From the Pastor: My Joyful Heart

A good sermon I once read was titled, “Failing Forward.” The concept isn’t unusual in the church. Some of you may have heard of it 18 times, and I suspect most of you have experienced it. King David “failed forward,” didn’t he? Because of God’s grace, all believers “fail forward.” Classical theology speaks of the grace given by God after the fall, that is, Adam and Eve’s fall. The grace of God in Christ redeems our “falls” and “failures.”

With tongue in cheek, I mention this because I never thought I would fail retirement…but I have! And all to the good, it appears. Following many of my conversations with elders and members of Fondren Pres leading up to today—my first day back in regular church service after two years of retirement—I wondered if I was doing the right thing. If my “failure” would benefit the wonderful Fondren congregation in preparation for the day you call your next installed pastor.

Then, over the past month since I met with your session December 3rd and they approved our six-month contract, my joy has grown exponentially. My heart was tremendously joyful when I finally drove away from my home in Conway, Arkansas, yesterday afternoon to make the journey to Jackson and begin again. The drive was easy!

Such new beginnings create in my heart appropriate trepidation, hope, curiosity, and in the latter days as mentioned, JOY. The deep joy in the birth of Jesus celebrated so recently is a joy that I pray can and will continue to infect all our hearts. I pray that the same deep joy may always undergird our worship, as well, knowing that all our failures are redeemed in the eternal, powerful love of God. My heart is joyful to be here with you at last. So what if I failed retirement after two years? I trust and believe I have failed forward, and it brings me joy!

Grace and peace to all Fondren Presbyterian members and friends.

Howard