Thursday, February 15, 2007
Saturday, February 3, 2007
My chaos!
I never know what's going to happen next! Every day is an adventure and I wake up asking God, "What kind of mess am I going to deal with today?" Is it wrong that I expect chaos? I feel my expectancy prepares me for the journey! I know that I'm called to live an uncomfortable lifestyle! Not just because I'm a Christian, which are called to be tested, tried, and persecuted, but because I have committed myself to a life of full time ministry!
I have had the opportunity to know many different pastors with many different styles in my experiences through ministry! Matthew Trexler, from Lakeview Wesleyan Church in Marion IN, once said something to me that I will never forget: "Never become comfortable in your ministry! If you ever find yourself comfortable, completely rearrange it or get out!" I disagreed at the time because in the ignorance of ministry mind, I thought comfortability was okay! Now, I agree more with him than ever! I'm very uncomfortable with my life and with my ministry, and it seems that God is going to work in our network of churches more than ever!
So in my chaotic life, which whoever reads this, will most likely read quite a bit about, I ask that you would pray for me! I get discouraged because my life is NOTHING that I would have ever expected it to be and NOTHING that I would ever have wanted it to be like. Within the past year, if you would have asked me at one particular time, I would have told you that my life was perfect, whole, complete, and there was nothing that I could have been given that would have made me happier than I already was! But as one of my favorite bands, Rascal Flatts, says: "Life throws you curves and YOU learned to swerve. ME, I swung and I missed..."
I missed, and I will continue to miss, that's a given! And in my time of whoofin the bat through the air, missing the ball almost every time it's thrown to me, I know that God is a last minute God, and when I'm falling fast towards the bottom of a huge cliff, God just nonchalantly sticks His hand out and catches me! I think He does that to be funny! All in all, I know He's there, and I know His grace continues to fall over me like rain! What more could I ask for?
I have had the opportunity to know many different pastors with many different styles in my experiences through ministry! Matthew Trexler, from Lakeview Wesleyan Church in Marion IN, once said something to me that I will never forget: "Never become comfortable in your ministry! If you ever find yourself comfortable, completely rearrange it or get out!" I disagreed at the time because in the ignorance of ministry mind, I thought comfortability was okay! Now, I agree more with him than ever! I'm very uncomfortable with my life and with my ministry, and it seems that God is going to work in our network of churches more than ever!
So in my chaotic life, which whoever reads this, will most likely read quite a bit about, I ask that you would pray for me! I get discouraged because my life is NOTHING that I would have ever expected it to be and NOTHING that I would ever have wanted it to be like. Within the past year, if you would have asked me at one particular time, I would have told you that my life was perfect, whole, complete, and there was nothing that I could have been given that would have made me happier than I already was! But as one of my favorite bands, Rascal Flatts, says: "Life throws you curves and YOU learned to swerve. ME, I swung and I missed..."
I missed, and I will continue to miss, that's a given! And in my time of whoofin the bat through the air, missing the ball almost every time it's thrown to me, I know that God is a last minute God, and when I'm falling fast towards the bottom of a huge cliff, God just nonchalantly sticks His hand out and catches me! I think He does that to be funny! All in all, I know He's there, and I know His grace continues to fall over me like rain! What more could I ask for?
Thursday, January 25, 2007
Watershed Days So Far
I have never in my life imagined ministry being this amazing, but at the very exact same time, so so difficult! The life of a Church Planter is the most chaotic life you could live, and I never realized that until I hopped right into it all! The best part is, I love it! Maybe my life has seen its fair share of chaos, so this somehow blends on in!
Nate Feathers, the head Pastor, and I have to work at UPS part time to pay the bills because the church is not large enough or established to pay either one of us, so the stability of our positions as pastors is nowhere secure! There is always a chance that this ministry could easily fail! We have to realize that! But the way Satan is attacking us, Nate's wife Sonya and their children, and the various core team members of our church, we have to look at it from a positive optimistic viewpoint (Even though it does suck we're being attacked) that we are worthy to be attacked in Satan's eyes and he's scared like a little ho that something great is going to happen in our community! I truly believe that!
Being the oh so passionate person that I am, I am constantly pressing and forcing myself to overcome mediocrity and a complacency in my faith! As most of you know, it's very easy to fall into that kind of lifestyle! I don't want to be some baby Christian! I want to follow the principles of God and not just the prescriptions we are so used to living out! I want that for my core team too! I want them to grow! I want them to strive, yearn, and desire! I want them to experience God like no other time in their life! And it's happening! My team is great! I could not think of a better group of people that I would love to work with! They're young and still very energetic, they want change to happen, they're all so different in thinking so all kinds of different ideas come from every which way, and every last one of them will love you to the very last drop! They don't even have to know you! You will never, EVER, feel like an outcast or like you don't belong! God has blessed me with a phenomenal team!
Nate Feathers, the head Pastor, and I have to work at UPS part time to pay the bills because the church is not large enough or established to pay either one of us, so the stability of our positions as pastors is nowhere secure! There is always a chance that this ministry could easily fail! We have to realize that! But the way Satan is attacking us, Nate's wife Sonya and their children, and the various core team members of our church, we have to look at it from a positive optimistic viewpoint (Even though it does suck we're being attacked) that we are worthy to be attacked in Satan's eyes and he's scared like a little ho that something great is going to happen in our community! I truly believe that!
Being the oh so passionate person that I am, I am constantly pressing and forcing myself to overcome mediocrity and a complacency in my faith! As most of you know, it's very easy to fall into that kind of lifestyle! I don't want to be some baby Christian! I want to follow the principles of God and not just the prescriptions we are so used to living out! I want that for my core team too! I want them to grow! I want them to strive, yearn, and desire! I want them to experience God like no other time in their life! And it's happening! My team is great! I could not think of a better group of people that I would love to work with! They're young and still very energetic, they want change to happen, they're all so different in thinking so all kinds of different ideas come from every which way, and every last one of them will love you to the very last drop! They don't even have to know you! You will never, EVER, feel like an outcast or like you don't belong! God has blessed me with a phenomenal team!
Friday, January 19, 2007
Grandview Heights
This was an amazing week! There was definitley a time when I dreaded coming home to my new apartment! It's very explainable, you have to cook for yourself, clean up after yourself, and most excruciating, be by yourself! I always try to lighten the mood when I unlock the door and walk in by saying really loud, "Honey I'm home" and then I kiss myself in the mirror! Just playin, but seriously! What I found that has rocked my world is a huge no brainer, Prayer and a steady support from your friends! I have made some wonderful friends out here in Ohio, but the friends that you had in the past that puts forth the time to stay in touch has opened up my eyes to what loyalty and support really means. One of the two guys I'm talking about is this man right beside me... Dan Bellinger
What an awesome friend! We are going to plant a church together one day, so his loyalty will not only be seen in his ministry, but throughout his relationships people will come to know Christ so intimately! Dan if you see this bro, you're awesome!
Please pray for my church, Watershed! Some of our core team members are being hit with some deep stuff! It is actually sweet because we know Satan is attacking them for a reason! We are worthy to be attacked so we have to keep our heads high!
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