Skip to main content

Emo day

Yesterday was a real emotional day for me and for a lot of other people as we said farewell to Pastor T and Misty, and their children Nate and Celeena.  They are more than staff members -- they are truly our family and will continue to be.

Larry and I have told the congregation countless times how much we appreciate the Mackleys so much because they have been our most loyal staff members, EVER.  I cannot underscore that enough.  Look up "loyal staffer" in the dictionary and their picture is there.  :)  Finding folks like them is like finding a needle in a haystack and we could not be more grateful for five wonderful years they gave us.  They know that Larry and I can be counted on to help them with anything in the future, in helping with whatever they need in life or ministry in exchange for the wonderful trust they have built with us and the way they were so honorable with our people.  (That's not to be taken lightly - we don't extend that to everyone, only those who deserve it.)  Not only did my husband and I never have to worry that they were ever doing anything inappropriate or disloyal with our people, but we knew they were always going the extra mile to speak well of us and carry our vision in their hearts and out their mouths!  Needless to say, we love them immensely.

After the service yesterday we had their farewell reception and many people shared what the Mackleys mean to them, and how sorely they will be missed.  Thankfully they are still in the state of Florida, although way up north, they are still just a few hours car drive away and it's a path that will become familiar.  My family will miss them most on the holidays.  For the past five years we've spent them all together.  Since their family is in Missouri, we became their family here and spent all the holidays in our home together.  They won't be able to do that anymore as they are required to work every holiday in their new job.  They do, however, plan to visit a lot otherwise.  And I'm sure we'll make a trip or two to Tallahassee!  Thankfully we can also talk on the phone as much as we like (unlimited long distance).  
 
Receptions like yesterday's have always been priority/important to me but none more important than yesterday's.  I'm so grateful that everything concerning that went perfectly.   Everything went great whether it came to food, people's sentiments that were shared, sending them off with our prayer of blessing, and tons of hugs.  I just wish we could have had a reception WITHOUT a farewell.  :)   But change happens, and we will all move forward with great things in store for the Mackleys and for Celebration Church.


Labels:

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

What To Do First to Make a Profit

Today on Seth Godin's blog, he said:

It's tempting to decide to make a profit first, then invest in training, people, facilities, promotion, customer service and most of all, doing important work. In general, though, it goes the other way.
Yes, it does. If you are waiting to make a profit before you do these things, in my experience you're  not going to make a profit. So many organizations, ministries and churches are struggling with financial issues. I know your pain. As anyone who follows our story knows, our ministry was in a ton of debt four years ago when I came on as director.  Since that time, we've gotten out of debt and turned a profit every year.  God has done amazing things through out team, for which we give Him the glory!

I find that what Seth is saying here is absolutely true, with one disclaimer. For Christian leaders, spiritual disciplines must always be first. Before we started investing and training and all of that, seeking God for his blessing and…
Post a Comment
Read more

I'm Just Being Transparent...

This year at the Stronger Conference, a young minister stopped me as I was walking out of the room at the conclusion of a workshop and she said, "I want to tell you something..." (I was all ears.) She said, "Do you notice how many of the speakers this weekend are saying, "Now, I'm just being transparent when I tell you..." or "I'm just keepin' it real..." I nodded yes. In fact, I mentioned that I was one of those speakers. I think I probably said a few times in both my keynote message and my workshop that I was just "keepin' it real."

After I affirmed that yes, I had noticed that -- she said, "Do you know why they have to do that? They do it...and you do it, because so many people don't keep it real. So many in leadership aren't transparent, Deanna. That's why all these people speaking here feel an urge to declare their transparency.." I let her know that usually when I say, "I'm just keeping …
Post a Comment
Read more

Why You Should Never Hijack a Comment Thread
Social media etiquette 101

One surefire way to kill your influence in social media and wear out your welcome fast is to become involved in derailing somebody’s comment thread with your own agenda. Networking and hijacking aren’t the same thing. It’s surprising how many people don’t understand that this is a guarantee for tearing down a platform as quickly as you build it.


Passion is good, even necessary. I appreciate people's zeal for their personal core values. What is not appreciated is the attempt at a redirection of a comment thread when the comment has little or nothing to do with an original post or is twisted at best.

Social media provides ample opportunity for all of us to share what’s important to us on our own platform. Eliciting others’ responses and developing connections largely depends on our ability to communicate and compel. Some people are open to receiving private communication from others although they aren’t always able to answer personally or at length. But hijacking a comment thread no…
1 comment
Read more