Weekly Update // Pastor Chris

Dear Asbury Family,

I first experienced my call to pastoral ministry when I was 16. During the first half of high school, I went through a period of doubt and struggle, convinced that once I graduated and went off to college, I would stop attending church—after all, my parents wouldn’t be around to make me go. But then I attended a retreat that completely changed my perspective. Shortly after the retreat, I thought to myself, “If the Christian story is true—and I believe it is—if God really raised Jesus from the dead—and I believe God did—then this demands nothing less than the full commitment of my life.” From that moment, my call to pastoral ministry began to take shape. I sensed God inviting me to help others make that same life-changing commitment.

Wat I’ve come to realize over the years, however, is that the people I serve often teach me more about true commitment than I could ever teach them. I’ve visited people in the hospital on a Saturday who, in the midst of their illness, have said to me, “Pastor, I hope to be discharged today so I can make it to church tomorrow.” I remember a church member who lived a modest lifestyle, scrimping and saving every dollar she could to help the congregation meet its financial needs. In a world that constantly pressures us to prioritize so many things over faith, these acts of devotion stand as powerful reminders of what it really means to commit—to both Jesus and his church.

As C.S. Lewis wrote, “The Christian way is different: harder, and easier. Christ says, ‘Give me all. I don’t want so much of your time and so much of your money and so much of your work: I want you. I have not come to torment your natural self, but to kill it. No half-measures are any good. I don’t want to cut off a branch here and a branch there; I want to have the whole tree down. I don’t want to drill the tooth, or crown it, or stop it, but to have it out. Hand over the whole natural self, all the desires which you think are innocent as well as the ones you think are wicked—the whole outfit. I will give you a new self instead. In fact, I will give you Myself. My own will shall become yours.’”

This Sunday is Commitment Sunday, a day when we come together to commit ourselves to the work of Jesus through Asbury. To be clear, this commitment is not only about our finances, but it does include them. As we prepare to turn in Commitment Cards and reflect on what it means to give our whole selves to God, I encourage you to consider how your time, your talents, and yes, your treasure, can be part of the work God is doing in and through our church.

I look forward to seeing you at our combined service in the sanctuary at 10:45am on Sunday.

Blessings,

Chris