My name is Garrett Watkins. I have been part of Sovereign Grace Church in Atlanta, Georgia since I was 3 years old. I have grown up in the church and truly have blessed by the gospel-centered preaching that never ceases to leave me wanting more.

God has been so kind to our church. Some of my fondest memories are of Celebration conferences and church picnics. What I remember the most is the joyful serving, the fellowship and of course the wonderful dorm rooms at Liberty!

I was saved at an earlier age, but it didn’t become real to me until last summer when I went to Metro Life Church in Orlando, FL for a conference. There, God gave me a more profound love for the world-altering truth of the Gospel.

God is so good. Sovereign Grace Ministries is such a blessing to me. I am honored to be a part of it. It is so rare to find such a humble (and reformed) organization that is so dedicated to fellowship, worship and evangelism. God is at work in Sovereign Grace Ministries, and I absolutely can not wait to the plans He has for us in the future! God is so good.

I have often done this privately one on one, but today I want to declare my gratitude to the Leadership of Metro Life Church publicly for all to see!  To save space I have put them in bullet form, but if I had the time there are stories behind each bullet – stories of God’s faithfulness to me through the faithful sacrifice of these men.

I am grateful:

-  to have been a part of Metro Life Church for 25 years.
-  to Benny for teaching me how deep the Word of God is, and the Truths waiting to be discovered through study.
- to Danny for teaching me how to be honest and real.  We set out to discover New Testament reality 25 years ago and recently discovered it’s the Gospel!  Amazing!
- to Danny for the many times he has taken me with him through his teaching to discover a new way of seeing the Truth.  I love those moments when I finally “get it”.
- to Benny for teaching me about mortifying sin.  I had no idea what this looked like in daily life until he helped clarify this – it changed my life!
- to Mike for demonstrating passion for God, Prayer and the Prophetic.  His encouragement has pushed me forward in areas I would have ignored.
- to Danny for demonstrating what a God-glorifying marriage looks like and for being available to help us “go and do likewise”.
- to Benny for wisdom and discernment that has helped me identify blind spots in my heart bringing freedom and growth.
- to Benny and Danny for challenging me when I was listening to myself instead of listening to the Truth.
- to all of them – the men of our Leadership Team – for helping us raise our children, train our children and have faith for our children.
- for men who are trustworthy.
- for men who listen to God. Although not perfect, I know they are listening to God and He will continue to lead this church – His church – as a result.
- for men who are approachable.
- for men who are teachable.
- for men who are accountable – not because they have to be, but because they want to be.
- for men who love God more than the applause of men.
- for men who carry us deeply in their hearts with great affection.
- for men willing to stay the course no matter how hard the winds blow.
- for men who are faithful and willing to do the hard things when it comes to their own lives and the life of the church.
- this journey of Christianity following behind Danny, Benny, Mike, and now Jesse and Aaron.
- to God for allowing us to be a part of what He’s doing at Metro Life Church and also in Sovereign Grace Ministries worldwide.

What's your letter?

I shudder to think where I would be today without the influence of these men in my life.  I am amazed at God’s kindness to me!  I love this church – the good, the bad and the ugly!  Jesus is the head and it’s for His glory I am working hard to do my part to see it succeed.  I have learned that I am a part of the big picture – it may be a small part, but I must be faithful to do it nonetheless.  I learned this through the preaching of God’s Word.  I’ve learned about Grace, The Kingdom of God, Critical Judgments vs. Charitable Judgments, Pride and Humility, What a godly marriage looks like, what godly parenting looks like, what my responsibilities are and what responsibilities are God’s.  I’ve made friendships here that are built on so much more than common interests.  In fact most of my friends are not like me at – they think differently which helps me change in areas I wouldn’t see left to my own observations.  We have friends spread all over the country who were sent out on church plants as a result of the envisioning of Danny Jones.  He has inspired me to believe God is at work in our church spreading His Kingdom among us, which, by the way, is another man whose teaching changed my thinking and how I live as a result:  Wayne Brooks taught me the meaning of God’s kingdom coming – it’s “the rule and reign of Christ” in any particular situation.  When I pray for Sovereign Grace Ministries and the pastors who lead them, this is my prayer:

“Thy Kingdom come, Thy will be done on earth as it is in Heaven.  Lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil.”

Any success we have is only because of Christ and His Kingdom coming and ruling among us.  Yet God uses jars of clay; thank you Danny, Benny, Mike and now, Jesse and Aaron, for your willingness to be used by God and for the way you lay your lives down for us.  The sacrifices you make are many and greatly appreciated.  I am one of those who will stand before God on that day and testify of the good works you have done in His name.  You haven’t buried your talent – you have multiplied them 100 fold, and I have been the grateful recipient of those talents.  Not only that, but you’ve taught me to go and do likewise!

