Pastor Appreciation
November 1, 2011
Pastor appreciation at Cedar Grove this year was as unique as our pastor. Cedar Grove Church of the Brethren has around 250 members and is located in the heart of farm country in the middle of a cornfield in Darke County, Ohio near the Indiana/Ohio state line. It takes a person who loves country living to really appreciate the setting.
Pastor Tony Price and his wife Geneva along with their three daughters came to us from North Canton, Ohio (suburb life) almost two years ago. To us, its hard to imagine them ever being anywhere else other than right here. The Price’s share that it had always been Geneva’s dream to live on a farm. As they accepted the call to the ministry, Tony warned her that would probably never happen. Most parsonages do not come with acreage. Then God led them to Cedar Grove, whose parsonage happens to sit smack in the middle of 34 acres, part tillable ground, part pasture.
Last summer, Emma joined a local 4-H club where she had a goat as a project and won the light weight division at the Darke County Fair. As they drive into their driveway, they get to enjoy sheep and a llama in their pasture (there temporarily as a church member uses the land). As they’ve gotten acquainted with the neighborhood, they fell in love with the miniature donkeys in another of our member’s pastures. Both Tony and Geneva commented how they would really like to have a donkey. They love the noises they make, and the way they look.
So as we thought about how to show our appreciation this October, what better gift to give?
We all wanted to share this story because it reminds us again of how very much God loves us. Enough to care about a dream to live on a farm. Enough to provide a pastor who understands us and accepts us exactly as we are.
After we gave them their gift we told them, “Now you can’t go anywhere else. No one will want you once you’ve told them you have three kids, a dog, and a donkey!”
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