McKenzie M. Sefa

I am so excited that I can't even see straight. Craig and I are on our way back to Lexington with the news that (for the most part), I was being appointed to a church.

So the first person we call is Rev. Bill Beebe back in DeLeon Springs, FL. I knew that Bill would be as extatic as we were, and I was right. When I told him that the appointment was almost set, he screamed in my ear and quickly reminded me that...

Well, today was the day that Craig and I went down to meet with Rev. Cummings. It took about an hour to get to his home in Frankfurt and it was a peaceful drive. We took 33 to 60 to the Blue Grass Parkway and it was beautiful. We arrived just before 11:00.

The meeting started with introductions and a few questions about ourselves and how we see ourselves in ministry. Craig and I talked about how we function as a ministry team and see ourselves working as a team regardless of whether or not he is employed in the church or in a ministry outside of the local church. We talked about our journey through the churches of Florida and into the United Methodist Church and then into Kentucky, Asbury and Trinity Hill UMC. Then the conversation shifted. Rev. Cummings began talking about salary packages and how the finance committee needed to meet to make the final preparations for that and that he would share that with me when he had the details. Craig and I looked at each other like we had walked into a conversation already in progress. Money? I'm not even sure where we are in the process and whether or not I'm going to be appointed and we were already talking about money.

Then he mentioned something that, quite honestly, I had to have him repeat a few times before I was sure of what he was saying. He said the church he was looking at me for was Springfield United Methodist in Springfield, KY. From his understanding, it was about an hour away from the seminary and it was the church with a parsonage. Shocked is the mild version of what was going through my heart at the time. He gave me the address of the church and said that June 19th was the designated moving day for the state of KY and my first Sunday in the pulpit would be June 24th. Ummm....what? Was he saying what he thought I was saying? "It is my intent to appoint you to the Springfield United Methodist Church for the upcoming year." He said that he would go one of two routes, depending on the response of the church: he would either appoint me as the pastor or do a joint-appointment for Craig and I with me as the lead. Craig and I were ok with either option. We scheduled a meeting to meet the PPR committee on Thursday June 7th at 6:30 and he would contact me Tuesday morning with the info from the Finance committee meeting on Monday. He had already started my file and was asking for references from my current pastor (Steve Drury), my previous pastor (Bill Beebe) and my mentor (Dennis Burrows). He also asked for me to email my transcripts and said he would be in touch on Tuesday.

The meeting was over around noon and Craig and I headed home. Was it real? We were both questioning if we were in a dream or if this was really happening.

From what it sounded like, I was being appointed as the new pastor of Springfield United Methodist Church to start on June 24th. Oh my...

It's been a few days between sending my resume to Rev. Cummings and today. He said to call him on Wednesday if I had not heard from him beforehand - so I called on the way to the Children's Home in Versailles. He was in his car and could not talk long, but did ask if we could meet him on Friday June 1st at 11:00am in Frankfurt. I said that I would arrange for that to be possible and we looked forward to meeting him then.

Craig and I have been pondering this meeting: is it one to say that he wants to get to know us and then, if he feels that I would be a good fit for the church he will appoint me to one next week? Or does he have one in mind already because he does not have too many people that have contacted him (he mentioned on Saturday that I was the second person to have called from Asbury regarding the church)? We're unsure of exactly the purpose of the meeting, but we're looking forward to it nonetheless.

We told Pastor Pearl about the opportunity tonight and she was thrilled. She also mentioned that Rev. Cummings is her DS and that he is the best on she has worked under. He is very pastoral and firm and a good guy to talk to. I'm very much looking forward to meeting him on Friday. I just hope that I can keep my cool between now and then.

So, by now, I have completely forgotten about the call to Rev. Cummings on Thursday and moved on with the summer.

Here we are on a normal Saturday night. We're at Chuck and Melissa's apartment and we're getting ready for dinner and jam/cross-stitch night. And my phone rings and it's Rev. Cummings. I go into their back office and talk with him for about 20 minutes or so. He asks me about where I'm at in Seminary, our move from FL, whether or not we'll be returning to FL after graduation, ordination (whether we are seeking or not), about my family, a basics of a get-to-know-you conversation. Then he told me about a few churches that he still needs to fill for the upcoming year. He has 4, possibly 5, that need to be filled. The best one is the one with the parsonage. He asked me to send him my resume via email and that he wanted to meet with Craig and I either in Frankfurt of Lexington next week. He also said to get back in touch with him on Wednesday if I had not heard from him before then.

And that was the conversation. I went back out into the living/dining room pretty much stunned. Craig and Chuck were playing their guitars when I looked at Craig and mouthed "guess who that was". They both stopped playing and we talked for about another hour about the possibilities. Chuck and Melissa were both so encouraging, they had confidence in me and trust in the Lord that, if it is His will, it will come to pass.

The best way that I can describe it is surprised. I feel so inadequate and unprepared for this possibility. Part of me was thinking things like "with 4-5 churches to fill, is there any way that I couldn't get one of them?" and things like "why would I get one, I've only finished 3 semesters at seminary and never preached a day in my life". Well, all I can do is trust the Lord. Not easy sometimes, but, there are times when you are forced to do nothing but.

When we got home that night, I put my updated resume together and sent it off to Rev. Cummings. Like I said before, we'll see...

Beginning disclaimer - everything written between May 25th and June 19th is all written on June 19th. But I wanted it to be dated on the appropriate day and not all in one large post.

A few days ago, I saw a post on First Class that was seeking someone who would be interested in a student pastor appointment at a church in Frankfurt (so I thought). It mentioned that there was a parsonage and salary package (no details) and to contact Rev. Kenneth Cummings, the Frankfurt District Superintendent if interested. I gave it about 5 seconds of thought and then moved right on along to the next post. Last night, Joe and Susan had dinner with us and said that it wouldn't hurt just to call and inquire. Craig agreed and I called him this afternoon.

Short conversation at best - he was in a doctor's office and we could hardly hear each other. I could not tell whether he said that he would call me back or for me to call him back. So I let it go - timing is probably not right. Half of me is thinking that this would be a wonderful opportunity and the other half thinks that I'm in no way ready for this kind of challenge. We'll see...