Good-bye Grovers

Well, yesterday was another Sunday in Pittsburgh, but it was also a sobering milestone in our little church's life. Eric and Bethany Grover--care group leaders, worship leader, founding member, one-third of the leadership team--are leaving. For several months now it has been clear that God is leading them to move to New Jersey to help a church which has just become a part of Sovereign Grace Ministries. There's no doubt it's God's plan, and Eric, Bethany, and all of Providence Church want nothing besides being a part of God's plan to spread the Gospel of Jesus Christ and build up His church. I've been gone so much that I haven't had to face the reality of their departure, so it was strange to realize, as we all sat in the cafeteria eating lunch and sharing encouragements and thanks with them, that next week they wouldn't be here.

As Mom remarked later that day, it was as good a send-off as you could wish for. Eric preached a sermon about the Kingdom of God and giving ourselves to that purpose, which is his passion and the reason they're willing to leave and we're willing to let them go. After the sermon Mr. Pierson came up and interrupted Eric's preparations to lead "Your Great Renown" to close the service. To express our gratefulness for the ~700 times Eric has led worship here (not even counting the hundreds of care groups he's played for) we gave him a new guitar amp to replace his battered Roland. And of course, it's a shame to plug an old guitar into a new amp, so we brought out the new guitar we got him too :-) I suppose it may have been an emotional moment for people as Eric led us in his song "Your Great Renown" one last time, but I was pretty much consumed with the low levels in my headphones and then the no levels at all when they fell off my head. Such often are times of worship when one is playing electric guitar.

The luncheon in the school cafeteria was nice. Good food, TONS of desserts, getting to talk to folks, and then people coming up and sharing stuff with the Grovers, bearing witness to the many works of God in and through their lives. I thanked Eric for the time he gave helping me set up my recording stuff, and the example of patience he showed as the CPU gave us endless trouble. I also appreciated the months when we met for lunches down at Pitt and he listened to the stuff going on in my life and prayed with me. In the end, when I think of Eric, I think of what I've said to several people in Ohio when they ask "so, when are you moving to Akron?" I say I'm not planning to, even though Akron's a blast, 'cause there are people in Pittsburgh like Eric Grover who cut my pride no slack at all. He's not mean by any means, but he just won't be impressed by me or cater to my ego at all. He has kept bringing my high flying electric guitar personality down to earth--doing all for the glory of God. Even his memory will serve me as a marker of focus on God, and that's what real friendship is all about. I will miss the Grovers (though not as much as many whose lives have been more tightly knit with theirs), but I know the effects of their lives here will continue bearing fruit for God, and I'm excited to see what God does as Ryan takes on leadership of the worship team and our care groups get re-formed.

This is now the second pillar of strength we have sent out from this church (The Praters leaving several years ago was the first), which I find interesting. God does seem to be using us for "church planting" in that way, but not quite as we might have expected. He alone knows what's coming next as we've got a crop of youth approaching adulthood. Michael, Jonathan, Ryan, Daniel, Justin...where will we be in five years? I don't put anything past God to do, so we can only walk on and see where He leads.

Bye Grovers! Great is the God we serve!

--Clear Ambassador