Dear South Shores Church Family,

As Pastor Ty announced this morning in church, he and our deacons have generously offered me the opportunity take a sabbatical from April 17 to July 15. After nearly 12 years of pastoral ministry with South Shores this is a very welcome development for my family and me, but I am sure that it brings up some questions for you:

What is a sabbatical?

A sabbatical is not a vacation – it is an intentional time away from the regular duties of pastoral work for rest and spiritual renewal.

What will you be doing?

You can divide it up into 3-Rs: Resting, Renewing and Researching.

• Resting from a long season of constant ministry with the ability to focus on my family and my own physical needs. This will involve getting some sleep, slowing my pace and lots of playing with my kids (Rebecca and I might even try to "get away").
• Renewing in the area of personal soul care and family spiritual focus. It has been all too easy to focus more on what others are doing in their relationship with the Lord and to fail to give my attention to my own growth and the growth of my family. I want to make sure we are thirsting after God as our all-sufficient source.
• Researching church growth through church planting and multi-site ministry. This is an area that has captured my heart, but I don’t have the bandwidth to focus on it during the normal day-to-day. The purpose of this study will be to grow a culture of kingdom centeredness in our church that gives of our best to the ministry on our own properties as well as beyond, with a strategy to spread the gospel through training up leaders and sending them out. This will involve a class, many books, and meeting with key strategic leaders.

How will this affect me?

You will keep getting great care and teaching from our pastors. You will still have a great Spring Growth Group session (in fact I’ve already put together the materials for you!). You will continue to have opportunities to grow and serve and reach out to your community. The truth is, I’ll probably be back before you even really know I’m gone!

I believe this will be a great benefit, not only to me and my family, but also to the church. My desire is for you to receive back a rested and renewed pastor (and family) more ready to “equip the saints for the work of ministry, (Ephesians 4:12)” as well as to deliver a compelling vision that will impact our growth and involvement in Christ’s work in our world.

With all of that said, please pray for me and my family during this time: for our health, peace, and joy in the Lord Jesus. Be assured that we will be praying for you as well. I love you, South Shores! And I’ll be back more ready to serve you and help our church fulfill the mission of growing fully devoted followers of Jesus. Lastly, thank you for this great gift you are giving to me and to my family!

Grace and Peace,

Pastor Derick