Dear Grace,
I’m writing this Poema on the eve of Christmas Eve (I had a friend who called it Christmas Adam because Adam came before Eve – dad joke, I know.)
I wanted to spend this letter honoring a very special co-laborer who has made so much ministry possible over the last 8 years. If you’ve ever tried to schedule a meeting with me or if you’ve ever corresponded with me. If you were in Father Formation or Emotionally Healthy Spirituality. If you’ve ever been impacted by a quote, illustration, diagram, or Scripture passage in a sermon. If you traveled to Israel with me or to Turkey with me and Sarah.
If any of these are true for you, then you know how important Diane Dombek has been to the life of our church and to me personally. Diane has been my assistant for the last 8 years, and our run together ends officially on Dec 30. Diane and her husband, Jeff, will still be at Grace. Diane will still be part of our team leading the launch of Part 2 of the Emotionally Healthy Discipleship course – Emotionally Healthy Relationships. While she will still be a vital part of the life of our church, I have been preparing myself for the tremendous loss that I feel. I believe it is the will of God for this transition to happen, but that doesn’t mean there’s not a sadness in it. We can and must hold both.
I’m learning that endings, while hard, are necessary. When one chapter ends, we are poised to encounter the God who is really good at new beginnings, even beginnings that come when the circumstances seem impossible. If God can rescue by entering into human history as a baby, if he can raise to life Jesus from the most definite of endings – death – He can bring about new beginnings from anything.
Still, I will miss this great servant. I will miss her disarming presence. I will miss her faithfulness – when I ask Diane to see to something, I know it will be done. I will miss her presence. I will miss her sheer energy and enthusiasm for life and ministry, and everything in between!
So, in this final Poema of the year, I want to honor Diane. You may not have known all that she was responsible for. You may not even be able to pick her out in a crowd. But know this, you have been the recipient of a blessing because of her work and ministry.
We spent some time this morning as a staff praying for the gatherings tomorrow, not just the ones at Grace, but also for area churches: Mosaic, Impact Church, Columbia Pres, McLean Bible, The Well, Pathways Baptist, First Baptist Laurel, St. Mo’s, St. Francis, and so on. We prayed (and are praying) that the simple and profound message of God’s incarnation as a man in Jesus would be preached and believed.
Tomorrow, as we gather, I’m reminding our teams that we don’t have to entertain or wow anyone. We just simply have to let the wonder and awe over this incredible story overflow out of our hearts and into our worship for all to witness. That will be tomorrow. If you haven’t decided on which gathering to come to, remember that we’ve spread out to 4 gatherings: 11, 1, 3, 5 pm. We’ll have plenty of room and time to worship and visit with each other.
As a final note, unlike last year, we WILL be gathering as one congregation on Sunday, the 28th at ONLY the 11:00 hour. It will be a rich time as we learn how to reflect on the year, both personally and as a church community. I hope you’ll join us! Then the 31st evening will be spent looking forward with hope and anticipation. We’ll have an open mic time to share and pray for one another as we launch into 2026. So many opportunities to be together and connect. I hope you’ll be able to be present for some, if not all, of it!
Whatever the Christmas break brings to you, remember that the Lord is near, and you are His beloved.
See you soon!