new church life: jan uary/february 2015
“I was certainly influenced by growing up in a minister’s family where we
talked about the Word and the Lord a lot. Having the experience of what life as
a successful pastor could look like gave me a working vision to aim for. I also
started reading the Word as a child and found I loved the insight and peace it
gave me and wanted to share that. This started because I heard a children’s talk
about how if we read the Word we can develop the strength of Samson in our
spirit. This appealed to me a lot!”
He formally made the decision as a late teen as he thought about what life
would look like in various possible careers. “I realized that I would do all that I
wanted to do in any other career before my working years were done, but that
I would find unending challenges and opportunities in being a minister. That
sealed the deal for me.”
He says the biggest impact on how he approaches the ministry is his wife,
Ann (Gladish), whom he married while in Theological School. “I have found
that over time I study the things she is interested in and have learned to become
more gentle and human as I seek to express the things I see her valuing.”
He adds: “Having a chance to put together doctrine to form a big picture
was so exciting to me. I love gathering diverse teachings about a subject and
bringing them together, hopefully in fresh ways. Going to Theological School
was a joy because I had a chance to spend time in that kind of study.” He has
been able to nurture this love in writing books and developing papers for the
clergy.
He looks back on his Theological School candidacy in Glenview as another
formative experience. “I loved seeing a working congregation under a highly
effective pastor (the Rev. Brian Keith), seeing how the doctrine I was learning
could be applied in ways that brought the love within it to the fore.
“I was also excited to be involved with (the Rev.) Grant Schnarr in his
work in the Chicago New Church. This kindled a much stronger love of
evangelization that has been an enduring interest and passion for me.”
Erik was ordained in 1990 and served as an assistant pastor in Glenview
for three years under the Rev. Brian Keith and then the Rev. Eric Carswell.
He loved the opportunity to develop the outreach program, and was also
instrumental in establishing an informal service.
In 1993 he moved with his family to Seattle to help work for the growth
of the church there. “They had had no pastor for a number of years and were
eager to try to grow. We were able to grow from worship attendances in the
teens to the mid-40s over seven years. I learned a lot there and enjoyed the
amazing people in that congregation. We met in an old school building in the
University of Washington part of town, and had many very lively characters
join us for church.”
In 2000 they moved to his hometown of Westville, South Africa. “It was
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