“What were the years that you pastored our church? I know I was pretty young, but you had quite an impact on me and I never forgot you. We all had very fond memories of you and your family.”
These kind words reached me today from a woman in Pennsylvania who was just ten years old when I resigned in 1967 from the church I pastored in Altoona. Her parents, brother, and sisters had started attending the church when I was the pastor. She tracked me down the other day after reading a few articles I had written for a Sunday school paper she received in the bulletin of the church she attends near Bedford, Pennsylvania.
It is humbling to think the Lord would use what I said or did so many years ago to help shape the life of a ten year old. We must never minimize the importance of ministering to children. As the twig is bent, so grows the tree.
Another woman who was about eight or nine in the Altoona church, when I was the pastor, will be visiting our daughter Sherrie in Denver next week. They have maintained their friendship since 1967. They will be present September 5, when I preach at Spring Valley Chapel, several miles north of Colorado Springs.
Pastoral ministry offers many challenges, but the dividend of knowing how the Lord has shaped the lives of His “children” makes it all worthwhile.
