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The Pastoral Lens
Life In A Two-Point Charge
Tuesday, June 10, 2003
This past Sunday I participated with another pastor in a pulpit exchange. This retired man, serving a 2-point charge (ie. pastoral responsibility over 2 different churches), would come to Wallaceburg and preach for me, while I travelled to the 2 churches he's currently serving and preach for him. Being a retired man, Klaus is not serving these churches permanently. He is only there until such time as a new pastor is called to come and take over the pastorate.I remember well my first experience in a multi-charge situation. I use the term "multi" because sometimes there are more than 2 churches that are served by one pastor. I was an associate pastor in a particular church and a pastor from another community asked me to preach in his 2 churches while he took the weekend off. It was Fathers' Day weekend, 1989, and this pastor wanted to be with his father who was ill. As a young, relatively new pastor, I eagerly accepted this opportunity.
When I arrived at the first church, I was greeted by the head deacon and organist. We started the service a little bit late in order to allow for a few more latecomers to arrive. Of course, in the first service of a 2-point charge, time isn't on your side, so you can't wait too long. If you do, you'll be late for the second service. The deacon apologized profusely for the small crowd that day, but I didn't mind. I was glad to be there and knew beforehand that the congregation was small. The service went well and before long I was off to the second church for their service. In this particular situation, the second church was the larger of the two. By now it was late morning and the early summer sun had caused temperatures in the small, stuffy sanctuary to soar. Thankfully, I observe a casual appearance in the warmer months and was in shirtsleeves with no jacket. Crying babies and fidgety children punctuated the course of the service and interrupted my inexperienced pulpit presence. I got through it, though, heavy perspiration and all!
I can remember driving home and reflecting on the experience. I had to admit that it was much harder to preach 2 sermons than one, even though I preached the same message. I must confess that I didn't "enjoy myself" the second time through. I was "bored" with my message and hoped others had escaped this fate. I got home, had some lunch, and layed down for a Sunday nap. As I sank into a sleep I felt a greater appreciation for my friend who did this ritual every single week.
This past Sunday's experience was quite different from that Sunday in 1989. For one thing, I have 14 more years of experience under my belt. For another, I came armed with a clearer understanding of what was required in a 2-point charge. Both churches were very friendly and quite informal, just the way I like it. The early service, at Thamesville Baptist Church, started at 9:45am, giving me just enough time to make it to the second service for 11:15am, held at Marsh Street Baptist Church in Ridgetown (about a 15-20 minute drive away). I enjoyed a delicious roast beef dinner in the home of one of the families after the service where I spoke with the 2 oldest remaining members of the church. I was impressed by their faithfulness to the church over their long lifetimes. In some ways they are very representative of the heart and soul commitment of a member of a smaller church. These churches have been without a pastor since November of 2001 and are anxiously waiting for the Lord to bring the right one to them. It has been a long, difficult wait. For the most part, 2-point pastorates in small communities aren't the tantalizing lures that their single-point city churches are. This is unfortunate because the Lord works in all circumstances. However, I must say, there is a special grace to be able to minister in 2 different churches in 2 different towns.
I thoroughly enjoyed my experience today. My prayer for these 2 congregations is that the Lord will bring a new pastor to them very soon. Until then, they have a responsibility to "keep the faith" and serve the people in their respective communities of Chatham-Kent. I encourage you to go to the church of your choice this Sunday. God has something for you!
