Goodbye, Farewell, and Amen.

People of God at CtK, "Goodbye." 

After nearly eight years of ministry together, it is time to say goodbye. I can still clearly remember finding out about the wonderful ministry taking place at Christ the King as I interviewed. I have both a mental and a digital image of the sign that warmly welcomed me on my first day at CtK (as well as the sparkly paperweight that held down the helium balloons from our Sunday School kids!). After a decade in global mission and a couple of years doing interim ministry, you here at CtK allowed me to put down some roots and grow in my identity as Lead Pastor at a faithful, dynamic, complex congregation. Together, we worked hard at how to engage in worship, to nurture one another’s faith, to build real, honest community among us, and to grow in our compassion for the world around us. I have been blessed to be among you. God be with you until we meet again.

People of God at CtK, "Farewell."

My prayer for all of you who are part of Christ the King/Cristo Rey is that you continue to fare well in the work God is calling you to do. I am deeply grateful for the ways you have both encouraged me and challenged me as a pastoral leader, and even more appreciative of the way you’ve held me, other staff, and our entire faith community in your prayers. Please continue to encourage and challenge one another, nudging one another gently yet continually towards the future that God has in mind for you and all here at Christ the King/Cristo Rey. I truly believe that CtK’s best days of ministry are in your future, not your past. And to borrow the words of the apostle Paul to the church in Philippi, I trust that “the one who began a good work among you will bring it to completion by the day of Jesus Christ.”

People of God at CtK, "Amen."

​Friends, it has been my privilege and joy to minister among you at Christ the King over these past eight years, and to share visionary leadership with you.  I give thanks to God for all that has been accomplished in Christ’s name and for the sake of our neighbors over these past eight years together. I ask your forgiveness for those areas where my ministry fell short of what God may have had in mind for us, and your patience and understanding as you continue in this time of transition. You have been a great blessing to me and to my family, and I trust that God will continue to bless us in ways we don’t fully understand thanks to our time among you all here. As I move to a new calling in Lyon, France, and prepare to enter into God’s mission in that place and among the people of the United Protestant and Anglican Churches there, I do so knowing that we serve the same God, follow the same Jesus, and are united by the same Spirit no matter how many miles, oceans, or continents are between us. Indeed, I believe that nothing can separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus our Lord. 

May God bless you and keep you all.
Pastor Peter