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Called During Covid: Becoming a pastor in challenging times
by Adam Chandler
That sums it up, doesn’t it? By gaining Christ we have lost the world for the world rejects Him. Yet, because we are in Christ, we gain the surpassing worth of knowing One through whom we gain more than the world: the riches of God’s grace.
Though we live in the hope and promise of our Lord, we still suffer the loss of things present in this world. This fact has been all too evident in 2020. Social, physical, and economic stability have been lost by many people the world over. COVID-19 and its complications have wrought hardship. But God never abandons His people in times of distress and danger. He continues to serve and guide us even in times of tribulation. The Lord does not abandon His Church; He leads her beyond suffering and into salvation. God revealed this in Jesus Christ, whose suffering and death were not the end of His story. Through the power of His resurrection and ascension, Jesus raises us from the threat of death into His eternal kingdom.
The triumph of Christ shines in the darkness of these despairing times. That’s something I’ve seen firsthand in these months since my transition from seminary student to serving as a pastor in my first call.
In all honesty, the government shutdown caught me by surprise, as I was not following the spread of the coronavirus in the news. Writing a dissertation for the International Academy of Apologetics in addition to my coursework at Concordia Lutheran Seminary in Edmonton occupied much of my time until spring break. Then, I took the opportunity to relax a bit, planning a summer vacation before I would take up my first call.
Everything changed with the shutdown. International travel was suspended. Seminary courses moved online. Church services stopped. Most groups and individuals I knew had only limited contact with friends or family. Being single, the only family I could talk to was over thephone. The shock of sudden isolation was devasting. Of course, it wasn’t just me experiencing all this. Many people were suffering, ripped from their normal routines and forced into minimal contact with their social supports.
A mercy our Lord gave to us was streamed worship services and devotions flooding the internet. Technology now helped—albeit imperfectly—to spread the message of God’s love to us in our lonely despair. We suffered the loss of many things, but were comforted with the surpassing worth of knowing Christ Jesus our Lord and being found in him through his Word. Many people unable to participate in services online still met Christ in His Word. God helpedme through a daily devotional on Job which I was writing and distributing online. I meant it to help others, but I quickly found that God used it as much to ground me in His promises. Studying His promises brought some peace to my soul.
The stability was short-lived. My roommate informed me he would be moving out months earlier than expected. Trying to keep the apartment would be difficult, so I too moved back in with family to finish off the semester. God tends to do extraordinary things through very natural means. God provides us with the necessities of life including house and home, family and property. In many subtle ways, God provides for all of us. Even suffering the loss of many social and financial supports in the pandemic, the grace of God allows us to receive our daily bread—regardless of how meagre it might be. But what about the bread of life?
One thing we have suffered deeply is the loss of the regularity of the Lord’s Supper. The sacrament is and always must be part of the Church, but health concerns prevented many from celebrating together. Some asked whether the Supper could be given online. But participation in the bread is participation in the body of Christ—both the real flesh of our Lord and His body as the Church. When the community of faith is unable to come together to partake of the same physical bread and cup the minister blesses, there should be a fast from the Supper.
And yet, despite not being able to share in the Supper, the Holy Spirit still calls, gathers, and enlightens the whole Christian Church on earth and preserves it in union with Jesus Christ in the one true faith where He daily and richly forgives the sins of allbelievers, as the Small Catechism says. We are the Church even if distance divides. We will always be made one in the Spirit. Even if we are fasting from the Lord’s Supper, God is with us and graciously forgives our sins.
Easter was also an awkward time. Normally Easter includes worshipping together and being with family, but for many this year that was impossible. As much as joy wanted to enter the heart, the sobriety of Lent persisted. For two months after Lent ended, I had to keep reminding myself I could say “alleluia” again. God does not abandon His people, not even during a “long Lent.” Christ and the power of His resurrection is still present among us even while we suffer the loss of worshipping with our church family. Christ’s Easter triumph over the grave is present among us. The suffering of the cross is great, but greater joy came with His resurrection. For the sake of Christ, we suffer the loss of all things; but since suffering is itself a thing of this world, it will eventually be lost as well.
Time moved on and Sacred Convocation at the seminary finally arrived. Graduating students, including me, would soon receive their first calls. It was awkward navigating the building while distancing two metres apart from each other, but being back together with my brothers in Christ was great. A sense of pride welled up within me as all of God’s hard work on me yielded my first call. It was difficult to refrain from weeping in joy when I heard the call from Hope Evangelical Lutheran Church in Victoria, B.C. My faculty advisor also gave me the verse 1 Peter 3:15, which touched my heart to its core. Thank you, God, for it all.
Arranging the ordination, move, and installation was difficult, but God works in all things for our good (Romans 8:28). My grandfather had a medical emergency soon after I received my call. To assist him and my grandmother, social distancing in the family had to be relaxed a bit (although masks and frequent handwashing were a must). My grandfather came out in good health and I ended up being able to spend time with my grandparents before moving away, something I otherwise would nothave been able to do. My ordination was held in my home church, where I had been baptized and confirmed by my grandfather. It was wonderful that he could be part of my ordination as well.
Trying to make living arrangements from a province away was difficult but God was still looking out to me. A member of my new parish helped arrange an apartment, and I was able to book a moving truck that could (almost) fit my schedule. Upon arrival in Victoria on July 1, I was greeted by a few members of my new congregation. It warmed my heart to see the love of God’s Church welcoming me. I made it in time for in-person services to start again, but precautionary measures for attendance and how to receive communion remained firmly in place.
My first-time officiating communion was at my installation service. It was nerve-wracking: this was the body and blood of the Lord! It is the presence of God. But even standing witness to the bread and wine become also the body and blood of Christ, there was no tingling of the spine or anything of that sort—and thank God for that! The Lord does what He says He does, regardless of our feelings. The bread became the body of Christ and the cup His blood independent of my own perceptions; it is not by our works or efforts that His grace is given but through His holy Word and Sacrament. He comes to us the same as He always does. God never abandons His Church. He is always present exactly where He says He is, and there is no need for some special feeling in my bones to assure me that He works wonders for us at the altar.
Over the next few weeks, I began to get the lay of the land, talking with members in the parish. Everyone was generous with gifts and thank-you’s for taking up the call, although it was just as much my long-awaited pleasure to take it up. One of the things that my seminary experience has taught me again and again is that we must never underestimate the generosity of the Church. God loves His people and, through His people in the Church, He continues to love us. The Church is the community of God which will never fall and never be dismayed—even when distanced.
Visits, among other things, were few and far between as a result of coronavirus regulations. Getting to know people is difficult, with visits limited to just after the service, and with masks making it difficult to recognize people. Many of my parishioners still cannot come to services due to health concerns. Speaking with some of them on the phone, I hear how they miss the blessed assurance of grace in the Lord’s Supper. Communion for the homebound is also limited, as many care facilities continue to deny most, if not all, visitors. However, the congregation continues to hold services, plan Bible studies, and works to stream services online. Although we have hardships, we also have God. He does not abandon us.
The Lord is ever-present with us in Word and Sacrament. Through these means, He is constantly giving us grace. Our current situation is not ideal, but when was there ever a time without hardship for the Church? Having lost much, we can still say with Paul: “Whatever gain I had, I counted as loss for the sake of Christ. Indeed, I count everything as loss because of the surpassing worth of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord. For His sake I have suffered the loss of all things and count them as rubbish, in order that I may gain Christ” (Philippians 3:7-8).
Rev. Adam Chandler
Rev. Adam Chandler is pastor of Hope Evangelical Lutheran Church in Victoria, B.C.
