We can't not do this!

He said to me, "Kelly and I can't not do this." And that began a relationship that has impacted my life and the life of the Church in the city.

Brian Gowan resigned from the Mission Houston staff last week to take an assignment on the pastoral staff at Grace Community Church where Steve Riggle is the Senior Pastor. This transition has caused me to remember and to celebrate the lives of Brian and Kelly Gowan.

I met Brian at the first Pastors Prayer Summit. We connected immediately. He was a Chaplain at Methodist Hospital and I was the Executive Director of Union Baptist Association (UBA). Little did we know that God was doing something in both of us that would change our lives.

It was more than a year later when I resigned from UBA to become the founding Executive Director for Mission Houston. When that became public information, Brian came to me and said something like this. "Kelly and I have been praying and we feel like God has been preparing us all of our lives for this moment. In whatever way we can, we want to serve with you in this movement of God." I responded. "Brian, I don't even know how my salary is going to be paid in this effort. There certainly is no money to pay an additional person."

Ever the gentleman, Brian responded respectfully and went away prayerfully. About three months later, he came back and the famous "Kelly and I can't not do this" remark became a part of our history and our culture. He went on to say, "This matters so much that we will sacrifice what we must. We'll down size. We'll sell stuff. But, we can't not do this.

I think that was nine years ago. Over that time Brian has missed numerous pay checks with never a complaint, been instrumental in organizing and mobilizing the prayer leaders in the city, and become a highly effective mobilizer of volunteer teams in CSAs in the southwest part of the city. The Greater Houston area has experienced more and more unified prayer because Brian and Kelly Gowan have been serving among us. When I think of the dozen or so most influential leaders of The Church in The City, Brian is high on that list.

His kids have grown up during his tenure with Mission Houston. Blair, their son, graduated from high school this week. Haley will graduate next year despite a nearly decade long battle with a significant illness.

Now Brian and Kelly turn their attention to a major assignment at a key church in the Houston that has been instrumental in advancing the prayer movement in our city. We are saddened by their leaving and grateful for their lives and their service with Mission Houston. We celebrate that God allowed the grace of keeping them in the Houston area.

Blessings Brian, Kelly, Blair, and Haley. We celebrate your lives and give thanks to God.