That "B" word and Pastor Karl

I am distracted right now.  I have tweets to gather for Special Olympics Oregon,      but my brain is mushy right now.

Jodie was in tears at church today.  I was close to tears.  Eric didn't want to go to the lunch at church in honor of Pastor Karl.  Eric is having a really hard time with Pastor Karl's leaving...he has gotten real close to him.

Today was Pastor Karl's last day at our church, Resurrection Lutheran Church.  He is heading to a calling in Salem at Christ the Good Shepherd Church.

PK has been our family and youth pastor for the last five years.  Eric has been on mission trips that PK has led...to the Blackfeet Reservation in Montana, to Las Vegas,  and to the recent youth gathering in New Orleans.

PK was a high school history teacher before he got the call to become a pastor.  He came to us five years ago.  A geeky guy with a kid's curiosity.  Eric adores Karl.

Today was Pastor Karl's last day with us.  His sermon about the feast that was given for the returning prodigal son, and how we should always leave an empty chair (not the Clint Eastwood type...;)) for the guest that is yet to come.  I will remember this one.

We have been instructed that, as of today, we are supposed to stop looking to Karl as Pastor.  He will be removing us RLC members from his e-vos (a wonderful online weekly devotion that he writes) from his email list.

I told Pastor Karl today that he would still be my "E-Pastor".

We had a great catered lunch from Ristorante Di Pompeyo.  We played games, Karl style, and told stories.

I don't think I said the "B" word ("bye") though.  This song kept running in my head....the same song I remember from my college days when parting paths from my dear friends:





Friends are friends forever.

So PK, this is not the "B" word.  Today was a hard lesson of that for us, but especially for Eric who has not been though this a lot.

People do go in and out of our lives, but memories of the important ones never leave us.

Pastor Karl...my second Twitter follower btw (such a geek!) will always be in our hearts.

;)