Sometimes I am truly amazed how God works.
Five years ago, God began to stir my heart to the idea of starting a Sunday service. At the time, things were going amazingly at Bikers’ Church, and there was no sense that I was supposed to change things on our Thursday night, but I wrestled with the idea of doing something else on Sunday morning. I shared the idea with a few close friends, but never went beyond the talking stage.
Then, in August 2008, I was asked to fill in as the interim pastor at City Church. It was an honour to take the reigns from the founding pastor and lead this incredible congregation through a transition to finding a new pastor. That process took eight months, and there were certainly moments during that season where I wondered if I was supposed to be the guy to step in full time. In fact, there were many people who approached me about just that idea. However, I had made a promise to both the Bikers’ Church leadership and to the District Office that I would serve my role, help City Church find a new pastor, then step away.
To be honest, Bikers’ Church wasn’t ready for me to take on a second congregation.
And, the pastor the search committee settled on was a godly man. While I didn’t know him all that well, I have had the opportunity to develop a friendship with him over the past few years. He was the right choice when the congregation voted him to become their pastor in February 2009. And, over the past two years, he has had to lead City Church through a number of difficult transitions. To say that the past two years have been a challenge would be an understatement. And yet, I believe everyone involved served with integrity and a desire to see God do something special within City Church.
And yet, over the past year, I have struggled to shake the idea that God was getting Heather and I ready to do something more. Something on top of what we are currently doing with Bikers Church. We made the transition into Vanier and began to run Bikers’ Church out of City Church’s building. Our heart was to stand with this church during this difficult season, believing that God was preparing them for something significant.
Things turned up a notch a few months ago when CC’s Pastor took some time off for health reasons. The burden he had been carrying was becoming too great. He and I had many wonderful conversations during this time, and I knew that it was very likely that he would soon resign from his role at City. At the same time, the burden for Vanier and the desire to see this church become strong once again was consuming me. Heather and I prayed regularly for direction and understanding.
When the pastor announced his resignation, we knew what God was doing. We knew that somehow, he was leading us into this role at City Church. And so, we submitted to the process, walking through the idea with the leadership teams of both churches.
It has been an amazing journey to experience. I’ve been blown away by the incredible support of the Bikers’ Church family. I am equally amazed at the resilience and willingness to make the necessary changes in order to see City Church become what God has purposed for it to be. Both congregations are incredible, and I am absolutely floored to be able to be a part of these two families.
And so, this past Sunday, the congregation voted to affirm me as their new pastor. As of today, I am now pastoring both congregations. Bikers’ Church will continue to hold their service on Thursdays at 7pm. City Church will gather together Sundays at 10:30 am.
I would like to extend an invitation to anyone who may have once been a part of the City Church family, and to those who may not currently have a church home to join us during the month of January as we share the vision for City Church moving forward.
The schedule for services over the next few weeks looks like this:
Thursday, December 23rd, both City Church & Bikers’ Church will be joining together for a Candlelight Service. Starts at 7pm. All are welcome.
Sunday, December 26th, City Church will be closed. We encourage you to enjoy a day with family or to take the time to visit another church.
Sunday, January 2nd, I will be introducing the pastoral team. We are taking time to share a little of our stories, our hearts, and our vision. We’ll also open it up for a time of Q&A.
Sunday, January 9th — 30th we will be launching into a series that focuses on the vision and direction for City Church. This will be an amazing opportunity for you to discover what the next chapter of City Church will look like. Again, it’s perfect for those looking for a church home and former members of City to hear my heart for this church moving forward.
So, join us if you can. We’d love to see you in January. And, of course, we’d love to see all you bikes connect with us on Thursday nights as well!
To stay up to date, check out the City Church website and/or the Bikers Church website.
