Published March 31, 2021 by in
Celebrating Cindy J!
Lauren Shirley, Communications Director
Hi, I’m Lauren, and like a lot of kids around First Methodist Carrollton the past three decades or so, I was born into the Cindy J Fan Club. But, I can one-up most of the other members. Not only can I say I’ve known Cindy Johnston my whole life, but she’s also my godmother. And I think I’m old enough now that I can also call her friend. One of the greatest privileges of working on staff here the past nine years has been getting to serve Jesus alongside Cindy J.
I grew up thinking that it was normal for women to go to seminary and work in all kinds of ministry. Cindy J was a big part of that for me. As I’ve gotten older, I’ve encountered a lot of people who didn’t have the same models of women in ministry that we’ve had here – and it’s a gift I thank God for.
We live in an age that elevates flashy over faithful. Look around and it’s not hard to find kids ministries with more hype or women’s events with more swag. But leaders who lay down their lives for the Church, day after day, week after week, year after year, decade after decade – and finish well – are a lot harder to find. Cindy J has been faithful, and she has helped hold this church together in some dark days, not to mention 30+ years of camps and retreats and thousands of hours of VBS prep. I’m tired just thinking about it!
So as Cindy transitions into a new phase of life, retired from an office but not from the Kingdom, we need to honor her well. And we’re throwing a party outside on Sunday, April 18 at 5 p.m. We’ll also have a money tree to bless Cindy and notecards available for you to let her know how she’s impacted you over the years.
Cambodia Update
Chiv made it to Battambang province, and he’s staying at the O-khmom church right now. They aren’t allowed to gather in groups, so they’re building a school building next to the church. Pray for the the building process to go smoothly and for Chiv to have wisdom on how to do ministry with the restrictions.
