My Dear Brothers and Sisters in Christ:
I greet you all in the precious name of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.
I thank our Creator God, using the words of the Psalmist who said, "Not to us, O LORD, not to us, but to your name give glory, for the sake of your steadfast love and your faithfulness" (Psalm 115:1). God's steadfast love and faithfulness have allowed me to be a servant leader among God’s people in the Greater New Jersey Annual Conference in the last eight years, and now that same love and faithfulness of God has brought me among you to be your servant leader! I am truly humbled to be in your midst, and take it as a great privilege to follow the great Episcopal leaders with whom you have been blessed in your Christian journey.
Bishop Peter Weaver, in his last letter to you, quoted words from St. Paul in his letter in II Corinthians 13:13 as paraphrased from Eugene Peterson, in The Message: "The amazing grace of the Master, Jesus Christ, the extravagant love of God, the intimate friendship of the Holy Spirit, be with you all."
As we start our ministry together with one another, may we pray this prayer every day and may we strive to live out this prayer through our words, actions, and deeds.
I hope to meet and converse with as many of you as possible, as soon as possible, so that we together may discern God's will and plans for our faith journey and so that we may do our best in making disciples for Jesus Christ for the transformation of the world and become a stronger United Methodist presence in our communities, nation, and world. May we make every effort to join one another to claim our vision of the New England Annual Conference: "Transformed by the Holy Spirit, united in trust, we will we boldly proclaim Christ to the world" and make it a reality and let it become a movement in the New England Conference and beyond!
My wife Prema and I are already touched by your warmth and love. We have been serenaded with calls, emails, text messages, home-cooked meals, cards, notes, gifts, flowers, and vegetables. We have been touched by the dedication and hard work of the leaders in making the Episcopal residence ready! While we appreciate all of this with our deepest thanks, we had one more great surprise on Sunday when we attended one of the United Methodist churches. The pastor of the church not only invited me to celebrate with her at the Lord's table but also at the end of the worship service invited Prema and me to come forward and kneel at the altar so that she and others could pray for us laying hands upon us. It really meant a lot to us.
Friends, will you kindly pray, pray, pray, not only for the Bishop and his family, but for each and every one of us so that our faith journey could be truly blessed by God and all of us, along with our communities of faith, may blossom together for the glory of God, as faithful and powerful disciples of Jesus Christ, filled with the power of the Holy Spirit.
Remember, God loves you, and so do I!
In Christ's love,
Bishop Sudarshana Devadhar