Newsy Updates - June 10, 2021
It has been four months since I last posted, and those of you who follow me have perhaps wondered why.
I completed my time as the Interim Senior Minister of Shadyside Presbyterian Church on February 14 (see previous post for my farewell sermon there). It was a great experience for me, to serve Shadyside, as you can tell by the posts I have done since beginning there two years before. I am so grateful for the time with the wonderful people of that fine congregation, and will forever treasure it.
So then the question becomes, "What next?"
Answering that question, whenever we ask it, requires much thought, prayer, and adaptability. Which is true in this instance.
When I went to Shadyside, I fully expected to do one or two more interims in Pittsburgh Presbytery following however long I served there. So, as I finished there, I got word out that I was looking and available to serve in a similar way, in another congregation. What then emerged is an interesting story if you are looking on from the outside. From the inside it was quite disappointing.
I then did much soul searching. Yes, there were other opportunities present. But nothing that seemed to be the right fit. Yes, I had many gifts in ministry to offer. But did I have the eagerness to share them in that locale, in those ways? The inner conviction came from God, in prayer. It was: "You have your answer, already."
What? What did that mean?
When I first heard it, I had no idea. But that opened the matter to consider in a new light. What answer did I have? The answer emerged. Why not retire, and return to Central Florida, to be near our children and grandchildren, whom we had left behind two years before.
So, that is what we agreed we would do...eventually.
Until, Thursday night two weeks ago, when I was looking, as I had begun to do, at the real estate offerings in and around our former Florida neighborhood where we had lived for 23+ years. And you know what has happened to real estate since Covid. The market has never been hotter. So places would be listed, and then go Pending or Contingent in a matter of days, if not hours. But there was a new listing of a house that had all of the elements of what we were looking for, a scant 2 miles from where we used to live, listed at well below what today's market would normally bear. It was nearly midnight. Judy was fast asleep. So I snapped a photo of the listing and texted it to her phone; so when she awakened in the morning, she could take a look at it herself.
The next morning, Friday, Judy told me that she liked the house very much. Ah! From there, things accelerated. Anne drove past the house on her lunch hour for us, and reported that she liked what she saw. John and Tara and their girls went to a scheduled open house the next afternoon, and then Sandy, our fabulous Florida real estate agent, did a face time walk through the house with us in the late afternoon. We liked what we saw. Sandy advised us that the seller was accepting offers up until Sunday (the next day). We put one together, and it was submitted before the deadline.
Late on Sunday we were told that the seller would not make a decision until the next day. No time was mentioned. All day long, no word came. We had already planned dinner in a real resturant, the first time since before the coronavirus precautions with our dear friends Dorothy and John. When we were in the restaurant and before we had ordered our dinner, the phone rang. It was Sandy. Telling us that our offer had been accepted. We had just bought a house.
So then, we worked as quickly as possible with our wonderful realtor here, Rob, to get our house listed. Which we did, this past Monday. As of today - three days later - we have an offer. Matters are falling in to place. We anticipate our move will occur in mid July.
Exciting? Yes of course it is.
I continue to reflect on that message: "You have your answer, already." Elements of it are a resounding "No!" about staying in Pittsburgh (which we love and would have done wholeheartedly had it unfolded that way). And a breathtakingly quick and equally reounding "Yes!" about buying and selling houses with lightening like speed, in order to make the moved to Orlando a reality.
I will update this story as time progresses. But for now:
- Huge thanks go to Shadyside Presbyterian Church members for their love and support.
- Huge thanks go to Fox Chapel Presbyterian Church members for their love and support.
- Huge thanks go to Sandy for making things happen so beautifully in Florida.
- Huge thanks go to Rob for making this happen so beautifully in Pennsylvania.
Some final thoughts...
- I am excited for the members of my former congregation, Wekiva Presbyterian Church, for the announcement of their new minister. I know he will bless them and they will bless him, greatly.
- I am excited for the members of Shadyside Presbyterian Church. They will know who their next pastor will be, in the very final days of the first half of this year.
