Letter to the Alumni Office

I graduated from the Dunnam Campus (Orlando, FL) of Asbury Theological in May of 2012 although I had completed all my requirements in December of 2011.  I am eternally grateful for the blessings that I received from God during my time on the Dunnam campus.  Asbury’s emphasis on Christian community and spiritual formation helped prepare me for rigors of vocational ministry. Asbury’s emphasis on accountability and collegiality with colleagues in ministry, as well as a focus on spiritual disciplines, have helped me to adhere to Wesley’s three general rules: do no harm, do good, and stay in love with God.

In March of 2012,  three other big events happened. First, I was married to the love of my life, Alesia, on March 25, 2012 in Satellite Beach, Florida.  Secondly, I was licensed as a full-time local pastor.  And finally, I was appointed to First UMC of Gainesville, FL as an Associate Pastor.

I started at First UMC of Gainesville on July 1, 2012 with the Rev. Sara McKinley as Senior Pastor.  Though she was also newly appointed to our church, Rev. McKinley, a Candler alumna (’96), has been a great mentor to me. My ministry at First UMC of Gainesville over the past 2.5 years is three pronged; it has focused on work with the homeless community of downtown Gainesville, adult discipleship, and youth ministry. Additionally, I preach about once a month in our traditional services and twice a month in our contemporary services- services which I helped to start in February of 2014. Lenora Rousseau, who is a current M.Div. student at the Dunnam campus, leads the music for our contemporary service. The major highlights of my first appointment have been the following:

1. Starting a weekly communion service and supper for about an average of 30 poor and homeless folks who seek assistance at the Helping Hands clinic, a partner 501 (c) 3 that rents space on the First UMC of Gainesville campus. My wife, Alesia, who started as administrative assistant at First UMC in October of 2013, has recruited a servant team of 8 individuals who prepare meals with food donated through the Bread for the Mighty food bank in Gainesville. We truly share Christ’s love and his prevenient grace through the spiritual meal of the Eucharist and the physical meal that we serve right after the communion service.

2. Starting a contemporary service in a highly, liturgical church setting that has been worshiping in its present location since 1857. This was done with little push-back or criticism from the congregation.

3. Reshaping the youth and children’s ministries of First UMC of Gainesville, leading to the hire of a new children’s and youth minister as well as a present renovation of the church’s ministry spaces for these programs.

4. Being approved by the Clergy Session of the Florida Annual Conference of The United Methodist Church for the status of Provisional Elder on June of 2014.

5. Leading the adult discipleship programs of First UMC of Gainesville to a growth in average weekly participation from 120 in 2012 to approximately 170 participants at the present moment. Part of this growth has been achieved through offering classes relevant to the present world. In fact, I just finished a class on Christianity and Islam. We even had a UF student who is a Muslim join the class out of a chance meeting I had with him. I think my Asbury education challenged me to think globally about the church and its mission, especially in regard to witnessing in challenging cultural contexts. In fact, I even had to turn to Dr. Tuttle to ask a few questions when presenting material for class. Through the work of the Holy Spirit, this class has led to a blossoming of an interfaith dialogue with a local mosque (masjid) in Gainesville, Florida.

One of the more challenging moments of my ministry was when Alesia and I experienced the loss of our baby boy, David Sergei, due to a stillbirth after 8 months of pregnancy in May of 2014. I give thanks to my clergy brothers and sisters who prayed for Alesia and I during our “dark night of the soul” in the midst of this tragedy. There were many in the Asbury community, including Dr. Tuttle, who reached out to us during that time. First UMC of Gainesville also supported us greatly, and helped us financially to visit Alesia’s family in her native Belarus for three weeks of Sabbath and renewal. Today, I am proud to announce that Alesia is pregnant with a little boy, who we have named Daniel Taylor Averill. Daniel is due on May 7th, and he is growing healthy. We hope he will grow to be a man of wisdom of God.

Academically, after my completion of my studies at Asbury Theological Seminary, I began post-graduate studies at the UF College of Education for a year in organizational leadership. Then, I transferred to Pittsburgh Theological Seminary in January of 2015 to begin a Doctor of Ministry degree with a Parish focus on the campus of Eckerd College in St. Petersburg, Florida. I anticipate that I will complete my doctorate sometime in the Spring of 2018. I believe my time at Asbury Theological Seminary prepared me well for both the challenges of the ordination process in The United Methodist Church and my pursuit of a practical, higher degree in ministry. By God’s grace, I hope to be ordained as an elder in full connection at either the 2017 or 2018 Florida Annual Conference gathering.

I try to stay connected to Asbury Theological Seminary and support the seminary where I can. Rev. Dr. Dan Johnson, senior pastor of Trinity UMC of Gainesville, asked me to escort the Rev. Dr. Sergei Nikolaev of the Moscow United Methodist Seminary in February of 2014 to the Dunnam campus where Dr. Nikolaev preached at chapel and met with a panel of faculty to share the Moscow Seminary’s story.  I also led another group of 3 folks from First United Methodist Church of Gainesville to visit the Dunnam campus in September 2014, where Hector Nieves warmly greeted us and a gave us a tour. It was good to reunite with the Rev. Jose Hernandez, one of the spiritual bedrock’s of the Dunnam Campus, during that visit. Brian Banks, campus representative and student recruiter, paid a visit in October 2014 during his “Asbury On The Road” tour. I was able to connect him with our youth group in the church and our youth leader, a junior at UF, who is now interested in seminary.

Grace and Peace,

David