May God strengthen your faith and resolve by my words.

I am your grateful friend,

Debi Walter

Hello.  My name is Eric Morgan, and this is my open letter regarding two men, two pastors, who have greatly affected and encouraged my walk with God and ultimately my outlook on life.

There is an old hymn which states the following lyrics: “Tears unavailing, no merit had I/Mercy had saved me, or else I must die/Sin had alarmed me, fearing God’s face/Only a sinner, saved by grace.” Although I am aware that these lyrics should be joyfully sung by all believers, they hold a special meaning to my heart.  I am a man who has made many mistakes, sinned more times than I dare think about, and flagrantly rebelled against the one whom I plead to have mercy on me.  The man who knows the most detail about my struggles and sin, outside of my father, is also the man who has most consistently pointed me to the gospel of grace: Benny Phillips, a pastor at Metro Life Church.

I attended Metro from the age of 5 until i was 19 years old.  Never once did I go into Benny’s office.  Never once did we have an “official” counseling session.  However, because his son, Jake, is one of my closest friends, I had the unique opportunity of spending quite a bit of time when he wasn’t at work, when he wasn’t doing his job per se, but was simply being my friend.  I now realize after nights spent confessing sin at 2 in the morning after watching awesome movies, the chats at Burger King after high school basketball games, even the summer days spiking on Benny’s head while playing pool volleyball in his pool, that for Benny, and many other pastors that I know, this isn’t a job.  This isn’t a paycheck.  This is their life.  This is their passion.  Benny has been such an example of the true meanings of forgiveness and grace time and time again, and he’s done it not just because he’s a pastor, but because he cares for my soul.  Because he simply wants me to love my Savior more.  Counsel doesn’t have to be given in an office, or maybe, every once in a while, at a Starbucks.  It can be given at the beach, or in a hot tub, or after the Celtics schnarckle the Magic.  That’s what Benny has taught me, and hes done so by sharing his wisdom and love for me.

I remember a specific time where I was at the Phillips’ home to hangout with Jake and spend the night. However lurking in the back of my mind was something I needed to confess to Benny and his wife, Sheree. I had sinned against them in the form of aiding and actually quite directly encouraging their son to join me in a particular form of sin.  We were sitting in their living room, catching up and to my surprise Mrs. Phillips said ‘Eric, Are you doing ok? There seems to be something troubling you.’ I said, ‘Wow, I’m going to pretend like you didn’t just read my mind, and give credit to the Lord for telling me “now is the time!” I proceeded to confess to them and began to become emotional.  When I was done stating the offenses that I had laid firstly upon our Lord and Savior, but secondly against the two of them, Benny said to me, paraphrased (in his drawn out, rather funny accent with a hint of Alabama), ‘Son, your forgiven! We definitely forgive you and more importantly your savior Jesus Christ forgives you! Please feel no condemnation for your sin because we don’t wish that on you and neither does your Savior!’

I was appalled. Here I was, cowering behind my sin and unable to muster up the courage to confess to them, of fear of what they might think of me, and their immediate response was one of grace! It dawned on me, just because Benny is a pastor does not mean he is more covered in Christ’s righteousness than I am, or more acceptable to God.  He does, however, have an understanding of grace that I did not have. I think, among many other responsibilities, it is a pastor’s job to help their flock understand the nature of God, along with His immeasurable qualities and virtues.  In my case Benny helped me understand Grace more fully! I was so blessed by that time! They proceeded to pray for me and our conversation went into the early hours of the morning! I felt so cared for and so loved, and I was blown away. I’m a punk 21 year old kid, yet Benny and Sheree put aside their desire for sleep, or desire to do anything other than listen to the problems of this kid, and on the contrary took time to really listen and love me enough to spend time with me. I was blown away and will forever remember that night, and will forever be indebted to Mr. and Mrs. Phillips for the impact that they have had on my life.

Recently the Lord had called me to move to Grace Church where I quickly was reacquainted with David Traugott, someone I have known for a very long time but never really had any in depth conversations, or any real friendship.

