The Encouragement of Knowing Pastor Tim & Heather Pike

  I have known Pastor Tim and Heather for quite a few years now, but only within the last two years at an intimate level. Tonight I had the joy of watching Tim receive his ordination, it was amazingly sweet knowing his journey and the journey of his family. God has truly blessed my family and my heart with their friendship. The Pike's are a family of gentleness, very tender hearted and caring. It is difficult to spend time with either of them and not feel Christ beaming my heart.

  Tim is a Michigan State graduate and was working at The Flint Journal prior to becoming the youth Pastor at New Life Christian Fellowship. His journey has been remarkable. He began by attending every spiritual event our church had to offer, pausing work to participate in the Bible studies Pastor hosts at the church during the day, engaging in the young adult sunday school classes, and soaking in every avenue of information about God. Little did I know that this man ravenous for the Word of God and to know Jesus in a powerful way was just the beginning, Tim would continue to aspire and search for God's will over his life daily, living obedient to what God has called him to in each season. Eventually God opened the door for Tim to become the youth pastor at New Life, Tim accepted, taking a pay cut to enter into the church ministry atmosphere. As far as I know at this time he began taking classes to advance his credentials in the pastoral world. Each level of certification requires a specific amount of classes followed by testing and interviews. Of course Tim flourished as God honored his humble obedience. He has been working as the youth pastor for almost five years, this to me is unfathomable! Youth ministry could possibly be the hardest area to press into. Youth are constantly distracted by thousands of things and to be quite frank, they can be a bit obtuse. But week after week Tim faithfully teaches and loves these kids. He has not drawn back in the face of difficulty or from not seeing the type of results one would hope. He has over and over again invested at a costly, and sometimes painful level. Tim has demonstrated to me as a youth pastor a faithfulness I haven't yet grasped. His commitment to keep fighting for these youth in prayer and all manner of events has truly shown me what "steady on" means. 

The amazing thing for me to watch has been, a man determined to live in obedience to God.

Words that come to mind to describe Pastor Tim;

Patient, long suffering, kind, gentle spirit, fun, wise and faithful.

  Heather was working at General Motors as a Financial Analyst and was making more money each year than Tim ever has. She also is a graduate from Michigan State, and immediately found success as a working businesswoman. Soon after the birth of their first child Heather decided she would rather trade in her career for the joy of raising children. In my opinion, any woman who quits working to be at home instructing and loving her children has chosen the better portion. It is the difficult road of hardship and mundane, it means not having the money for elaborate vacations or financial ease through life's storms. It is the trading in of worldly gain for the eternal gain of raising Godly children that know their mothers love in a deep way, and will come to know the love of Christ through her demonstration of it. Heather has sacrificed greatly to be first and fore-mostly, a mom. This trading in of personal gain for a life of hard work and suffering has inspired me to love deeper and to serve more. She works harder now than ever previously. Heather is a great model for any mom looking for answers. Her support of Pastor Tim and care for her family is so refreshing and good for the soul to see. 

Heather innately will cause a smile on anyones face she contacts.

Words to describe Heather;

Servant, loving, tender-hearted, strong, joyful and humble.

Be blessed Pike's as you have blessed me. You both make God smile with your beautiful hearts.