As I announced on Sunday morning to our congregation, effective July 1, Greg Willson assumed a full-time pastoral staff position with the title of Church Planting Pastor. Recently God favored us with keeping Greg and Christina around for another year before they answer the call to help with a church plant in Columbia, South Carolina. We are grateful for the “reprieve” in his leaving as it works to our advantage in several ways.

Greg will continue his excellent work as our lead worshipper and shepherd of the young adult ministry. We don’t have to change horses in midstream during this critical year of getting into a building! In addition to those responsibilities, the remainder of his job description will revolve around executive pastor type functions as he oversees the coordination of all efforts related to transitioning into our new facility. We desperately need help on this front and Greg possesses the gifts and talents to help us immensely in this regard.

Another advantage to this arrangement is that we budgeted for the last half of 2011 for a new lead worshipper intern as well as a full-time associate staff person. By not needing to do the former and making Greg the latter through May of 2012, we came out ahead monetarily in terms of latitude in our budget. This too is a great blessing.

Greg and Christina still aim toward helping with the church plant in Columbia, but in the meantime we gain his services on our staff as he further prepares for that assignment on the job at OGC. Having him on board in this position also fits in with the “R” in our BRIDE acrostic – Reproducing Churches. We look forward to launching him out in the future, investing in him in the present, and tapping his gifts and ministry between now and next May, Lord willing. Pray for his fruitfulness in his work among us!