The reason I want to honor David Traugott, my current pastor at Grace Church, is because of how seriously he takes counseling me.  David doesn’t just spout out advice gleaned from experience; he fears God enough to pour over his word, to study Scripture and to pray for wisdom so that the counsel and help he gives me is from the Word of God, and not from the wisdom of men.  I want to honor him for consistently helping me mortify my sin and shore up my convictions, for not just telling me what I want to hear, but what I need to hear. As skeptical as I was in my transition to Grace Church I quickly found the same love and care from David and Kelly Traugott that I had previously received from Benny and Sheree. David has challenged me, corrected me, listened to me, and cared for me in a way only parallel to that of my own parents! He has invested his time and resources in me continually because he realizes one of his roles as a pastor is to care for his congregation.  While Benny showed me that being a pastor is not just a job, but a lifestyle, David has shown me how seriously and how dedicated he, and I’m sure many others, are to obeying God in their role as pastor.

Though there are many differences between the Phillips and Traugotts I.E. David is in his 30’s Benny is about one step away from the grave (or maybe he just looks that way on the basketball court), David has been a pastor for 10 years, Benny for 30, but the common theme of both of these men, that have impacted my life is their care and love for me! They both exemplify the true role of a pastor to me in that they humbly, but consistently care for the souls of their church.

Benny Phillips and David Traugott, and many others beside, are truly worthy of double honor.  I thank God for them, and I hope my encouragement of them encourages you.  Let us praise Christ as we point out the ways that He is working in our leaders. These men are by no means perfect and they would be the first ones to attest to that statement, but our Savior who died for us is most certainly spotless!!! My prayer for whomever reads this is to be encouraged by the Lord’s work in the lives of the pastors that lay their lives down for people (sinners) like me and you.  As that same hymn also states, “This is my story, to God be the glory!”

Sorry about the long wait folks! We posted a grand total of two times and then took a hiatus. Hopefully that won’t be a theme, but I have been fairly busy with my business and made a trip to Louisiana for some training, and I think Tony tried swimming in the gulf and drowned in oil.  Just kidding, I’m sure he’s most likely alive.

Anyways we have a story we’ll be posting tomorrow and another coming shortly after that so stay tuned and keep your eyes opened tomorrow.

Only a couple of days after the first story, and we have reached 100 fans/members of our Facebook page! If you are not yet a fan, you should be. If you are not on Facebook at all…that’s impressive actually.

If this is your first visit we encourage you to read Tony’s story. Also we have a little explanation of what we are doing that you can check out. But basically we want stories. We want to bless and encourage our leaders by sharing stories of how they have affected our lives through their ministry. So send them in to story@sgmletters.com.

We should be posting another here shortly, so stay tuned. And in the meantime, become a fan. You can also follow us on twitter.

SGM Letters

Hey Folks,

This is my story:

I’m 20 years old, I live in Clearwater, Florida and I am currently studying to be a Physical Therapist Assistant out of St. Petersburg College. I’ve been attending Gulf Coast Community Church here locally for going on 13 years under the leadership of pastors Jerry Cisar and Daryn Kinney. It is safe to say that in my life no one has been more instrumental in my walk with the Lord than Daryn Kinney. Since becoming a pastor at our church he has always been a major part of my life providing accountability, council, correction and most importantly he has been a friend. I remember the first time I met Daryn when he first came home from the PC; we had a time of prayer after church for those experiencing a sense of dryness in their relationship with God. I went up and Daryn prayed for me reading a verse out of Deuteronomy that I’ll never forget. Deut. 1:30-31,

“The LORD your God, who is going before you, will fight for you, as he did for you in Egypt, before your very eyes, ³¹ and in the desert. There you saw how the LORD your God carried you, as a father carries his son, all the way you went until you reached this place.”

He reminded me that even when I don’t “feel” like God is around or active in my life that the truth of the matter is God is always fighting for me and carrying me as His son. Now I grew up in the church, went to Sunday School every week and if I recall correctly I was feared in the sword drills arena. Slowly though in my life I began to be less and less concerned about my walk with the Lord. I never stopped going to church or serving there in various ways, but it began to be a show. I knew what to do and say to “look” like a Christian yet I was not living a life marked by pursuing holiness.

My senior year of High School I really started to live a double life. I was going to parties and drinking on the weekends while showing up to church on Sunday acting like nothing was going on. I began to become callous to my sin. I had no real passion for the Lord, I was selfishly more concerned with having fun than pursuing God. Slowly, though, God began to work on my heart using my obedience in going to church, even though it was out of a selfish desire to maintain my appearance as a good Christian. I was being convicted through messages that Jerry and Daryn were preaching, I knew what I was doing was wrong but didn’t want to confess sin fearing how others would think of me especially Daryn whose wisdom and guidance I had begun to ignore even though he stayed faithful to me through all this. One day, while I was at work, something came over me and I felt a strong sense that I needed to confess how I had been living to Daryn and my Mom. I was terrified of what that meant but I knew that it would set me free from the condemnation had been feeling.

