A few weeks ago, Joy and I announced that we will be moving. The Lord has called me to plant a church in New Braunfels, TX, and we are excited to follow his lead. If you’d like to hear more about it, I’d love to talk with you. 

 

But here’s what I really want to talk about—you! Over the last 3 and a half years, you have encouraged my family and me with your love, hospitality and faith. There are so many things we are going to miss about you, but I’d like to name just a few:

 

• You hunger for God’s Word. Psalm 119: 33-35 says, “Teach me, O Lord, the way of your statutes; and I will keep it to the end. Give me understanding, that I may keep your law and observe it with my whole heart. Lead me in the path of your commandments, for I delight in it.” I have found this to be true of the FPC community. You are a congregation that truly loves God’s Word and desires to be led in the path of his commandments. 

 

• You love one another well. Not only do the folks at First Presbyterian love the Bible, but you love each other too. You want to get together, eat together, visit together and serve one another. What a wonderful quality this is! Jesus says in John 15, “love one another as I have loved you.” It is evident that the people of FPC have taken this command to heart. 

 

• You are joyful. This is a church full of smiles. The greetings are warm and the interactions heartfelt. And it is a joy that is contagious! The Apostle Paul begins his list of the Spirit’s fruit with… “Joy!” What a joyful, fruitful congregation this is!

 

• You are generous. I have been both witness to and recipient of your great generosity. Hands are open with time, money and resources. And it is a generosity that comes from the heart rather than out of compulsion. The Bible says that God loves a cheerful giver—I love this about you too!

 

• Jesus is the foundation of all you do. More than anything, I love the fact that your study, love, joy and generosity all flow from a response to the Gospel of Jesus Christ—it is his love for you that is the foundation for your actions in return. 

 

We will miss you when we are gone. But I hope we will take some of what we love with us. I know we’ll leave here better than we came, and for that I am very thankful. 

 

With love,
Derek