Time to move on

There are some conversations in life that stand out, upon reflection, as being generally more important than the rest and can have implications that profoundly affect the future of those involved. Although at this point in my journey I cannot claim to have had too many of these life changing conversations, I certainly experienced one of them early this year.

I received a phone call from my parents one Saturday morning in January, a typical occurrence in which we catch up on the events of the previous week. This day, however, my parents had some alarming news which I could never have been prepared to receive. They explained to me how for the past year, they had undergone a period of intentional reflection and prayer regarding the church my parents were currently serving at and had, with great difficulty, come to the decision that it was time to move on and find a new congregation to lead. They told me that they had been in conversation with many churches seeking ministers across the United States and that they had felt called in particular to First Christian Church in Wilmington, Ohio, where their congregation had just voted and approved my father as the new senior minister.

Although I currently attend school at Transylvania University in Lexington, Kentucky, my home for the past 17 years has been Columbus, Georgia. Columbus was the place where I attended elementary through high school, the place in which I met many of my lifelong friends, and last but certainly not least, the home of the church congregation which had helped raise me and give me a strong Christian foundation. To me, Columbus, and the people there, represents my entire childhood and adolescence.

The news that my family intended to leave Columbus behind was understandably difficult to hear. At first, it was hard to even believe that this decision had been made and that my parents would be moving in slightly more than two months. I found myself thinking and asking, 'Why Wilmington? Why Ohio?' In Columbus we had an amazing congregation that had always been nurturing and supportive of our family, and I could not find any problems or issues which would have explained the decision. My parents simply explained that they felt they were no longer as effective as they once were in our congregation and that a change would ultimately benefit both parties. Slowly I was able to understand the reasoning behind the decision and supported my family's choice to move on.

Since I attend school so far away from home, spring break was going to be the last time I would be able to visit before the move. As could be expected, the trip was difficult as my time was spent helping my parents pack up our house, spending time with my friends for the last time, seeing all the places that had become fixtures of my life over the 17 years, and visiting with my church family. Although it was hard, the trip provided the closure needed by me and everyone else who had been involved in my life during my time in Columbus.

This trip was far from the last time I will be visiting with the people in Columbus who have been important in my life thus far. One of the most important lessons I brought away from this experience was that those special kinds of relationships between friends and congregations are not easily forgotten. Many friends and members of the church have already made plans to visit the new house in Ohio and visit with our family. In turn, I have promised to keep in contact and visit home over the summer to check in and see everyone. This whole experience, while difficult, has demonstrated to me that the relationships in life which truly matter, like those between lifelong friends and church families, will not fade regardless of the twists and surprises that life throws at us, and this realization has given me the strength to face these challenges.