our PPP loan to expand his contract through August. Our ability to broadcast services and our vigorous online presence is due to his efforts and passion, and more importantly, he provided a consistent pastoral presence is a time of intense transition.

We are all tremendously thankful for Chip’s ministry to our Church and for the time that we were able to do ministry together. Even though our time to part is approaching, we can all rest assured that Chip has left his mark on the Church, and his efforts during this trying time will forever be part of St. Luke’s story.

I wish I was in a position to tell you definitely what the next chapter of Chip ministry will be, but that is not my story to tell and the timing is not right. Chip will share the news of his next call with us when the time is right. I encourage you to be patient along with me for the right time when Chip will share the news of his next call with us. In the meantime, let us keep Chip in prayer as he discerns his next call.

I hope you all will plan on joining us in celebrating Chip ministry with us at the end of the month, and please do not overlook an opportunity to thank him for his service to the Church and to wish him well!

Blessings,

Nick