Our Church Affirms & Blesses Two Persons in Pastoral Ministry

During tonight's Charge Conference meeting at our church, we affirmed the ministry of two people who are at different points in their ministerial journey.

Rev. Ben Foulk (Pastor Cheryl's husband)  is taking time off from active ministry and he needs to be officially affiliated with a United Methodist Church during this time. Ben has chosen to affiliate with our church. Ben will be teaching one of our Love-Grow-Serve core courses in Spring of 2015. Don't miss out on his class. You will learn a lot about your faith from him and he will be a wonderful blessing to our discipleship/teaching team.

Rebecca Hug is in the process of becoming an ordained Deacon in the United Methodist Church. Since we are Rebecca's home church, she needed our official approval to continue in the next phase of her journey toward ordination. She already met with our Staff/Parish Relations Committee and they recommended her to our Charge Conference meeting tonight for approval. Rebecca is currently the Youth Director at Hilliard UMC. After tonight's approval, she will continue in her process toward ordination by meeting with the District and Conference board of ministries. This process also includes supervisory years prior to ordination.

In the United Methodist Church, there are two tracts toward ordination. There is the Deacon track which focuses on service in the community and the Elder track which focuses on overseeing ministry in a congregational setting. Both are vital ways to provide spiritual leadership through the United Methodist Church.

Rebecca and our Youth Director, Joe Palmer were in the same confirmation class. It's great to know that our church is raising up leaders in the church!

[Rev. Mark Chows offers a blessing for Rebecca Hug in our church's chapel. Rev. Ben Foulk is kneeling next to her. Members of our Church Council shared in the laying on of hands.]

Following our meeting tonight, Rev. Mark Chow, the Assistant to the District Superintendent who presided at the meeting led us in a time of laying hands and offering prayer for Ben and Rebecca. There were approximately thirty of us and we gathered in the chapel and laid hands on each of them and offered prayers. It was a powerful and holy moment to know that our church has served and continues to serve as a home base for these two persons who have been called into ministry.