In early 2024, I wrote a post about returning to work in December of 2023 as an interim Care Pastor at Northlake Lutheran Church in Kenmore. At that point, I expected to wrap up my time at Northlake in March of 2024. Well, true to my nature, I had a hard time leaving and I finally said goodbye to Northlake at the end of January 2025. It was a wonderful 14 months.
It was a privilege, honor, and joy to serve the dedicated and loving Jesus-followers of Northlake Lutheran Church. I built deep relationships in those months with congregation members and wonderful staff. There are many wonderful memories that I take with me as I move on to whatever God has planned next for me.
There were many highlights during my time at Northlake. One was Imagine’s presentation of Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat. Imagine is Northlake’s primary means of community engagement. Imagine’s mission is “Building Beloved Community through the Arts.” The Joseph musical ran for six nights to a packed house of community members. It was so good!
Another highlight was a Maundy Thursday service where we sat around a table by candlelight and reenacted the last supper, sharing our lives, our fears and our hopes. It was powerful and poignant. Northlake rents space to a Hispanic Church and a Muslim group and these groups joined Northlake members and community members to put on a wonderful community festival in the fall.
I thoroughly enjoyed my time at Northlake. What a joy it is to build relationships deeply rooted in Christ’s love. That was Northlake’s gift to me.
So what is next for me? Well, I am trying to retire. But days after wrapping up at Northlake, an urgent need came up at our local church, Pointe of Grace, so I have been filling in there during February and through March 2. But…really…I am going to retire. My wife and friends all have me practicing saying, “No, thank you!” We’ll see how that goes.
But here’s some exciting news. We leave for our next big adventure on March 6. We are traveling to New Zealand where we will enjoy lots of hiking and beautiful scenery. You are invited to follow along on “Coe & Janet’s Kiwi Adventure.” I promise there will be blog posts and pictures so keep checking back at TrustingGrace or subscribe to receive the posts through e-mail.
I give thanks to God for my time at Northlake and the relationships built there. And I look forward to new adventures in the future. You can check out Northlake and Imagine at these addresses.
God bless,
Coe
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