After six years at Sylvan Lake Seventh-Day Adventist Church Pastor Bill Spangler is retiring.
Spangler first began his pastoring in 1977 out in Nova Scotia with the journey bringing him to Prince Edward Island, New Brunswick and British Columbia before landing in Alberta.
“I can’t believe that I’m this old,” joked Spangler. “You just never think that you’re going to get here.”
He says he feels blessed for the rich life experience being a pastor has given him.
“I feel thankful for the many opportunities to meet people and see people and help in different situations, some not so good, some very broken, and some very successful and just be with people,” Spangler said.
What he will miss the most, he says, will be preaching and having the opportunity to share the word of God with people.
Spangler added he loves the teaching aspect of preaching.
“Nothing was more satisfying to me than to teach someone who didn’t know anything about the Bible, they were just getting to know God, new to the journey,” he explained.
“That was my favourite thing of all things just let me tell you about the Bible, let me tell you about the story, let me tell you about God, let me tell you about Jesus, and have people awaken to stuff that was the most satisfying thing to me of anything that I did.”
Spangler will be preaching his farewell sermon on Aug. 15 with the new pastor starting a couple days later.
He says he feels good about handing over a healthy congregation and he is excited to see what new leadership brings to them.
“I hope that the congregation would remember me as a pastor who kept them intrigued or fascinated with the word of God and with who he is and that my time here left them with a stronger relationship with God,” Spangler said.
He says tying a bow on this chapter of his life is bittersweet, but he is looking forward to the what now.
As of now Spangler sees his retirement including work as a trained mediator and life coach, golf and travel.
During his time as a pastor in Sylvan Lake he says he has enjoyed being part of the ministerial group and the people in the community he has met along the way, adding he wants to stay involved in the congregation and support the new pastor.