SLS 21RS-113 ORIGINAL
2021 Regular Session
SENATE CONCURRENT RESOL UTION NO. 1
BY SENATOR PEACOCK
COMMENDATIONS. Commends Dr. R. Pat Day upon his retirement after twenty-seven
years of outstanding pastoral leadership.
1 A CONCURRENT RESOL UTION
2 To commend Dr. R. Pat Day, senior pastor, of First United Methodist Church in Shreveport,
3 Louisiana, upon his retirement after twenty-seven years of faithful service and
4 inspiring leadership.
5 WHEREAS, First United Methodist Church in Shreveport, Louisiana, was founded
6 in 1845; and
7 WHEREAS, through a quarter of a century, First United Methodist Church's
8 worshiping community has grown greatly under Dr. Day's pastoral leadership; and
9 WHEREAS, while Dr. Day has made a lasting impact through his sermons, he has
10 also officiated numerous weddings, baptized and confirmed many children, comforted his
11 flock in the hospital and at funerals through which his longstanding consistency and service
12 served as an extraordinary blessing to his congregation and many more; and
13 WHEREAS, under Dr. Day's leadership, the First United Methodist Church's budget
14 has more than tripled in size during his twenty-seven year tenure, from $1.5 million to $5
15 million, due to membership and stewardship commitments; and
16 WHEREAS, the First United Methodist Church campus has greatly increased in size
17 through three significant capital campaigns (1996, 2003, 2007) and provides a beacon of
18 hope and light in the midst of downtown Shreveport which he greatly enhanced; and
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1 WHEREAS, Dr. Day created leadership seminars and opportunities for personal
2 growth for members of First United Methodist Church and the Shreveport-Bossier
3 communities at-large, and he plans to continue to be involved in leadership seminars in
4 Texas during his retirement; and
5 WHEREAS, Dr. Day, in 2010, announced from the pulpit that the church would pour
6 resources into four major areas of ministry: Small Groups, Discipleship, Missions, and
7 Leadership, and hundreds of members have connected in small groups and deepened their
8 relationships with Christ; have sowed the fruits of their faith by serving not only in
9 Shreveport, but all around the globe, serving as leaders in their homes, community, state, and
10 world; and
11 WHEREAS, Dr. Day is gifted with unprecedented vision; he wholeheartedly prayed
12 for First United Methodist Church to devote $1 million yearly toward local and global
13 missions and even more importantly; however, was the change of mindset on how to move
14 forward with missions; and
15 WHEREAS, Dr. Day led the charge away from transactional missions to
16 transformational relationships by encouraging the mission's leaders to intentionally move
17 away from doing projects for people, and instead meet the holistic needs of those with whom
18 First United Methodist partners in ministry, and as a result, First United Methodist Church
19 is known locally, nationally, and internationally for servant leadership and the ministry of
20 presence and compassion; and
21 WHEREAS, Dr. Day consistently places God's direction and excellence above any
22 particular special interests, he continually invests in developing lay and staff leadership, who
23 turn their gifts and talents back into making First United Methodist Church great; and
24 WHEREAS, numerous pastors currently leading large thriving Methodist churches
25 developed as associate pastors at First United Methodist Church during Dr. Day's
26 twenty-seven years; and
27 WHEREAS, from the pulpit, Dr. Day shares the message of hope and optimism of
28 a life rooted in the Gospel of Jesus Christ, and in a world filled with depressing headlines
29 and daily changes, his ever-relevant message of the Gospel delivers hope to those listening
30 in the pews, on the radio through a morning message on KEEL, or through the television;
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1 and
2 WHEREAS, more than anything else, Dr. Day possesses a passionate heart for God,
3 he always places God in the lead and follows Him which shows every Sunday morning in
4 his powerful sermons and each day in his leadership of the church.
5 THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED that the Legislature of Louisiana does, upon his
6 retirement, hereby recognize and appreciate Dr. R. Pat Day's, senior pastor of First United
7 Methodist Church in Shreveport, Louisiana, dedication, commitment, great leadership,
8 accomplishments, and achievements which are symbolic of his God given ministry to serve
9 his flock, community, and the citizens of Louisiana.
10 BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that a copy of this Resolution be transmitted to
11 Dr. R. Pat Day.
The original instrument and the following digest, which constitutes no part
of the legislative instrument, were prepared by Ann S. Brown.
DIGEST
SCR 1 Original 2021 Regular Session Peacock
Commends Dr. R. Pat Day upon his retirement after 27 years of faithful service and inspiring
leadership at First United Methodist Church in Shreveport, La.
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