March 20, 2009

Dear Church Family and Friends,

It is with great joy and anticipation that I announce that Bishop Bruce Ough has appointed Pastor Roy Mitchell as the new senior pastor of Lewisburg United Methodist Church, beginning September 1, 2009.

Pastor Roy is currently the Youth and Young Adult pastor of Messiah UMC in Westerville, Ohio where he lives with his wife Melissa and two children: Ryan (10) and Lily (5). In his free time Pastor Roy enjoys reading, writing, basketball, walking, and playing with his kids!

Our Staff/Pastor Parish Relations Committee recently met with Pastor Roy and Melissa. Pastor Roy grew up in Greeneville, Tennessee and graduated from The University of Tennessee with a BA in Psychology/Child and Family Studies (1990-1993); Portuguese and Brazilian History/Economy/Politics at Federal University of Ceara-Fortaleza, Brazil (1993 summer program); Youth Ministry and Christian Education certification courses (1998-2000) at Emory University; Youth Ministry and Christian Education Certification courses (1999-2001) at Pfeiffer University; and Masters of Divinity and Masters of Theological Studies (2001-2005) Methodist Theological School in Ohio. We are all impressed by the faith commitment, spiritual gifts, experience, and enthusiasm that Pastor Roy brings with him. We were struck by his personable manner, passion to spread the good news of Jesus Christ, and excitement at new possibilities. Lewisburg UMC will also be blessed by the experience Pastor Roy gained in his 14 years of ministry in congregations ranging in size from 55 to 2700 members. Pastor Roy and Melissa were very impressed with our church and complimented us on thinking long term when we designed it.

Please join together in praying for Pastor Roy, Melissa, Ryan, and Lily as they prepare to come and be with us. Their days will be full between now and September 1st! We would also like to thank you for the prayers you have given the Staff/Pastor Parish Relations Committee and staff during this time. Please continue to pray for Pastor Mike and Diane, Pastor Roy and Melissa, our staff and the Lewisburg and Messiah congregations as we continue on our faith journeys.

Sincerely,

Amy St. John, Chairperson
Staff/Pastor Parish Relations Committee

To help you learn more about Pastor Roy Mitchell we have placed several of his sermons from his current church here on our website. They are audio only and are listed below. To listen to them you will need to click on the picture above the date and sermon title.

If you would like to know more about Pastoral Changes in the United Methodist Church Click Here.