This past Monday I notified active participants in the congregation I serve that I will be leaving parish ministry in 2020. My last Sunday as the pastor of a local church will be Sunday, April 26, 2020.
As I told my congregants, my primary reasons for leaving parish ministry are personal. As a person who struggles with issues of codependency and establishing healthy relationships, the parish setting is not the healthiest place for me to be. I have often told friends that asking a codependent person to serve as the pastor of a local church is much like asking a recovering alcoholic to be a bartender. It can be done – but it takes a LOOOOOOOOOOOT of effort, and it never gets easy.
I look forward to the next stage of my ministry. I am not sure in what vocational setting – or in what geographical location – my next position will be. I am completely open to going wherever God calls. All I know is that the right position will be one that allows me to establish a healthy balance between my personal and vocational lives.
I look forward to the adventures that lie ahead. I would also ask that you hold the people of the congregation I serve (Woodland Hills Community Church) in your prayers during this time of transition.
May God bless you will a wonderful year – full of your own adventures – in 2020.
Pastor Craig's Musings 
Years ago when I was in the midst of significant changes, a wise friend asked “Are you listening?”
You obviously are listening and even being gracious to others in the process! Being one of those congregants, I flip between sparks of joy and pauses of wonder, then a flash of anxiety shrouded in thoughts of change. This is new, but we’ve got this. This is ours, the change will come for all of us as we are led. The answers are given, and we have one another. WOW, have we come a long way in the last 10 years, thank you Craig, Thank you God!
CONGRATULATIONS!!!! In the progress of the Soul we must all become strong enough to move through our current protective boundaries into the next domain on our “Hero’s Journey”. I wish you well on your Journey!