Dear Members of St. Stephen,
“I…thank God for you because of his grace given you in Christ Jesus. For in him you have been enriched in every way… — you do not lack any spiritual gift as you eagerly wait for our Lord Jesus Christ to be revealed.” (1 Corinthians 1:4-5,7)
Over the past weeks 1 have had the humble privilege and honor of considering the divine call you extended to me. Thank you for the opportunity, but I have decided to decline the call you extended to me. The pull to further St. John’s ministry plans, including a potential multi-million dollar facility expansion project which is in the serious planning stages currently, plus family considerations, made me feel like this isn’t the right time to make a change. Even though I am declining, please know that there is no doubt in my mind that it would have been a blessing to be a part of St. Stephen’s ministry.
No divine call is a waste of time, so let me assure you that your call gave me the opportunity for personal reflection and to learn about your ministry which can give me ideas for my congregation. It was helpful to talk with both of your pastors. Their pastoral hearts for the people and ministry of St. Stephen’s shined in our conversations. St. Stephen’s is now on my radar and will continue to be in my prayers! And I’m thankful that our congregations get to partner together in the worldwide WELS ministry.
My prayer is that the Lord would continue to richly bless St Stephen’s ministry, that He would fill your vacancy very soon, and that you will continue to be patient and hopeful during this time of transition until that next Gospel servant joins your ministry team. I am confident that our God will meet all your needs according to his glorious riches in Christ Jesus.
in Christ’s Service,
Pastor Kurt R. Schaser
Photo from https://stjohnsnewburg.com/about-us/#meet-our-pastors
