I received a letter in the mail the other day, one that I wasn’t expecting and one that I would have never thought I would receive a year ago. The letter was from the pastor at the church I’ve been attending for the last year. It began with the following verse from Acts; “David, after he had served God’s purpose in his own generation died, was buried with his ancestors” (13:36 NET).

I knew by the first line what was going to follow-- he is resigning from his ministry work. I never received a letter like this before, so it was new to me. As I read the letter, I felt sadness come over me, wondering what this meant for my journey with Jesus Christ.

Over a year ago, I went to a local Baptist Church. A young man walked up to me and introduced himself as Pastor Cory. I smiled politely and shook his hand as he welcomed me to the church. I sat during the sermon wondering what kind of experience I was going to have-- little did I know, it was going to be life-changing.

The service was a little different than what I was used to growing up, but I was told to keep an open mind. When every bone in my body was telling me to never go back, something told me to try one more time before making a final decision.

The following week, I walked into that same church. With an outreached hand and a smile, Pastor Cory walked up to me and said, "Hello Jodi, welcome back." I was immediately taken aback. I have never had a Pastor remember my name after only meeting me one time. (My home church still asks me to sign in as a guest when I attend.) It was in that moment that I knew I was truly welcomed.

Throughout the year I have learned a great deal from Pastor Cory:

• He taught me Jesus solves all our problems.
• He taught me how to pray.
• He taught me how to extend grace.
• He taught me to look for guidance.

All of these lessons and others could have come from other pastors, friends, or family, but they didn’t, which made getting Pastor Cory’s resignation even more heartbreaking. I also know that there will be other churches and other pastors that I can get even more lessons from, but Pastor Cory and his church helped me feel welcomed and needed. One of my favorite quotes is a perfect representation of my meeting Pastor Cory, and it goes like this: “Look around at who God has placed in your life. They aren’t there by accident.”

The letter ended with him saying, “I pray God’s blessing on you forevermore.” Pastor Cory, although you will be missed greatly by myself and other members of the congregation, I pray God’s blessing on you forevermore.