what a great start....

My first week as an intern at Bethany UMC in Summerville, SC has drawn to a close I can honestly say that I have done and seen more than I ever could have imagined in 7 short days. They say that a pastor participates in all aspects of life from baptism, to confirmation, to marriage, and then onto burial. After tomorrow, I will have observed and participated in all of these occasions. While things will not always be as busy as they were this week, I was glad to have the opportunity to dive in with both feet.

My supervising pastor, Rev. Bob Howell, has been kind enough to allow me to shadow him in all that he does. Rather than working on any one thing in particular, I spent this week observing and learning. I have truly begun to gain a sense of what the senior pastor of a large congregation does. We have had many thought-provoking conversations. I am asking lots of questions and receiving good answers based in a lifetime of experience.

Coming into this summer, I hoped and prayed that this experience would be my chance to claim my pastoral identity. I now feel certain that Bethany will provide me with the perfect opportunity to do this. I will preach my first sermon (and second and third and fourth….) here. I will have a diverse group of mentors to look up to and from whom I will receive feedback. I will do everything that a pastor does, and these responsibilities are already making me feel completely alive.

As we celebrate Pentecost, I can feel the Holy Spirit descending upon me and the people I am working with. I can already tell that this will be a life-changing summer.