An Unexpected Journey into Church Work

Brenda Plath is the new principal at St. Peter Lutheran School in Lodi, California. This is the story of her journey into ministry in her own words:

September 30, 2023, changed my family’s life forever. My husband, Grant Plath, son of the late Reverend William “Bill” Plath, fell and suffered a spinal cord injury, resulting in a diagnosis of being a C-5, incomplete quadriplegic. For the past two years, God has continued to bless our family in so many ways! My daily prayers included asking our Heavenly Father, “How can I serve You more?”

Last spring, I was approached by St. Peter’s pastor, Tim Blau, and the school’s Vice Principal, Jessie Billups, and they asked if I would consider applying for the principal position. I kindly said, “No, thank you.” Afterall, I was finishing my 30th year of teaching, having taught at St. Peter’s for the past 24 years, with the last 19 years in 6th grade, my favorite grade. (I worked with amazing teachers during those 19 years!) I only had four more years until retirement, so I was content.

It wasn’t until that night, when I was saying my prayers, that I realized I had just turned God down on His offer to let me serve Him. Panic struck – what was I thinking? I immediately contacted Pastor Blau and Jessie, asking if we could possibly revisit this opportunity. From that moment onward, if St. Peter would have me, I was ready to serve our God with a thankful heart as principal to a school/church where my husband grew up and attended while his dad was the DCE. We were married in this church, have been members for 24 years, and have raised our three sons here. To be able to serve as principal now is, without a doubt, an amazing opportunity. God is so GOOD!