Dear Friends and Members of Shepherd of the Hills,

A time of change.  The one constant in the life of the church is the faithfulness of God and His Word.  Everything else for us may or may not change.  My dad always joked as a firefighter that firefighters hate two things:  the way things are and change.  I think this may be true for many people, not just firefighters.  

We always desire things to change, especially for the better.  Here is the problem, we all have different expectations of what “change for the better” actually means.  Which leads us to our default position, that if we can’t guarantee a change for the better, its better that nothing changes. 

Well…turns out we don’t get a choice.  Change comes to us.  It is part of our reality. 

As a congregation we have somethings that will not change.  We will remain faithful to God’s Word.  We will emphasize the context of our community as that Word is shared.  We will hold fast to this Word and continue to wrestle with it.  

As a congregation we have somethings that will always change.  The people that are called to be here will always be shifting and changing.  We say goodbye to friends and members of the church as their seasons of life call them to other places.  We say hello to new friends and members as they are called to be part of this family of faith for a time.  Each one of these partings and greetings will by necessity change the congregation.  This is a good and natural thing for us to enjoy.  With each goodbye we celebrate faithfulness and how these families and individuals have helped shape who we are.  With each hello we rejoice in God’s providence and how God will shape us for the future.  

I’m thankful.  Some of you who are reading this are current participating members of the church here in Ruidoso.  You are the life blood of this community.  You provide leadership, guidance and input into how we as a congregation live out the mission of Christ here and now.  Some of you who are reading this are friends and members who have had to say goodbye to this place as your regular community of faith but still are loved and love this place enough to want to stay connected and maybe even see where you are as an extension of Shepherd of the Hills as you continue to faithfully provide for SHLC and still hear the Word of the Lord given in this place through YouTube. God be praised.  You are not forgotten and your impact on this community is still felt.  For you have helped shape who we are now.  Some of you are reading this and still feel in the category of “being new”.  I praise God, for you are already shaping who we are becoming as a community.  I’m excited as your pastor to see how God will use you through His Word to help shape this community.

I am privileged to spend this season of my life with you as your pastor and shepherd.  Thank you for the ways that you have helped shape me and the ways that I continue to learn from you.  I pray to God the Father that we all together as pastor and people in the power of the Holy Spirit will look to Jesus the author and perfecter of our faith to ground and continue to establish us as His church.  This is what gives us comfort in the midst of much that changes around us. 

In His Love and Service,

Pastor Rust