While they were worshiping the Lord and fasting, the Holy Spirit said, “Set apart for me Barnabas and Saul for the work to which I have called them.” Then after fasting and praying they laid their hands on them and sent them off. (Acts 13: 2-3) And They Sent Him Off The people of the church in Antioch did not want to lose their new pastor. Paul had just recently come to them from Tarsus. He had only been in Antioch about a year after Barnabas found him and brought him to minister to the Antiochene Church. We know Paul was well educated and a fiery speaker. He was a source of comfort and security to people who had recently seen the James, the brother of John, executed and Peter imprisoned. I’m sure Paul was a leveling influence in the new Church. And yet, look at the text printed above. God called them to send Paul and Barnabas to different work. It doesn’t make sense to us sometimes when things are going well at church. Everything is well-oiled and sailing along and God flips over the apple cart by calling the pastor to shepherd some other flock. We can easily find ourselves thinking of it in a worldly manner. How dare they poach our pastor? Let them go find their own pastor! But that’s not the way it works. I have been serving God for over 35 years in the office of the Holy Ministry and I have watched as He moves pieces around on the board. It does not always seem logical, but it always turns out good. The fact that He called me to Fountain of Life in Sun City tells me several things. Unlike previous calls and inquiries that came to me, this one leaves me with no questions. I am equipped to serve all their needs. I can see where they need strengthening and where they need encouragement. I have no doubts in the abilities God has given me to take them from where they are to something better and stronger. While I took two weeks to make a decision (I think something as holy as the divine call deserves at least two weeks of thought and prayer), there was never a time when I did not feel God’s pull to Fountain of Life. It is the same feeling I had when I accepted Trinity’s call in 2004. Just as I knew in August of 2004 that God wanted me at Trinity, so do I know in August of 2025 that God wants me at Fountain of Life now. Like He moved Paul and Barnabas out of Antioch, so He is moving me out of Villa Park. Please understand that this is not something I was seeking. I had planned to retire right here in 5 years, but God has other plans for me and for you. He has decided that there is another pastor to lead you now. We don’t know who that is yet anymore than you knew who I was in the fall of 2003 when Pastor Sanders left. But I guarantee you that God knows who he is and is already preparing him to come here and shepherd you. You do not know all of this, so I will show you how God works. In 1997, Pastor Ritt left you to become the Bishop of the English District. In 1999, I was struggling as the Associate Pastor of a congregation in the Northwest District. What I didn’t know then was that I do not have the gifts to be a second pastor. I have to be in the top chair or it doesn’t work for me or the congregation. At any rate, my leadership style was very different from the other pastor and we were clashing. So, I sent a letter to about 10 District Presidents, telling them about my difficulty and asking them to consider me for a church in their District. Apparently the newly installed Bishop Ritt filed my information in a drawer because he didn’t have anything available for me at the time. The years went by. Eventually my ministry exploded because the other pastor could no longer tolerate me and sought to be rid of me. I resigned from the Office of the Holy Ministry and moved to Louisville, KY where I began work on a degree in Pastoral Counseling. I went to school and contracted with a local congregation to preach for them and do youth work. All the while I had never heard of Trinity in Villa Park but during that time, you were going through your own trials which finally culminated in your pastor resigning his call. Bishop Ritt sent you name after name for your call list but they were never quite right, or they returned the call. Finally, in frustration (I only learned this recently), he pulled every name out of his drawer and said, “Here! Here is everyone I have. See if you can find someone.” My information from 1999 was in that pile and God sifted my paperwork to the top. Then you chose me. I was up against a more experienced pastor who had many years in the English District. Yet, you chose me. That is God at work. He was preparing me to be your pastor from 1999 until 2004 and he was preparing you for me during the same time. If any number of variables had been different, we would never have crossed paths but God called me through you and here I am. Now His plan continues to be in motion. He has decided that I am needed in Arizona and another man is needed here. There are many blessings awaiting us. While it is always sad to part from people whom you love, it is also exciting to see what God has planned for us in the coming years. It is a loss. But it is a loss like when you went off to school for the first time. You left behind days of playing with Mom and watching Sesame Street to sitting in desks and learning to read. One chapter of your life was closing but a whole new adventure was opening. Always remember that this is God’s Church, not ours, and He will lead us where He wants us and it will always be good. Our new adventure awaits us! Pastor Rogers | 
