Reflections on the 10 Year Celebration

Sunday was one of the highlights of my life.  It was one of the most exhilarating experiences to celebrate what God has been doing in and through PCC for 10 years.  

Ten Years!  It's hard to believe.  Sunday, September 30 was a fitting celebration to mark the moment.   Here are some of the highlights of the evening from my perspective:

• We were all together...PCC folks along with a larger family, from community leaders to partners to other churches to good friends. It helped me to really see that there is a larger fabric into which PCC is woven.  After the celebration, I was thanking Tim Kennell, Pastor at Powhatan Mennonite Church, for being with us and praying for us.  I told him it meant a lot to us to have his support.  He stopped me, looked right into my eyes, and firmly said something like this:  'We are counting on PCC to succeed.  If you don't win, that's a reflection on my Jesus!  We're rooting for you, and we're in this together!'  Wow.  I can't tell you how humbling that is.  Even other churches are pulling for us!

• And then our partners from Middle District and Virginia Baptists, both passionately and tangibly expressing their belief that PCC has made a difference and will still make a difference in the future.  Jim Hamacher and Glenn Akins are such an encouragement to me, others on our staff, and our church.  In addition to a heavy financial investment in what we do, much of what they do for us is quiet and behind the scenes.  They they are partnering with us in many potent ways.

• Of course, having one of my closest friends cheer us on and affirm our church was a highlight for me.  Jeff and Lanette Boggess have become a lifeline for me and Susan and we count it a great privilege to have them a true friends.  We do life together, can completely be ourselves and share a common point of reference with the similar path God has put us on. 

For the record, I never put the impala poop in my mouth (they called them 'impala seeds' in South Africa).  Jeff did that, along with Hank Brooks and Mark Jenkins.   They had an Impala Seed Spitting Contest.  Here's the proof:

• Bob Beasley and Dr. Margaret Meara have both been enormous helps to our church.  In fact, we wouldn't be where we are today without them.  And if it had not been for the generosity and flexibility of Dr. Meara and her team, we might have never even started!  The words they spoke about our church were very humbling to hear.  They've been very good friends to PCC.

• The worship that night was one of the most moving I've ever experienced in my entire life.  Beth and her team are so incredibly gifted, and they crafted an environment that eliminated the distractions and had us focused, celebrating, crying, worshiping and in the very presence of God.

• It took an army of people to pull off the evening.  Many people from PCC threw their full resources behind it - from food to organization to traffic control to technology to logistics.  It was a LOT, and it took months of planning.  But I just want to highlight one group.  Did you know that Powhatan Mennonite Church sent a group of people, including their pastor and his wife, to come and make our evening very special?  In order for more of our folks to enjoy the evening, their volunteers worked in a variety of areas, including handling all of the childcare for a very large group of kids.    It occurs to me, they love their church, but they love THE Church, too.  What a blessing they are to the Kingdom of God!

So, now it's time to begin our journey into the next 10 years.  Greater things are yet to come!