I'm Leaving a Church I Love to, Lord Willing, Plant A Church I will Love

Buzzard Blog readers,After four fantastic years at Central Peninsula Church, I've decided, in concert with our elders, to leave a church I love (see: 14 Reasons Why I Love My Church). This week the news has been made public. Below is an excerpt from a letter that Mark Mitchell, our Lead pastor and my close friend (the above pic is of Mark and me on a mission trip in Cambodia during my 2nd week on staff at CPC), sent out to our church body this week.I will share more details later. For now, please pray that God would clearly guide me and Taylor as we try to decide between two wonderful church planting opportunities/cities. And join me in praising God for Central Peninsula Church--this body of believers has been our family the past four years, and leaving them is far from easy.

I am sure we would all agree that change is necessary at times, but it is also hard. This is especially true when change involves long-standing and treasured relationships. Change like this happens in families, business, and even churches. While we usually enjoy the influx of change that new people bring to our church family, we also grieve the loss of those who the Lord moves to other places. This is such a time for us at CPC. The Lord has chosen to bring change to us through the departure of two treasured staff members: Kim Fenech and Justin Buzzard....Justin joined our staff four years ago as our Twenties Pastor. In four short years he has grown our Twenties ministry to include close to 150 people. Justin’s wife, Taylor, has also worked side by side with him in this ministry. It’s not an exaggeration to say that our Twenties ministry is the strongest of its kind on the San Francisco Peninsula. Justin has also regularly fed our entire church body through his Sunday morning preaching. His passion for the Scripture and the Gospel has had a tremendous impact on all of us and will never be forgotten at CPC. At this time, Justin has a strong desire to plant an independent church where he can serve as Lead Pastor. Our CPC elders have affirmed these gifts in him and look forward to how God will use him in this capacity. Justin will preach his last Sunday here on May 23. The Twenties will host a lunch for all who want to say goodbye to the Buzzards after the 11:00 am service that day. Justin’s last day on staff will be June 6.As I said before, change is hard, but sometimes change is necessary. As we work through the sadness and sense of loss these staff changes bring, it is important for us to remember that we are part of a larger, worldwide work of Kingdom building that the Lord is accomplishing through His people. He is the Lord of the harvest. He has every right to move His servants where He needs them the most. He is our Rock. These times of change force us to trust in the One whose promises and character never changes. He is also our Provider. He will provide for them and He will provide for us. We encourage all of you to be praying for the Fenechs and the Buzzards, as well as for CPC as we all seek God’s direction and provision in the midst of the challenges that change brings.Mark MitchellLead Pastor