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i’ve been wanting to blog for a long time.  i just keep struggling about what i want to write about.

i’ve had this blog for about 6 months but i have been very inconsistent.  heck, inconsistency seems to be one of the things i’m good at.  my spiritual life is very much the same way.  sure there are moments when  i am close to God, when i’m “spiritual”.  however,  i’d have to say that on the whole, it seems much more like i fail to grasp what Jesus is trying to teach me most of the time.

carving out time to spend with Jesus is one of the hardest things for me (as it is for a lot of us…).  so i figured i might let these two areas of my life intersect for a while.

i’m not naive enough to think writing will help me clean up my spiritual life or even make my walk more consistent, but maybe this experience will help me learn a little…

(photo by *sean via flickr)

Tags: christian walk, church, devotion, HoM, youth ministry

recently, a friend gave me some good advice.  he said, “enjoy (your kids) while they are young.”  he was implying that as they get older they grow more mischievous.

i was thinking about that yesterday afternoon while we were outside.  our daughter looked up @ the sky and said, “ooooh look God painted that.  He sure is a good painter.”  she was right.  God had given us a beautiful sunset filled with pinks, purples and oranges which she promptly pointed out.  although the sunset was beautiful, hearing her acknowledgement of God’s work around her seemed to make the sunset pale in comparison.  at least to me.

don’t get me wrong, we have no illusions that she is perfect.  she’s constantly proving that she is part of the fallen race of man.  it’s just that the innocence is so overwhelming. 

often i think of my own walk in a similar way.  when i’m close to Christ, my faith is more childlike.  somehow more innocent.  then during those times when i’m further away, i become more mischievous i guess kind of like those kids down the street…

Tags: beauty, church, ministry, sunset

is the day. October 11, 2009. my first day @ Heart of Mesa. i am very excited to jump in and get to know these students.

up till now i’ve had a few people that i REALLY know with me every time i’ve met with the students. today some of those people are out of town (note to self: fall break might not be the best time to start a new ministry.) today two of those people will be gone. today, there will only be one student that i’ve known for more than a year. almost everyone else has been an acquaintance if i knew them at all.

there are so many possibilities just waiting in this group. so many things i want to get done.

i pray the gang over @ CVBC has a good sunday and are ready to see what the Lord has for them today. danyelle, doug, bruce, theresa are all super terrific leaders and i know that God has uniquely gifted them and made them able for such a transition.

today is a good day. God gave us this day so that we might worship Him! everyone have a great sunday.

Tags: church, HoM, ministry, transition

well, tomorrow’s my last day as youth pastor @ cvbc.  feels weird. 

i’m really sad to be closing this chapter but also very excited to for the next.  when i look at the two churches, i see so many differences.  makes me wonder if i’m equipped for hom.  i know i’m probably not equipped, but Jesus is & He’s called me to hom so there is a great deal of excitement.

someone else is teaching tomorrow; that’s a relief.  i don’t have to try to focus on much other than worship.  that will be nice.

looking forward there is so much i’m getting ready to do. over the new few weeks i plan to work through my view of where the ministry currently sits & begin praying about how to advance things from here.

for now, i need to get a little rest & spend some time in prayer so i’m ready to face tomorrow.  i’m sure glad it’s all in God’s hands & not mine.

Tags: church, ministry, resignation, transition, youth ministry

today was one of hardest days of my life.  i had to tell my old church that it was time to leave.  this was a very new experience for me.  i searched the web and old books from seminary but really there wasn’t much help in either place.  secular websites offered even less help.  quitting a ministry job is very different than quitting most other jobs.  when you are

“living life together” how do you tell your closest friends that it’s time for your friendship to change.   i talked to several pastors who didn’t have any help for me either.

i knew that i wanted to control how the information got out.  my concern was that the rumor mill would take over and my true reasoning would be lost.  i also did not want to drop a “bomb” on them and completely surprise them.

i told the senior pastor and he did not have a lot of help either.  he has only served in a few churches during his ministry.  he has been the pastor at my church for almost 25 years.  he was supportive but did not have a ton of advice.

late in the week i sent an email to parents asking them to join their students in bible study today.  i wrote the email in hopes that many would read between the lines.  and many did just that.   then today i did a short object lesson which filled enough time so that any stragglers had time to make it in.  then about 30 minutes in i shared all that was on my heart.  it was so nice to just be open and transparent.  after all, these people have been in our lives for 4 1/2 years.

the nice thing, something my pastor pointed out, was that God is calling us away at one of the best possible times.  there are no major issues facing the group.  i’m not in any conflict with any parents or students.  the ministry is pretty healthy.  that is making this whole thing a lot easier.

so after sharing with the students and parents during bible study, i formally read the resignation letter at the end of the worship service (that’s when we do announcements).

God has been so graceful to us during this whole time.  today was no different.  there were some emotional moments and it was very difficult but we felt loved and supported by the church.  there are a lot of relationships that we want to maintain & are excited to see how God is going to move in this church.

still i’m sitting here tonight, somewhat broken hearted.  already missing so many people even though i’ll be around the next several weeks.

Tags: church, ministry, pastor, resignation, transition

2 yr old's view of the outside world.

moving from one ministry to another is never easy.  this is something that all pastors must face at some point in their lives.  really, it’s something that all Christians face.

that’s where i’m at.  i feel like my little girl looking out of our gate at the outside world.  waiting for that gate to open.

i have formally accepted a position at a new church, but haven’t told everyone at the old church that i’m leaving.  the pastor and a few key people know, but i haven’t had the chance to tell the congregation at large.

that puts me right inside the gate, looking out.  uneasy to stay and uneasy to fling the gate open.  at this point i’m fairly sure God is about to fling it open & that’s scary.  scary but exciting.

i’ve spent a lot of time today working with a leader who is uneasy about this whole thing.   honestly, she’s one of the best youth leaders i’ve ever met.  she has a HUGE heart and loves students.  she is unsure about how the church will react to my leaving.  so we’ve prayed together today (over the internet…) & we both know that as long as we are following God we can’t go wrong.  He might not be doing what we want but whatever He has, it’s the best thing.

oh yeah…welcome to my blog!  wish i would have started it long ago…

Tags: church, pastor, transition, youth ministry