The Path Ahead

Dear Church Family,

We are writing with an update for plans for the next season of Grace Mosaic’s ministry following the departure of our Pastors and their dear families. We reflect with joy and gratitude on the ways God blessed Grace Mosaic during their ministry among us, while simultaneously moving forward as a body. For those who missed Sunday, here is Pastor Joel’s farewell letter, which includes the unexpected announcement that he is formally leaving the PCA. We hold in tension the deep feelings of profound gratitude for his faithful service, and grief at his decision to depart the faith tradition in which we have co-labored and the challenges this may bring to our body. 

Our senior network pastor, Rev. Glenn Hoburg, will join our congregation on September 21 to have a community forum after service where we can process theological or communication questions that may arise from this. If you have a desire to process sooner, please reach out to our shepherding team or communicate with your CG leader.

The Path Ahead. In times of transition – in our church and in our city – it is good to remind ourselves of what remains true. Jesus still reigns as King. Jesus loves His church, and loves this church. Jesus will finish the good work He began in us.  

Our mission – unity in diversity – remains unchanged. Now more than ever, we are committed to living as One Body, made of many different parts, following our One Lord here in Washington, DC with an emphasis of service to Ward 5. This is our inheritance in the gospel (Ephesians 2-3). And by God’s grace, we will continue to live this out to the glory of God and the good of our neighbors. The Elders, Shepherdesses, Diaconate, Staff, and Network Leadership have been in communication and have developed a plan to sustain the core functions in this interim season.

• We are committed to providing a vibrant and Christ-centered experience on Sunday mornings, and we will have the word preached by Pastors Glenn, Irwyn, Cyril, Josh, Caleb, and others who are friends of the Grace DC Network. 

• We will continue to prioritize service to our children and youth, and want to again thank Jahanna, Josh, and Caleb for their leadership.   

• We are also working to enhance our community groups, which are a core for connection, discipleship, and service.  

We’ll share more details on these and other plans in the coming weeks.

Pastoral Search. Rev. Josh Eby will visit us this upcoming weekend (September 6-7). He will preach on Sunday morning, and on Sunday afternoon from 4-6 PM he’ll be available in the sanctuary to share his experiences with pastoral searches and answer questions from the congregation about GMo’s process.

The pastoral search committee has been hard at work developing a packet that reflects our story, place, and aspirations to use in this recruiting process. We anticipate that it will be available next week, and we will share it with the congregation once available.

How can you contribute? So glad you asked!  

• Pray. Please continue to pray. Pray for the ministry of Grace Mosaic. Pray for the current leadership and staff. Pray for the Pastoral Search Committee. Pray for our future pastor. Pray for our city. As Oswald Chambers says in My Utmost for His Highest, “Prayer does not fit us for greater works; prayer is the greater work.” Our ministry exists because of prayer and will be sustained through the prayers of the saints. We will have a day of 24-hour community prayer in the coming month. Stay tuned for more details!

• Commit to the community. Continue to invest in the life of our church and to do the things that make Mosaic such a wonderful community.  

  • Attend Sunday worship. 

  • Live in a manner consistent with what we are called to as followers of Christ (Colossians 3:1-16) 

  • Participate in a community group (and consider joining one if you have not - email Haley if you have questions).  

  • Serve in our church – especially our children and youth.  

  • Serve our neighbors. 

  • Give generously. 

  • Attend the fall retreat – registration opens Friday!  

• Become a CG Leader. If you feel called to root deeper into Mosaic, to test the waters of leadership, to receive deeper discipleship, and to help shape the life of this church as we navigate our path forward, consider becoming a CG leader. We need more men and women who will serve our body in this formal way, and it is a blessing to the church leadership and staff to see new leaders rise to help steward this church’s growth. If interested, please email Haley.  

• Grace. In this season of transition, we continue to ask for your grace with the church leadership and with each other. Change is hard, and the enemy would seek to use this as an opportunity to divide us. Let’s have open, thoughtful dialogue and continue to extend charity to each other and assume the best of Mosaic brothers and sisters. Let’s continue to pray for the ministry entrusted to us, the saints, and that we may be a church united in our mission (Ephesians 4:1-16).

May we hold to God’s unchanging hand and continue on in faith and love.

As always, ​please feel free to send any questions to elder@gracemosaic.org.
 

Grace and Peace,

The Grace Mosaic Elders (Kenny, Michael, Dolph, and Evan)