Special Announcement from Mark Frost to the Trenton Church of Christ

May 29, 2011

Now listen, you who say, “Today or tomorrow we will go to this or that city, spend a year there, carry on business and make money.” Why, you do not even know what will happen tomorrow. What is your life? You are a mist that appears for a little while and then vanishes. Instead, you ought to say, “If it is the Lord’s will, we will live and do this or that.” (James 4:13-15)

When we plan for the future, we must remember that God’s will may be quite different from what we foresee. So with that as a background and with appropriate humility, I want to talk to you about my future plans.

I don’t ever want to retire from the work of God’s kingdom, but I have made it clear to the shepherds and my family that a time would come when I would choose to step away from the heavy responsibility of full-time congregational ministry. I still have some things on my “bucket list”; things I want to do for the kingdom of God while I still have the health and the strength: things like spending several months at a time in a mission field; or helping other churches start recovery ministries; or writing; or mentoring leaders in smaller churches. All of these require more flexibility than a full-time local ministry allows. So what I’m thinking about is not so much “retirement” as it is “redeployment.”

The shepherds and I have been talking about this inevitable transition for some time, but until recently, it’s been in general terms. But now we feel we need to put a time frame in place so that both the church, and Cheryl and I, can make plans for what comes next. We have decided that I will wrap up my ministry here at the Trenton Church of Christ no later than the end of next year, 2012. This decision is God’s answer to a lot of prayers that have been said by Cheryl and me and the shepherds.

One thing God has shown me as the result of my prayers is that He raises up leaders “for such a time as this.” When I came here almost 33 years ago, I believe I was the right leader at the right time. God has done great things during those years. Together, we learned to appreciate God’s amazing grace. Without compromising our principles, we have become more open to believers in other Christian tribes. We became more contemporary and celebrative in our worship. We were the first Church of Christ Downriver with a full-time youth minister; one of the first with a multiple ministry staff; the first with a small-group ministry; the first with a children’s minister; the first with a worship minister; the first with a praise team; the first with a recovery ministry.

However, times change and God raises up new leaders to take his people to the next level. Moses was a great leader, but God raised up Joshua to take the Israelites into the Promised Land. David was a great king, but God raised up Solomon to build the temple. I believe God is calling the Trenton Church of Christ to the next level, and I believe he will call a new leader to take it there.

We as a congregation have made a commitment to reach families with young children. I know that a grandfather with years of experience in family life has a lot to offer to those young families, but the reality is that my child-rearing responsibilities are behind me. To get to the next level, this church will need someone in the pulpit who is in the process of raising a family and who has the ability to connect with other young families. I don’t know who that is yet, but I know God will make it clear and I’m already praying for him.

Bringing a 33-year-long ministry to a close is not easy for a minister or for a church. The experience of other churches has convinced us that bad things happen when such transitions are made too abruptly or without adequate planning. As a result, a church can be thrust into great turmoil and the next minister’s work can be stymied. The time frame we have agreed on for this transition will allow several positive things to happen. It will allow for a period of closure and celebration. It will allow me time to make a smooth transition to the next phase of my ministry. And it will give the church time to think through its identity and its needs and to seek God’s guidance in selecting an excellent minister to guide it into an exciting future.

The shepherds and I will be working on a more specific timetable for making this transition, which we will announce as we move forward. We will need your participation as we assess our needs as a congregation, clarify our church’s unique personality, celebrate the past, and build enthusiasm toward God’s future.

In the meantime, as long as I am on staff here, I will still be fully engaged in my ministry. I will still be fully available to you; I will still be a serious student of God’s Word and I will still proclaim it as faithfully as I can.  If anything, I will need to work harder to ensure that my ministry responsibilities are transitioned as seamlessly as possible. And I’m encouraging all of you not to back off and treat this time as a “lame duck session.” We have a lot to do to in the next year and half to lay a good foundation for the future.

I cannot adequately thank the Trenton church for the blessing you have been to us. When Cheryl and I came here, we had a kindergartener and a newborn. You helped us raise them to be the faithful servants of Christ they are today. The Trenton Church of Christ has been my family and my life for almost 33 years now. From my past experience with you, I know that this church will work together with me and the shepherds to make this a smooth transition—a time of spiritual growth and holy anticipation of God’s special future for all of us.