As I prepared to retire after 40 years in full time ministry in 2015, I received a phone call from then senior pastor at Ingomar Church, David Streets, asking if I would be interested to serve in a new position of “assistant minister” to help conduct worship and provide visitation to those confined to home or a care facility. Having had no specific plan of what we’d be doing in retirement, Kristine and I prayed about it, discussed it and concluded it would be a wonderful opportunity, and indeed it has been.
Our daughter, Carolyn and her family were already members at the church, as were a number of retired pastors I had known over the years. While we had always served mid-sized churches, mostly in small towns, Kristine and I came to feel at home in the much larger setting very quickly due to the welcoming nature of this congregation.
Over the past several years, multiple changes in staff, the challenges of Covid, the introduction and expansion of online ministry, policies for visitation in care facilities and shifts in society have caused my position at Ingomar to evolve. Ministry doesn’t look much like it did 48 years ago when I started out, but I feel privileged to be a part of a church that has sought to adapt and move forward in the midst of challenge and adversity. So, for numerous reasons it has become evident that it’s now time to move on to other forms of ministry. It appears that my next phase of ministry will be helping establish a new congregation of the Global Methodist Church in the Grove City/Slippery Rock area.
I am deeply indebted to the congregation and staff at Ingomar for involving me in the church’s work these past 7+ years. Many of you have become our friends and together we’ve seen good things come about which can be built upon in the years ahead. We still have family here and will be coming by from time to time, so it’s not “good-bye”, but more like, “see you later”. Always be open to the presence of the Holy Spirit, seeking its encouragement, direction and empowerment. There is much to be accomplished and God can use each of you in some meaningful way to bring that about.
Blessings and Peace, always. Dennis Henley