Sometimes the church that seems the perfect fit doesn't want to try us on. And sometimes the church that seems wrong turns out to be ever so right. A call to a specific church can be as mysterious as a call to ministry.
—Ed Bratcher

After finishing two years of advanced research at Louisville Seminary, I was contacted by several churches, one of which particularly attracted me. So I sent my résumé, held conversations with the church, and talked with people who knew something about it. I anticipated eagerly the possibility of going there. But they didn't choose me as their pastor.

Eventually, a church in Manassas, Virginia, called me. At first, though, I wanted nothing to do with it. Marjie and I had seen the tremendous pressure on the lives of the many professionals in the community, and we said, "No way!" We'd never lived in a community like that. Add to that the lack of unity in the congregation, and I didn't think I could pastor effectively there.

But Marjie and I were part of a support ...