Leroy’s retirement from active
ministry or church work is officially today. He is at church doing the final
clean sweep of his office. He has gotten rid of most of his books. The current
intern took some and another seminary student that he knows took some more. He was
fussing a little about his files. He has considered getting rid of most of
them. I do not believe he has very many. After I told someone he did not reuse
sermons, he now tells me that he is keeping some of his, or what he considers
his best sermons, so he can pull them out if required. I suspect what would
happen is that he would pull it out and change quite a bit of it before
delivery.
We will remain in this church so he
will have to be vigilant to not interfere or contribute in any way that might
be considered official. Last night he was talking to someone about upcoming
surgery and getting all of the details in place. I, in my head, wondered what
he was doing. I suspect the person there also wondered because she told him
that one of the other pastors knew about it. Finally this morning I talked to Leroy
about it. He was a bit horrified. He commented that he had not even heard her
say about the other pastor knowing about it. Last night he was concerned
because he had not seen it on the church office calendar. This will be a
learning experience for all. Any other time we have left a congregation we have
moved so there is no close connection.
Going back to those files, Leroy is
wondering where we can store them. Just now I realized we can take things out
of the bottom two drawers of the file cabinet since they are not files, but
just items stored there.
Also a random thought. Leroy has served
this congregation for five years making it the third longest stay. The longest
stay was for fifteen years and the next for eight.
How lives all differ. Yesterday I was
talking to a woman who has lived in her house for 40 years. I do not know what
that would be like.
This is a picture of Leroy and I after the evening worship service and the celebration for him.
Paula
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