FIRST PRESBYTERIAN CHURCH OF WHEATON

April 20, 2004

Dear members and friends of First Presbyterian Church,

For nearly 13 years it has been my privilege to serve as your pastor. During those years this congregation has been blessed in some extraordinary ways. By any measure, our church has experienced a season of growth and vitality. As I look back, I am both pleased and amazed at what God has done through the people of this church.

From that Saturday in August when I first arrived in town with a box of books under my arm, I felt accepted as your pastor. It was a wonderful gift, one I will always treasure.

For some time now, however, I have experienced a strong desire for a new challenge in my life. That sermon series I preached a year and a half ago – “What Am I Supposed to do with the Rest of My Life?” – was actually preached as much for me as for you. I sensed already then that there was something else God had in mind for me to do, and now I believe I know what it is.

Last Sunday, April 18, I preached at First Presbyterian Church, Ann Arbor, Michigan, and after the last service, the congregation voted to call me to be its next pastor. On Monday night, April 19, at a special Session meeting, I presented my letter of resignation to our elders.

My last Sunday with you will be May 30. I plan to preach at all three of our services that day, and I hope you are able that day to join with my family and me in giving thanks for what God has done in this place. Following the last service, there will be a congregational meeting, and I ask that you concur with my request and vote to dissolve our pastoral relationship.

I have agreed to officiate at two previously scheduled weddings in June, but after that I will no longer be able to function in any pastoral capacity. I very much look forward to continuing a relationship with you as friend, but I will not be able to return for any baptisms, weddings, or funerals. There’s a considerable sadness connected to this, far more than I can adequately describe in this letter, but I ask you to respect this change in our relationship.

Your elders will communicate with you regarding the future. What normally happens at this point is that an Interim Pastor/Head of Staff is found, and that person provides leadership until the next pastor is called. My last significant piece of work here will be to encourage our elders to find a strong and capable leader for this interim time. My hope for you is that the interim time will be a time to re-assess, re-examine, and renew the vision for ministry in this place.

It’s also my hope that this congregation will continue to grow and be a vital presence in this community. I know that new leadership will emerge to take this church places that even now God has in mind for you.

Faithfully yours,

Douglas J. Brouwer