Pastor Letter: February 22, 2018

Dear Buck Run Family:

I am so very excited about all that God is doing at Buck Run right now. We are coming off the wonderful spiritual high of our Disciple Now weekend in which over 100 students heard the Word of God and were challenged to trust and to follow Christ. Next week we will host a panel of wonderful godly men to talk about the church and racial reconciliation during our Sunday School hour at 9:15. Only the true church of the Lord Jesus Christ has the true answer to the division and tribalism that infects the world. We alone know that God has made all the nations of the world of one blood and that He’s making a new humanity from every nation and tribe with Christ as its head. If anyone should lead in racial reconciliation, Bible-believing Christians should! So we are going to talk about how we can do it better and in the most Christ-honoring way.

I also want to provide you with a bit of an update on our search for a new worship pastor. Frankly, we are not at a point that I would call “close” with anyone. We have spoken with several fine candidates, but so far, we’ve not felt a strong leading of the Lord to any one person. Because John Bennett does such a great job leading the worship and Alicia Lyles is so capable and gracious to direct the choir, we have the luxury of feeling no urgency and we are taking the time to find just the right man.  We could find lots of able worship leaders, but those who can lead a full-orbed and robust music program such as I want us to have are much more difficult to find. Now that we are past Christmas and the 200-year anniversary, we can pay more singular attention to this important task. Please make it a matter of prayer in your personal prayer life and when you meet with your Community Group.

Finally, I want to plead, beg, and encourage—take your pick—every married couple in Buck Run to go to the marriage retreat in Pigeon Forge March 9-11 if you possibly can. It doesn’t matter how long you’ve been married or what condition you think your marriage is, we need you to go and you need to go! First, we need couples of all kinds to go—particularly long and successful marriages—because we want younger couples to see what love and commitment for a lifetime looks like. If only unhealthy and desperate marriages went on the marriage retreat it would normalize dysfunction! We want struggling marriages to go, too, but they need to be encouraged by others who can bear witness and testimony that God is faithful, and He will give you the strength to make it.

Some couples in our church will testify that the retreat saved their marriage. We’ve seen it over and over. God does something wonderful when we set aside time to concentrate on having a marriage that honors him. The ironic, even funny, thing is that we actually have very little teaching time at the retreat. We leave the days open for couples to connect and to enjoy each other. So if you aren’t going because you picture sitting for hours in a closed room listening to someone tell you how badly you are blowing it, you couldn’t be more wrong. We have lots of fun—and a little bit of direct, helpful coaching that you can profit from. So, whatever the length or condition of your marriage, sign up and go!

I love you, my precious church. Let’s honor the Lord together in our lives and homes.

In Christ,

Bro. Hershael