Mike Cope
Tomorrow is Mike Cope's official last Sunday as our minister at Highland. I will miss his voice every week in my life. I loved how he has guided our hearts. He has been gentle but persistent about living our lives in a kingdom way....lives that reflect our Savior in every way possible. I have only been here for 5 of his 18 years at Highland but this 5 years have been amazing. There are so many things that I love about him being my minister....I know that I will forget something but I am going to give it a go.
I love his love for children. How he gently explains things to them and makes sure that they know they are important....sometimes letting them tell the story.
I love how he laughs so easily...once being so overcome with laughter that he couldn't stop.
I love that he is real. He has walked through grief too many times and is honest about it. Honest that it is hard and sometimes it feels impossible. Honest that sometimes we are not sure about God in the midst of all that. And confident that doubt is part of our walk.
I love that he doesn't take the scripture in the conventional-always-given-to-us kind of way. He has walked me through scripture and turned my world upside down.
I love how he always prays that God give him the gift of preaching. I believe that he has been given that gift a hundred fold.
I love that he is a reader. I know, of course, a reader of scripture but also a reader of theology, a reader of literature, a reader of newspapers, a reader of blogs....you get it.
I love that he loves to play...basketball, ping pong, dodgeball (sorry that you got hurt)
I love that he loves God's people. He ministers to people all over the world. He walks them through difficult times...difficult church times, difficult family times, and yes, those walking through grief....he's been there and he is good at reassuring words.
I love how he loses things....his ipod in his house, his remote for his sermon, the clip on mic....this makes him more human to all of us.
I love how he loves his family. You can see a different light in his eyes when they are around or he is talking about them. Chris is precious to me and I have loved getting to know him more and more...but I am especially glad that he is married to Diane. She is an amazing friend....one of a small handful of people that hear the secrets of my heart. Glad he isn't taking her away.
I love how I feel the Spirit move when he is preaching. I know that this might be weird but there have been moments that I have felt the air move...move in a way that I thought only the Spirit could move it.
I love that he is committed to women and their involvement in the kingdom. I love that he has been willing to stand up for women and their part. I know that means that he risked many things but was still willing to stand up.
I am nervous about someone else taking his place. I am nervous about them being the one to pull on our hearts. I am afraid that I might not be very receptive at first to listening to their voice and especially to taking it in. I know that they will have to earn my trust but that is part of the process and I will adjust.
Tomorrow is your day, Mike Cope. Take it all in and realize how much you are loved and how many lives you have touched.
posted by julie @ 1:30 PM
8 Comments:
He is a good man.
He's one of the best. Such sweet words, Julie. You are a true encourager.
Hello , you probably don't know me but my name is Ed Muddiman. I was reading an old blog of yours about camp wamava and that Jim Mccall had sent you a dvd of pictures. I went to camp there from 75 to 79 and it's where I met my wife whom I've been married to for 25 years now. I have always wondered what heppened to some of the people I knew back then and was wondering if there was any information you could give me or a way I could see the pictures. I see that Tom Richie is running the camp now. He was my counselor my first year of camp. Any information would be greatly appreciated. Thanks
I am trying to place you...I know your name but can't remember your face. Who did you marry? I was Julie Stone and worked at camp during those years. We are probably around the same age. I am married to Tim Danley. He may not have worked there until 1979.
I remember you and your husbands name but can't remember what you look like either. The girl I met in 1980 at camp was Lauren Ellinger whom I married in 1984. I went to camp from 77-80. I went on facebook earlier and sent Tom Ritchie a message because the camp is on there too. I knew so many people from the 4 years I was there but my memory tends to fail me. I remember people like Wendy Callahan and Lydia and Ricky Jimenez. Its been so long, it's so hard to remember names. Enclosed is a picture of what I looked like my last year at camp and a picture of me with my then future wife. Maybe that will bring back a memory. Thanks for responding and look forward to hearing more from you. I replied through email with a picture hope you get it.
Hi, Julie. I am the Laura that wrote on Mike's blog. I was looking at this post and the comments and saw something about Camp WAMAVA...and I went there one year as a kid! What a small world. :)
Laura, email me at juliedanleymom@aol.com.
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