The Capranica has been silent for a number of weeks.  That’s not necessarily new, though August and September were banner months for readership.  As most will know, our family just moved from the desert of Southern California to tundra of the Kansas City, Missouri area.  We now live in Lee’s Summit, a suburb of Kansas City, and I recently became the Pastor-Teacher of Summit Woods Baptist Church.  Yesterday was my third week in the pulpit and I commence my fourth week in the office today.  The transition was quick and relatively easy as far as moves go.  The kids have adjusted well and we are all adjusting from the normal November 90″™s in Hemet to the normal 40 and 50 degree weather for Kansas City.  We’re bracing for the fun stuff on its way.

Our transition was, as most issues in life are, a learning experience for us.  The lessons that come to mind are ones not necessarily attached to moving to a new ministry assignment – several are essential for the normality of life.  Yet, moving your family across the country (or further) is no normal time.  Though we are still in the beginning stages, here’s a few thoughts on what I have found helpful during the transition:

1.  Spend encouraging time with good friends before leaving. We made it a point to sped some wonderful fellowship time with people who were close to us before we left (though we were unable to see everyone).  We treasure every one of those conversations – every meal – every moment we had with such precious friends.  We had rich times of conversation with neighbors, friends from church, and family.  We left on one of the most positive notes possible.

2.  Arrive early enough to settle the family. A very good friend who has been in pastoral ministry for many years encouraged me to move to our new ministry as soon as possible, at least a few weeks before I was to start my pastoral ministry (our elders exhorted me to do this also). He encouraged me not to immediately work on setting up my office and library, but immediately invest myself in setting up our home.  I cannot tell you how helpful this was to our family.  When I began my first day at the church office, we had unpacked almost every box, put up almost every picture, set up all the furniture, and finalized all the details associated with a move to another city and state.  I had little family stress on my mind and my wife was able to begin some form of a regular schedule for our kids.  The bulk of settling into the house was not laid on my wife”™s shoulders and it allowed me to begin at the church with nothing on my conscience associated with the move or an unsettled family.  I was also able to attend church with my family for a few weeks before I had any pastoral responsibilities or expectations.  It was a really rich and blessed time for us.  Both my family and my church benefitted from this.

3.  Plan your preaching calendar quickly. One of my first priorities in my first week of ministry at the church was to plan out the next three months of preaching and review it with our elders and staff.  I received valuable feedback and had a lot of fruitful conversation about what would serve our church well in the opening weeks of my preaching ministry.  This helped me to get into a regular flow of study and exposition quickly and have little stress in planning week to week what I would be addressing.

4.  Be proactive with whom you will meet. I have had some of the sweetest meetings with brothers and sisters in our church during my first few weeks of ministry.  In the weeks leading up to our move and my beginning, I had been thinking about and planning who I could begin developing good relationships with.  Some of these were people who perhaps had some reservations about my leadership and were uncertain about the transition (all very normal stuff).  Some were simply faithful, stalwarts within the congregation who have provided me with such helpful historical information and practical suggestions in getting started.  I’ve been blessed with phenomenal conversations and the beginnings of excellent relationships.  I have learned so much about our church in just three short week because of initiating some of these meetings.

5.  Spend time listening and learning. My wife and I are visiting a different Adult Bible Fellowship class every week, a different Life Group every month, and I’m participating in – not teaching – our men’s Bible study each Wednesday.  I am enjoying it immensely.  I purposefully do not say a whole lot in these groups but instead I listen to the conversation, hear how people interact with one another, and see the valuable leaders and teachers God has given Summit Woods.  What a joy to see all of this taking place.

6.  Take your day off and invest it in your family. It would be very easy for me to work non-stop at the very beginning of this ministry.  But my family, my church, and I need me to stop.  I take off every Friday and keep my phone on my nightstand, avoid my home study, and spend time relaxing with the family.  We play together, have every meal together, and rest.  Nothing much more than that.  It clears my head for the weekend, allows me undistracted time with my wife and kids, and time to decompress from a very full previous week.

7.  Keep a rigorous and regular schedule. The rest of the week I engage in a very rigorous schedule.  I generally sit down on a Saturday morning and plan out my general schedule for the week – when I will study, who I should see, meetings I will be involved in, etc.  If I were purely reactive to the week, I would accomplish few of my God-given priorities.  Each day is full and the regularity of the schedule (as much as is providentially possible) is a benefit to my family.  I try to be home at a regular time most evenings.  I try to be proactive in the time I will spend at home and in the office.

8.  Linger long at church on the Lord’s Day. I love getting to church early to visit with people and I love the conversations with people afterward.  I am usually one of the last to leave simply because I so value the ministry and fellowship with God’s people on the Lord’s Day.  I can answer immediate questions that arose from the sermon, pray with someone who has a need, plan a time to visit with another who needs more extended time of conversation and generally be available to people.  This is really valuable, fruitful ministry time that has helped to get to know the flock quickly.

9.  Enjoy extended conversations with elders and staff. I tend to be a very driven person, having a good idea of what needs to be accomplished each day, but I have so enjoyed the off-the-cuff extended conversations with staff members and elders during each day or after a meeting.  We are getting to know one another well and our talks on personal life and church ministry have grown my love for each one of them.

10.  Don’t neglect your quiet time with the Lord. With a rush of issues in beginning a new ministry, it is easy to neglect personal time in God”™s Word and prayer.  I could easily begin my day thinking through issues and planning for more meetings, but I need the regular recalibration and soul-refreshing time of quiet prayer over and thoughtful reflection on the Word.  Even though some of the late nights make for short nights, spending time in prayer and in the word has been vital to my soul’s not being overwhelmed with the immense task and needs in front of me.

I have so enjoyed the first month of our transition to Lee’s Summit.  Summit Woods is a blessing to be a part of and our family is overjoyed to be a part of this ministry.