So I met with Daryn one afternoon and laid out for him all the things I had been doing, ways I had been deceiving others and confessed a desire to change. I still get emotional when I think of that interaction, I expected Daryn to get mad saying something like, “How could you?!” but he didn’t. He was so kind to me, expressing his forgiveness and really driving home that God has forgiven me and I didn’t have to work for that forgiveness, Christ had already done that. My life has changed significantly since then. I am more aware of God’s grace in my life and strive to live for Him constantly. I fail, a lot but his forgiveness is there for those to embrace it. Now Daryn played a large part in helping me see my sin rightly and helping me change but I dont pretend that he is perfect. I don’t try to make him out to be some saint that has all the answers. What he and Jerry are though, are men appointed by God to care for me and the others in my church. I am so grateful for them and the gift they have been to me over the years.

Anyway that’s the abridged version of my story. I hope that as you read this you began to consider the leaders in your own church and how God has used them to affect you, as you do that I ask that you write those thoughts down and send them to us. Lets rejoice together in how God has worked in our lives through these men.

To Him be all the glory, honor and praise.

Tony

Welcome to sgmletters.com. Let us tell you a little bit about what this site is about; its purpose, structure, and how you can participate.

We are members of churches that belong to Sovereign Grace Ministries. You can visit SGM’s website to learn all about them, but basically it’s a family of churches related by common doctrine (reformed and continuationist) and a desire to plant churches and serve with training, music, books, conferences etc. It’s very relational in the way it operates, which is why it is called a family of churches, rather than a denomination. (This info was for the three of you who are not already in SGM that will stumble across this site.)

This website was born out of a desire to obey and honor Scripture’s instruction to honor our leaders and to be a joy to them. 1 Tim 5:17 says “The elders who direct the affairs of the church well are worthy of double honor, especially those whose work is preaching and teaching.” Hebrews 13:17 further instructs us to “Obey your leaders and submit to their authority. They keep watch over you as men who must give an account. Obey them so that their work will be a joy, not a burden, for that would be of no advantage to you.”

These simple comments by the writers of Scripture, inspired by the Holy Spirit, can be easy to forget. In this day and age we can have instant and easy access to the preaching and teaching of a limitless supply of leaders. Just click a few buttons and you can listen to John Piper’s latest sermon on justification. Or you can go to a conference and hear Al Mohler wax eloquent about the Church’s role in society. We can get caught up in honoring and esteeming the superstars of Christianity (well, in our circles, the superstars of reformed evangelicalism) and lose sight of the fact that God has placed us in a particular local church for a specific reason and that, in fulfilling whatever our God-given role is, we are to be a joy to our leaders. Our local leaders, those who dedicate their lives to serving us by preaching and teaching and directing the affairs of our church, are worthy of honor. Does that sound strange to you? Isn’t God the only one worthy of honor? Yes, in a way. But one of the ways He is glorified is when we honor each other, because in honoring each other we are really saying “Look at the grace of God in that person.” Giving honor to a man, in this case specifically a pastor, does not diminish the honor that we give God. Scripture is clear that on the contrary, God’s glory is enhanced when we honor others for the work God has done in them.

Our pastors are very good at honoring other people, and each other. They are not as good at letting us honor them. At least publicly. So we decided to take advantage of the fact that the internet provides a public forum where we can say whatever we want and use it to tell stories of how they have affected our lives to the glory of God. SGM has been around for around 25 years (with various names), and its leaders have touched the lives of thousands of folks. We wanted to provide an opportunity for folks to tell those stories. We thought it would be a great way to use technology to practice 1 Tim 5 and Hebrews 13, and hopefully be an encouragement to folks. We want everyone to participate. Just email your story to story@sgmletters.com, and we’ll get it posted to the site. We also understand there will be those who can’t tell their stories for various reasons. The very nature of what pastors do means that some of the best stories will never be told publicly. But there are plenty that can be told. Let your SGM friends know about this website so that they can jump in. Feel free to comment on other stories, or anything we may post in between stories. We have no desire to idolize our leaders, and would hope everyone understands that we know our pastors are sinners, that they mess up at times, and that they aren’t a special class of Christian. If you have any questions about the legitimacy of running a site that intends to glorify God by obeying Scripture through honoring and being a joy to our leaders than feel free to email anyone of us.

Again, welcome to SGM Letters, and we hope you enjoy and are encouraged by reading stories of God’s grace as shown through the lives of the pastors of Sovereign Grace Ministries.

Nathan Ecelbarger and Tony DeSantis