Stefan's Installation Service

Yesterday was a really special day. It was the culmination of so many hopes and dreams and prayers; in so many ways it was a "finally!" sort of moment, but it was also an event that signaled we were only at the beginning. Stefan's installation service at the Baptist Church in Erda was definitely a climax point in our lives.

The sermon was delivered by Dr. Helge Stadelmann, an elder of (and former pastor in) our partner church in Giessen, and president of the Frei Theologische Hochschule (seminary) in Giessen. It was an excellent sermon that was especially moving in part because, for a lot of reasons, we never thought he would play the role he's played in Stefan's involvement in ministry here in Germany -so it was a huge God-be-glorified moment-, in part because the sermon was directed to Stefan (and he really turned towards Stefan and usually spoke directly to him), and in part because the text he chose, 1 Peter 5:1-4, happens to be the passage that Stefan did his most intense exegetical research paper on back in seminary in Dr. Hafeman's 1 Peter class! Needless to say, it was very meaningful to have this particular person deliver this sermon on these particular verses on this particular day!

*big thanks to a member of our church who had the presence of mind to take pictures and email us copies last night!

Following the sermon, Thorsten, the senior pastor of the partner church in Giessen, gave a short address reminding Stefan of his journey to this day, the support of the body of believers, and the unanimous vote he received from the members of our church in Erda. He closed his short address with a warning/reminder both to Stefan to remember to protect his time and make time for himself and his family, and a warning/reminder to the congregation to also help Stefan protect his time. In closing, and as a gesture of the friendship he and Stefan share, Thorsten presented Stefan with a small sculpture of two large hands cradling a baby; this is to remind Stefan that God is in control and holds him securely. Like the sermon, it was delivered very much from the heart and in the most sincere of voices.

At this point, Helge, Stefan and Markus, the other elder in our church, joined Thorsten up front and, with their hands on Stefan's shoulders, the three men took turns praying over Stefan and the ministry ahead. My German isn't good enough to tell you if somebody can pray eloquently, but I can tell you that I understood what they said and that they seemed to pray over every topic one can pray for in such a situation with the utmost joy and sincerity in their voices. Thank you God for letting me understand everything!

They sat down after the prayer and four young women came up and sang in harmony a really lovely song in honor of the occasion. I am frequently amazed at the musical talent in our small congregation and find the singing to be a real treat. These young women truly enjoy singing for the glory of the Lord and it shows -I realize they all look pretty serious in this shot, it must've been the moment the shutter clicked. Honestly, a lot of solos I have heard in churches don't tend to make me teary-eyed, but this one did! All in all, it was a really wonderful, wonderful, wonderful service!

After the service there was a congregational meeting. Several weeks ago a formal appeal was sent to all members to consider how much (if any) extra monthly financial offerings they could commit to giving to the church to help finance Stefan's salary. We were hoping to hear 750 Euro/month so that Stefan could reduce his teaching hours by 25%. By the time our meeting came to order, 32 (of 50+) members had committed to 740 Euro. (Because of a number of reasons, we're not too worried about the rest of the members right now.) We really had no idea if this 750 would happen or not, so it was a huge blessing to see this amount! We feel a sense of confirmation and are encouraged to have Stefan go ahead with the next steps.

Please pray not only for Stefan's new ministry position as "pastor", but please pray also for the paperwork process Stefan has to begin with the German school board. Not only must he broach the subject of reducing hours with his principal, but it has to be approved by the school board. Then the tricky part happens where he has to appeal to make it ok for him to earn a small 'side' income from the church (even though he'd have less than a 100% position as a teacher, the German government doesn't allow second incomes for people in Stefan's position -even if he were only half time!....don't get me started on the red tape in this country!!). This all has to happen by the end of January - at least Stefan's filing, so we'll see how fast (and how) the government responds.

Thanks so much for praying for us as we've transitioned into this new church and into ministry involvement in Erda. We are both sooo grateful!! Please keep praying for us!