Welcome to the Sliter Family blog... this is a place for us to keep in touch with friends and family as we begin a new journey in our life.
For the last five years, we have served in the Student Ministry at North Mar Church (Christian & Missionary Alliance) in Warren, OH. Over the last several years, the leadership at our church, friends, and family have recognized God gifting Nathan in three areas of ministry: leading worship, preaching, and discipleship. Over the last year, we have talked about what might come after working in student ministry, and felt God calling us to possibly pursue those things in our future.
In September, the leadership at our church decided to encourage and affirm what might be next for us by releasing us from our current ministry at the end of 2012, so this Fall has been a time of excitement and sadness. We absolutely love the teens that we have been walking life with, the wonderful adults who have worked with us as part of the student ministry team, and all the other families & friends who have been such a blessing to our time as part of the local church body.
As we start this new faith adventure (walking with God is NEVER boring!), there are several questions our friends and family have asked, and you might be wondering about, too... So here they are, as well as our current answers!
Do you know where you're going?
No, we don't. We're open to where God leads us. Our human hearts would like to be within driving distance of family, and since we've been in Ohio (where Nathan's family is) for the last five years, we would love to move South, somewhere in Texas or the vicinity, to be near my (Jessica) family. But we'll see what God does!
Is Nathan planning on staying in student ministry?
No. If we were, we would stay at our current church. God has affirmed Nathan in a variety of ways & people to look for a worship pastor, associate pastor, etc... type role to be more regularly using the gifts of leading worship, preaching, and discipleship. Not sure what job title that will entail, but that's what we're looking for.
Do you have any leads?
Not really. We have posted Nathan's resume nationally on church staffing websites, have started looking at job postings, and are also "networking" (contacting friends & fellow people in ministry) to find job openings. This is where the "faith" part of it all is really kicking in!
Then why are you leaving your current ministry position?
The leadership (pastors & elders) at our church felt God strongly calling them to release Nathan from his current ministry responsibilities to pursue what was next. This is a faith step for both sides... the church as they begin the process of finding a new youth pastor in the coming year, and us as we wait on the Lord to reveal His plans. The leadership has put together a benefits package to take care of our family in the spring.
We currently plan on continuing to live in the home we rent here in Ohio, stay with our current small group, and attend our church semi-regularly. We also will be visiting other churches in the area to get an idea of various ministry styles. So if you wanted to get together with us this fall and things were too crazy, just give us a call, we would love to hang out for an evening or get together for a meal. We love our church family dearly, and don't want to say good-bye until we absolutely have to!
So that's a brief synopsis of our little family and the newest adventure we're on... If you are part of our local church family, stop by the Welcome Center or Student Ministry table at church and pick up one of our prayer cards. If you're long distance, email me your address and I will mail you one!
Feel free to leave a comment, email, or Facebook us with questions, comments, or encouragement!
