Dear Friends of Ocean Hills…

Over 5 1/2 years ago, Pastor Skip Heitzig invited Roxie and myself to partner with him in a great venture of faith called Ocean Hills Church.  We had no idea what God had in store for us, but with excitement we came alongside of Pastor Skip and faithfully served to build a strong, healthy and vibrant ministry.  When I arrived, we didn’t have a sound engineer, we were lacking equipment, we didn’t have musicians and within the first year we saw growth and stability.  Today, Ocean Hills has  a strong worship ministry with a media department that reaches the world through the internet, the ability to record live worship CD’s and a well developed infrastructure that is ready for growth.

Our time has not been without challenges.  When Pastor Skip received God’s call to return to Calvary Albuquerque to bring health to a difficult situation, he asked me to stay and be a stabilizing factor at Ocean Hills.  During the ensuing transition there were many faces in the pulpit, but Roxie and I remained a constant presence through our teaching, serving and leading God’s people in fulfillment of Pastor Skip’s request.  This year that commitment was completed when the board announced Jim Nicol as Senior Pastor of Ocean Hills Church.

With so much accomplished, Roxie and I believe that a new season is upon us.  It was the Apostle Paul that said… forgetting those things which are behind and reaching forward to those things which are ahead,  I press toward the goal for the prize of the upward call of God in Christ Jesus.  Not that I have already attained, or am already perfected; but I press on, that I may lay hold of that for which Christ Jesus has also laid hold of me. (Phil 3:13b, 14, 12 NKJV).

Therefore, it is our strong conviction that God is leading us out of Ocean Hills into a new venture of faith.  We have mixed emotions as we “lay hold of that for which Christ Jesus has also laid hold of us.”  We have sorrow because we have fond memories of our time at Ocean Hills and we will miss worshipping with you all.  We also have excitement as we move forward into the future.  But most of all we have gratitude for the privilege of serving our Lord together.

We want to thank Pastor Skip Heitzig for inviting us to come.  We serve well together and I look forward to continued opportunities to serve in the future.  We want to thank the board of elders for inviting us to continue our service at Ocean Hills.  We want to thank Pastor Jim Nicol for continued partnership in ministry at Ocean Hills.  We especially want to thank over 50 staff and volunteers who I personally had the privilege of working side by side with each and every week.  You make ministry such a joy and so easy to serve.

As we move forward into the future, we covet your prayers.  We also encourage you to continue the work which was started by Pastor Skip and myself.  Be a community of the Word, a community who worships and a community who serves in love.

Roxie and I look forward to seeing what the Lord will do in you and in us as we continue to walk according to His ways.

Blessings…