Greetings Glen Mar,

I hope you had a good week! This past Tuesday and Wednesday, I had the privilege of serving on the Baltimore-Washington Conference Board of Ordained Ministry (BOOM) at the annual ordination exams. I have been serving on the BWC BOOM since 2022, as part of my connectional service. Over those two days, I listened to the stories, callings, questions, and hopes of candidates seeking provisional and full membership as deacons and elders in the United Methodist Church.

Each conversation this week reminded me that even in a world full of challenges, God is still doing what God has always done—calling ordinary people into extraordinary work. Like the prophet Isaiah, who said, “Here am I; send me!” (Isaiah 6:8), these candidates spoke with courage and openness about where God was sending them. Again and again, I heard the same Spirit at work in their humility, faithfulness, and deep love for Christ and the Church.

What struck me most wasn’t just how prepared they were, though they truly were, but how genuine they were in their responses. They spoke honestly about what they’ve learned so far, what they’ve tried, and where they’ve stumbled. And through it all, they shared the joy they’ve found in following where God has led. In a time when it can be easy to worry about the future of the Church, these conversations reminded me that the Church belongs to God! And that God has not stopped calling, forming, and sending leaders into the harvest.

I left those two days feeling deeply grateful, not only for the ministry candidates and my colleagues, but for the chance to play even a small part in this holy work of discernment. Paul says that we are “God’s co-workers” (1 Corinthians 3:9), and that felt especially true this week. The future of pastoral leadership is not something to fear. It’s something to pray for, nurture, and entrust to God.

And I want to ask, could it be that you, or someone you know, is sensing a call to ordained ministry? Or maybe you’ve been quietly wondering about what that could look like. If so, I would love to talk with you. Glen Mar has a strong history of people being called into ministry, and I can’t help but wonder if God might be stirring that call in someone right now.

Either way, if what I witnessed this week is any indication, the future of the Church, both the United Methodist Church and the universal Church, is in faithful hands. And however we get to be part of that story, we can give thanks and praise God with joy!

Yours in Christ,

Pastor Chris