Dear First Pres,
Some of you already know that I am an alumni of the University of Nebraska - Lincoln. We (the university) recently hired a new football coach who, of course, is expected to bring the football program back to its former winning ways. One of the things he’s been doing over the last month, since he was hired, is building his staff. One of the ways that people have been trying to keep up with any new updates on that process has been to regularly check the “staff” page of the football program website (don’t worry, I’m not doing that … I’m just reading about those who do).
Well, I don’t suppose that any of you have been doing that for our church. But, if you have been, you probably noticed two important changes.
First, Meagan Bergem is now Meagan Kroeker! Yes, that’s right, Meagan joyfully wedded Mr. Aaron Kroeker on January 3. I’m so excited for their new life together, and I trust you will give Aaron a wonderful FPC welcome as he begins to integrate into the life of our congregation.
Second, Josh Gillispie has an expanded role. It wasn’t long ago that we hired Josh as our first-time Director of Technology (October 2020). He very quickly proved to be a tremendous addition to our church and staff with gifts, skills and calling beyond technology. So, a year later, Josh became our first Director of Modern Worship and Technology. Now, once again, Josh is growing in responsibility.
Starting on January 1, 2023, Josh is now the Minister of City Engagement and Modern Worship.
Some of you might be surprised by the word “Minister,” but this is simply identifying to the world that this staff position is a ministry position. We are in the process of reviewing all of our Director job titles, and it is likely that some other “Director” positions will follow suit. Generally, I predict it will land as follows: We’ll have Pastors (staff who are ordained in the EPC and called accordingly), Ministers (staff who are leading frontline ministries) and Directors (staff who are leading administrative and operational functions). Don’t worry, in the same way you don’t currently refer to Josh as “Director Josh,” we will not be calling him “Minister Josh” either.
Josh will continue to be on point for the leadership of our Modern Worship service and he will continue to oversee (without as much hands-on work) our Technology team. The most substantial change is the addition of “City Engagement” as a new category for our church staff. The primary vision for this part of his job will be to increase our personal engagement with the city around us for the sake of reaching more people with the Good News of Jesus. In particular, we believe Josh can really help us connect more deeply with those who work, live and invest in Downtown Fresno. How? Well, it will likely include some of the things we’ve experimented with in the past – things like: special gatherings in our parking lot, serving at downtown events, organized visits to local restaurants, cards for hospital workers, etc. But it will also include new strategies and experiments. So, more to come, Beloved.
One of our values as a congregation is transformational leadership. When I think of Meagan and Josh, I believe they are wonderful examples of the way this congregation raises up leaders to serve for the sake of God’s Kingdom on earth as it is in heaven. May the Lord continue to pour out His blessing on them and through them to our congregation in these new life and work realities.
Blessings,
Pastor Jeremy
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