A Call to Washington DC

Andrew Cheung, our Mount Pleasant Site Pastor, has accepted the call to become Senior Pastor of a church in Washington, D.C called Washington Community Fellowship Church.

We are deeply grateful for Andrew’s faithful and fruitful ministry among us, excited for him as he anticipates this new ministry opportunity, but are sad to see him go.

Some of you may know that Andrew was actually born in the US and has been sensing God’s leading to be in the United States--even before he joined our team at Tenth. We will deeply miss Andrew, Julia, Ashley, Evan and Ethan, but we celebrate this opportunity for the Cheung family and how Andrew’s gifts and his learnings here at Tenth will be shared in his new community.

We are so thankful for all of Andrew’s leadership in and support for the Mount Pleasant site and our overall Tenth community over these past years.

Please pray that Andrew and his family will experience God’s grace and peace as they make a cross-border and cross-continent move into a new home and a new church along with new friends and new schools. Andrew will be relocating this summer and his last day at Tenth is July 22.

Here’s the full text of Andrew’s letter to our Executive Director, Betty Macleod, to myself, and to Tenth Church:

_______________________________

Dear Ken, Betty and Tenth Church,

I arrived at Tenth Church in 2014 with an amazing sense of God’s faithful provision during a time of transition in the life of my ministry and family. At the time, I had a sense that God was nudging our family from our previous church and into a new season of ministry, so I was sent from that church with their blessing to discern where God was calling us to be.

That step led us to Tenth, even though I thought we were being led to the United States, the country of my birth.

As the position at Tenth was offered to me, Sam Rima (then Executive Pastor) asked me to give Tenth at least three years. Tenth has truly been home for Julia, Ashley, Evan, (and most recently, our foster child E_____) and myself over these past four years. I have felt valued and I have enjoyed working amongst such a talented and diverse team. I have had the privilege of witnessing God’s faithfulness in drawing people to Jesus and seeing lives changed as a result.

The pairing of excellence with the humble dependence on the Spirit in church ministry have been invigorating.

Yet a prayer continued to bubble up - “Lord, how can I be most dangerous for your kingdom?” As I attended to this prayer, I also asked, “Could this not happen for me at Tenth?” For to find another church as fitting and as special as Tenth seemed like an impossibility. On the occasion that ministry opportunities came across my path, no ministry setting could compare to that of Tenth.

In December 2017, I came across a posting for Washington Community Fellowship Church (WCF) in Washington, DC. They were looking for a new Senior Pastor as their Senior Pastor was retiring.

When I looked at their website describing themselves as “a church for all peoples” committed to “personal transformation, authentic community, vibrant worship and social impact,” I was intrigued. In January 2018, I began conversations with WCF to discern whether I might be a fit for their needs and calling. In March, I was presented as a pastoral candidate to the church. In May, they voted 96% in favour to affirm my call as their next Senior Pastor.

It is with a sense of sadness, coupled with a sense of great anticipation for the adventure ahead, that I am tendering my resignation to Tenth Church. I have felt honoured and affirmed at Tenth. I will miss the camaraderie and joy in serving God together with this amazing team. I will miss the Mount Pleasant community that has entrusted me to shepherd them and given me the privilege to journey together with them through tender and sacred seasons of their lives. I will miss working together with such godly and wise leaders such as yourselves, Ken and Betty.

I do not see this as a “farewell" but a “see you again soon.” I will work together with you and the staff team to transition well. I am grateful for your leadership, for Tenth Church and for the privilege of serving (and being changed by) God together with you. Your prayers for my family and I are coveted.

I will continue to remember Tenth in prayer as well and cheer you on from across the continent.

With all my heart,

Andrew