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Rev. Peter C. de Vries, Ph.D. has served Old Union since November 1993.

To learn more about Rev. Dr. de Vries, go to FaceBook,  Linked-In, or his blog. 
                                              
                                                          FROM THE PASTOR
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During my sabbatical last summer I learned how to be a better pastor for our church.  I discovered that I am spending too much time and energy on the nuts and bolts of our church’s operation.  Doing so has created problems for me, for you, and for our church’s ministry and outreach.
  • I am not devoting my full attention to my pastoral calling for activities such as planning and leading inspiring and provocative worship, engaging in meaningful conversations and visits through the week, and offering stimulating opportunities to learn and grow in faith.
  • You are not able to follow your own calling to serve God and his people in our church.  When I don’t leave room for others to serve, I prevent you from experiencing the joy and satisfaction that comes from the Lord’s service.  You could easily fall into a passive participation in our church life: all you have to do is show up, and Peter will take care of the rest.
  • I have been limiting the creativity and talent that goes into our church’s life.  I confess to the arrogance of thinking that if something is to be done right, I’m the one who must do it.  Our effectiveness in fulfilling our church’s calling to encourage and build up depends upon the full energy, creativity, and commitment of our entire membership.
Evangelist Dwight L. Moody once wrote, “It is better to train ten people than to do the work of ten people.  It is also harder.”  As your pastor, I serve God best when I equip and support you in your service to God.  I look forward to the day when you, the people of Old Union, will have and use all the resources, experience, and skills necessary for powerful worship, ministry, and mission.  I look forward to the time when others will be able to do everything that I do now, as well as or better than I can.
Fulfilling this vision requires wide participation of our entire church family.  There are members of our church who, like me, are probably doing more than God desires.  As an old saying puts it, in most churches 20% of the people do 80% of the work.  If you are part of the 20%, who know who you are!  My goal instead for Old Union is that 40% of the people do 60% of the work.
As we stand at the beginning of a new year, it’s time for you to consider your place in the life and ministry of Old Union Church.  As you do so, I offer the following:
  1. Pray.  Always pray.  Seek the Lord’s guidance for what you can do in his name.
  2. Through the months of January and February, I’ll lead us through the book of Ephesians during worship, to learn what it has to teach us about being a church.
  3. God provides gifts for the work he wants us to do.  What gifts do you have, and how can you use them?  This spring we’ll have a seven-week study series to explore and learn about our spiritual gifts, and how to use them.
  4. Let your service follow your gifts, instead of trying to squeeze yourself into organizational slots.  God knows what he’s doing; he’ll make sure we all have the gifts to get all the work done.
  5. Elsewhere in this newsletter you’ll find a help-wanted article, to give you an idea of what sorts of opportunities for service we already have.
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Peter


Old Union Presbyterian Church | 200 Union Church Road, Mars, PA 16046
​724-538-8672 | OldUnionChurch@gmail.com
200 Union Church Road, Mars PA 16046