Ordination

I had the privilege of seeing Nick be officially ordained as a pastor last Sunday...what a testimony to God's grace and faithfulness in my dear husband's life. The service consisted of regular worship time, then a slideshow of Nick and Mike Seaver (who was also ordained). Kristin and I both had the opportunity to publicly honor our husbands. I would love to figure out how to put that part of the video on here, but I don't have motivation or time to figure it out, so I've posted what I said below the pictures if you want to read it. Then our Senior Pastor gave a charge to Mike and Nick, and the service concluded with the laying of hands by the other pastors, as they prayed for Mike and Nick to fulfill the "vows" they took before the congregation. I was very moved by the whole service, and my appreciation and love for Nick has only grown.

John, Larry, Joe, Jim, Mickey

Honoring Nick

The Charge

Here's my "speech:"

"Nick, what fun to have the opportunity to publicly honor you today. There three areas I would like to encourage and honor you in this morning- As a husband, father, and leader.

First, I would like to honor you in your role as my husband. I regularly thank the Lord for you as my husband. And I often find myself marveling at God’s plan in bringing us together, that He has blessed me far beyond what I hoped for in marriage. These last four years of my life have been the greatest by far! You are my best friend, and there is no one I would rather spend time with. In fact, one of my favorite activities at the end of the day is sitting and talking together in our Den. I love that you challenge me and make me think when I would otherwise settle for casual conversation. Another thing I love about you is that you are very perceptive as to when my soul is not at ease. You always take the time to draw me out and listen, even when I don’t make it easy all the time. You are quick to listen when I am working through something, and you regularly point me to God if I am trying to stumble through things on my own. I love that you ask me, “where is God in this?” or “Are you trusting that God is going to take care of you?” Thank you, my love. What a gift to be under your leadership. I also appreciate how well you manage our finances. You have always made it a priority for me to have the opportunity to stay home with Kathryn, which I’m very thankful for. I do regularly tease you that budget fiddling has become a hobby for you, but really I’m grateful that you are so thoughtful about how to spend, save, and invest our money.

I would also like to honor you in your role as Dad. I remember thinking before Kathryn was born how excited I was to see you in your new role as her dad. Once again, you have surpassed my expectations! I love seeing how excited Kathryn gets when she hears you whistling when you get home from work. Her whole body goes crazy with delight as she yells, “Dada! Dada!” I love watching you play with her. You can get her laughing harder than anyone else. She adores you, and I treasure watching that relationship grow. Not only do you play with Kathryn and help me with baths and bedtime, I admire your vision for our family. This is something about you that I regularly thank the Lord for. I appreciate your desire to teach our kids the value of living a simple life with fewer toys and being grateful for what they have. I also admire your ability to keep sight of the bigger picture for Kathryn and for our future kids, that their greatest need is to know Jesus as their savior. Thank you for your example to me in keeping this the main direction of our parenting with Kathryn. You are wise beyond your years, and I’m so glad you are leading our family.

Not only have I seen and benefited from your leadership at home, I have watched you grow into your new responsibilities of being a pastor. It’s hard to believe that it was only a year ago that we got back from the PC and you were starting into this new territory of work. Since then, what a joy to see how God has equipped and enabled you to not only love your job as a pastor, but to throw yourself into it passionately. I have seen you balance leading our Mission 28 Care Group, caring for several regular Care Groups and Care Group Leaders, as well as helping with Solus. You love the people under your care, and I have learned a lot by watching you care for people. You ask great questions and make an effort to become truly involved in people’s lives. I know firsthand that you carry your flock on your heart, and I have heard from many people how much they appreciate your care and counsel. You are an effective leader and pastor. Thank you.

I think one of the most exciting things about being able to honor you today, Love, is that all of these areas point to God’s grace at work in your life. I have watched you surrender yourself to the Lord, as you seek to please Him alone with your life. And as you have surrendered yourself to Him, He has molded and shaped you into the husband, father, and leader that you are today. I am so proud of you, Nick, and I love you