And so our journey begins...by Evans Hundermark

I remember camping with my dad one Summer next to a river in Africa. It was a beautiful setting – the water, birdlife, surrounding forest of acacia thorn trees. What we could not see was the events taking place upstream from us. A major storm system had rolled in dumping huge volumes of rain upstream causing a small dam to burst. At some point during the night the effects of that storm reached us in the form of a flash flood. The river burst its banks washing away most of our campsite and we only just escaped, soaked to the skin, cold, and scared!

That’s the story of life, isn’t it? Events take place that we may not know about and are out of our control, and then the effects of those events wash over us like a flooding river leaving us anxious, bewildered, uncertain about the future.

We have all experienced something like this over the last few years with the escape of a tiny virus originating in a lab on the other side of the world, that led to a life changing impact felt right here – in my church, in how I preach, in how we relate to one another, in how we travel, go to the shops, or shortages of food and toilet paper. The effects of that event changed our world!

Rob has been the District Superintendent of the LPD for over 20 years. He has faithfully served us, and in some way or another, he has found his way into our hearts, lives, and ministries. There was something reassuring and familiar about Rob, something we all came to deeply appreciate and love. And now he has retired, and there is a new DS in his place who looks different, sounds different, and does things differently – and he comes from South Africa 😬!

For some of us the effects of this are going to be difficult to adjust to. We are going to miss the old and maybe even dislike the new. It is going to to take some time to adjust to a new and different way of doing things, and to a different voice on the other side of the phone, so let me reassure you – I am committed to walking the road of change alongside you and hopefully will make this change and season a little easier to adjust to. Even better, let’s adjust and grow together on this journey, remembering Who walks with us and leads us. Joshua 1 reminds us that God leads the way forward, and that this journey is about His Glory and His mission – Leaders may change but the mission of God remains the same! That is our focus and a common commitment to building His church is what will bind us together – Therefore my confidence and hope for the future is anchored in Jesus and His plans.

I am here to serve you and to be a friend. I am here to be a resource for you, and to help you succeed and find the Father’s joy in your ministry. I am here to walk alongside you, and to learn with you. I am here to lead and to be a shepherd in whatever way God would want me to be. So may God grant us joy, peace, and a sense of camaraderie as we journey forward together.

And so our journey begins…by Evans Hundermark