Farewell to a friend, blessings on your future

It’s hard for me to accept that I’m losing another great co-worker so soon, but I’m overjoyed--again, by the reason they are moving on.
Kristen moved home to be near her family, and now Josh Batchelor has been called to continue his ministry studies at The Ramp.
Josh is our office manager, along with several other extremely important jobs. He handles the obituaries, the legal notices and the classified ads. He is also the first person to answer the phone and the first person to wait on customers coming through the door.
Josh is also responsible for the website and our photo gallery section. There are LOTS more duties he has also been performing.
I am writing this as if he is still here, because he is. But by the time you read this, he will have moved on.
Josh is an especially special person to me. I adore the gentleman that he is as a friend, also. He is much younger than me, but we connected on a couple different levels during our few months of working together.
Before I list those, I’d like to explain more about his future plans. Josh works for the Man Upstairs... Our Good Lord! Our Creator!
There is no higher power or higher calling than to serve Him and “feed His sheep,” as I like to say.
Josh had already completed his studies at the Ramp School of Ministry before he started working at the Journal Record. He is from Dothan and has lived here six years now.
You may have also met him at his other job at The Creamery, where he will continue to work part time.
Josh is now going back to school at The Ramp in their new Ministry Leadership Program.
I am so proud! Yes, he is young enough to be my son, but he felt more like a younger brother during our time working together.
And now for our two connections...The biggest and best connection was when I was blessed to see Josh perform in “Searching for Christmas” last year.
He was one of the stars of the show and played the part of Jesus. He made a great Jesus. ALL of us in the audience were overwhelmed by his performance, and he received tremendous applause during his curtain call.
The audience also exclaimed in joyful glee and cheers when he returned to the stage near the end of the show for the grand finale. I don’t want to give too much away... The Ramp won’t be producing the play this year, but hopefully you will see it in the future. And if you did get to see it--you know what I’m talking about. He was amazing!
Joshua is also Josh’s full name, and it is an anglicized version of the Hebrew form of Jesus. I feel the Journal Record was greatly blessed to have Josh among our team and now a member of our forever family.
I liked introducing Josh at work (probably too much) as Jesus. I think we just all enjoy bringing the subject of our Savior up any time we can. Of course, I know Josh is not really Jesus. I enjoy watching “The Chosen,” and I know Jonathan Roumie is not Jesus, either.
But...I can still enjoy watching the Word come out of Jesus’ mouth onscreen or onstage and remembering reading those same Words in the Bible. These are actors--yes, but it’s still thrilling to me to hear those Words spoke aloud, too.
I’m not the only one who calls Josh, Jesus. He has other fans who enjoy a kidding comaraderie and being on a first-name basis with an at-times earthly representative of the ONE who gave His all for our salvation!
My other cool connection with Josh occurred during the few times we rode together to deliver newspapers or run other needed errands as part of our jobs or to fill in for others.
Josh would teach me “youthful slang,” and I would share old wives’ sayings and antiquated trivia. It was fun. You might enjoy learning some slang from your kids or grandkids and dispensing some of your wisdom with them as a way to form connections. Or not. It’s up to you.
I also asked Josh to contribute to this column and share some of what he liked best about working at the newspaper and anything he’d like the public to know.

Josh’s personal
message to readers
One of my favorite passages of the Bible is in Song of Songs 2 when the Bridegroom is telling the Shulamite woman that the season has changed, winter is over and the spring has come.
It’s always reassuring in hard seasons of

life to know that hard seasons will end. When the days get cold and dark, knowing that the sun will come out, the birds will sing again and the earth will produce blossoms again can help someone make it another day.
Another consideration, though, is that even beautiful seasons must end because every season ends. In this lifetime, no season is permanent. Everything must be received with an open hand. It’s not as easy to do that as it is to say it.
This time of 11 months at the Journal Record has been a season I will always cherish. One never knew from week to week what would happen, and the excitement fueled my drive to continue this job with excellence.
Not only have I learned a lot, but I have also gained a new appreciation for the newspaper business in general. All of the time and hard work that goes behind each edition is rarely seen by the public eye, and being able to peer behind the curtain to see the inner workings of this newspaper gave me a newfound perspective.
My favorite part would have to be the people. Of course, those I have worked with are wonderful, intelligent and hardworking souls whose aim is to love this town through spreading the news. I will miss each one dearly.
Above that though, the people of Hamilton, working out issues or paying for subscriptions or coming in for a story, show the heart of Hamilton, who the town is and gave me more understanding of a place I love.
Though there will be more opportunities to connect with the people of this town, I am going to miss the constant open door I had through this job.
As I go into my next season as a student at Ramp University, I am taking strides with a bittersweet feeling in my heart. I know this next step is what I am called to do. However, I hate leaving this job behind.
There may be another day I get to step foot back into the Journal Record as an employee, who knows? Until then, I am thankful as I close the chapter on a great season. Now to the next.

In conclusion
I love what Josh wrote for our readers and what he said about us. We will truly miss him and hope he will stop by to visit often.
Onward, Christian Soldier! Blessings, strength and guidance we pray for you as you proceed on your journey along a new path. To God Be The Glory!
With love, Your JR Teammates!