Pastor Jim Mathis served as the Senior Pastor here at the E-Free Church in Gaylord, Michigan for 24 years. God used Pastor Jim in an amazing way over those years. He wasn't just a very loved pastor of this wonderful congregation, he has also been a beloved pastor to the entire community of Gaylord. I have never seen one pastor have such an impact on an entire community. It has been an absolute privilege to follow Pastor Jim as pastor of this great church.
After a well-deserved sabbatical, Pastor Jim returns on staff part-time here at E-Free starting today. I am very excited to have Jim back with us and to be able to partner with him and learn and benefit from his many years of ministry experience and wisdom. In the next week, we will be meeting to fine tune the exact role that Pastor Jim will play in his new position. I look forward to having Pastor Jim as a mentor in the years ahead of us.
Welcome back, Pastor Jim!
Scott, this is neat, because he knows the church well, and it will be super cool to see how you guys encourage one another :) I know about Gaylord E-free church through meeting Newell Cerak... great guy w/an incredible story :) I'm thankful God led you to Gaylord, as I know you're a super Barnabas-like encourager to them :)
ReplyDeleteThanks, Clint! So good to hear from you! You are right about Newell - what a great guy! And Pastor Jim is just as wonderful! Blessings
ReplyDeleteWow, Scott, This is way cool. So many men would feel threatened by having the former pastor remain on staff...kudos to you, Pastor Jim and your congregation!!!
ReplyDeleteThanks, Joy! When I first visited the E-Free church here in Gaylord back in December when we were beginning to get serious about possibly coming to Gaylord, I asked to have some time with Pastor Jim. Our family had a wonderful lunch with he and his precious wife. I saw real quick that though our personalities and styles are very different - we both share the same heart. No one will be more excited to see our church continue to grow than Jim! To have him here as a mentor is a thrill!
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