Johns Creek UMC Family,
We are about 40 days away from welcoming our new senior pastor into our ministry. To help prepare our hearts and minds for this transition, we will be joining together in prayer for Pastor Sondra, Pastor Charley, and the North Georgia Conference. We will be sharing prayers that have been submitted by members of our congregation over these next few weeks. You will find these shared on social media, through e-mail, and in the Bridge at the Creek. If you would like to contribute a prayer, please e-mail Chet Burdick: chetburdick@bellsouth.net
Pastor Sondra was our senior pastor for 2 years. She will be moving to Cannon UMC in Snellville. Here is a list of some of her many contributions to the Johns Creek UMC ministry.
- 1. She assembled a great team of clergy and lay staff
- 2. Made improving the Children’s Ministry a priority
- 3. Improved and clarified the mission and purpose of the church
- 4. Increased the understanding and transparency of the church’s financial needs
- 5. Improved the congregation’s theological focus
- 6. Created lasting connections and relationships with other leaders within the community
- 7. Increased support of the Summit Counseling Center
- 8. Connected the church with other religious communities
Below are submitted prayers for Pastor Sondra, her family, and her transition.
Dear Lord,
Please bless the transition of Sondra Jones, Senior Pastor, as she moves from JCUMC to Cannon UMC. Lord, give her the strength to make this change and to undertake her new ministry there. Help Sondra and her family make this move safely and provide her energy as she undertakes this difficult task. Lord, please help her future parishioners provide a warm welcome to Sondra and her family. Lord, please thank Sondra for the wonderful ministry she brought to JCUMC over the past two years. Our church is truly blessed for her service. Amen.
Bill Oskin
Dear gracious and heavenly Father,
We thank-you for Sondra and pray that You will bless this time of personal rest with spiritual renewal. Renew her strength, so she may again soar like the eagles, and that she may continue to run and not grow weary in doing what You lead her to do. We are grateful for the many things that were accomplished at JCUMC through Sondra’s leadership. Bless her receiving church, Cannon UMC, that they may welcome her with loving, open arms.
We pray all these thing in the name of the one who renews our hope and strength. Amen
Cindy Curtin
Dear Sondra:
As my mother told me, “When one door closes another door opens.” The door at JCUMC will never be fully closed as you have made a lasting contribution to our church and to me personally. I pray that your new assignment will give you a new sense of accomplishment and satisfaction as well as a fruitful witness to your Christian values and love. Thank you for your dedication to loving your neighbor as yourself. Peace and Blessings.
Marilyn Messerly
Dear Sondra,
We are so sorry to hear that you have been assigned to leave John’s Creek UMC and serve the Lord elsewhere. Moving is difficult (I have done it 16 times-east to west and north to south- south is easier). But the Lord has you and your husband in the palm of his hand and goes before you. I loved your sermons, taking notes and reviewing them later at home. You have been a great leader these past two years and we all wish you our best.
Ruth Neisch
Heavenly Father,
Be with Pastor Sondra as she experiences hundreds of Johns Creek goodbyes, packs and moves her home and office, and begins a new ministry at Cannon. Please comfort, support, and strengthen her as she shepherds two congregations through this transition. Let Sondra soak up the love of grateful hearts for all she has done for the members and ministries of JCUMC. And may her family be surrounded by Your protection, peace, and love. We ask You to pour Your blessings on Pastor Sondra and her ministry, now and always.
In Jesus name we pray, Amen.
Mary Thompson
Dear Lord, please be with Sondra as she readies herself for her next appointment. As we remember her with thankful hearts, please help her know our love goes with her.
Laura Marcy
To Sondra,
I hope that you will feel God’s presence surround you in the coming days, so that you will be strengthened and empowered by your faith and His spirit. I pray that your heart will find a secure and happy home among the members of Cannon UMC.
May God bless you for continuing diligently as His servant.
Jenni Tolliver
Hear my prayer Lord,
Thank you for allowing Sondra to be your servant at Johns Creek United Methodist Church for the time she was here. Her blessed spirit and devotion to you served her well. She lead us with grace and peace. I am heartbroken that she had to leave so soon but I know she will bless another congregation as she did ours.
Make her transition to her new appointment go smoothly and May her new congregation be blessed with the same servanthood we experienced.
In Christ’s Holy name,
Jodi Jernigan
We thank God for Pastor Sondra and her positive influence over Johns Creek United Methodist. We are grateful for her diligent service and support for many ministries in the church and especially for the children’s ministry. We thank God for her wisdom in guiding this congregation through a transition and we pray His peace over her heart as she continues to serve. We pray she feels our gratitude and love.
In Jesus Name, Amen.
Katie Reeder
Almighty God,
Although we cannot know or understand your ways, we have faith that your will is good and ultimately lands us where your purposes may come to fruition. Change is inherently hard for humans, but we recognize that only through change can your kingdom, the home for which we yearn, ultimately come to us. Walk with Sondra to her new assignment, and let her feel the warmth of your love, as that of an approving parent, and let her hear your exuberant encouragement, as that of a friend. Walk with our new pastor, Charley, to his new assignment, and let him feel the confidence that you have in the skills he has developed and in his ability to apply his gifts in ways that most please you. Mostly, God, we pray for ourselves, as a congregation, that you provide us with more faith to believe that individually, and collectively, we possess an awesome power to connect and partner with new leadership in ways that can change our souls, our community, and the world for your glory.
In Jesus’s name we pray.
Amen.