WOW

It has been a long time since we have written on this page and for that I apologize.

Let catch up with one event at a time shall we... (I apologize ahead a time for the length of this e-mail... isn't it funny when people apologize for something they are in total control of... doesn't make for a very good apology).

As I stepped foot on Forest Home grounds in the beginning of June, no one could have told me how great this summer was going to be. No one could have told me how powerful this camp is, represented by its past, present and future. The past including inspiration figures like Billy Graham and Bill Bright. The present in its vision statement that is clearly lived out in almost all it does, “To provide a place away from the distractions of the world, where they can hear the word of God and encounter Jesus through the power of the Holy Spirit.” Its future in the creativity that flows forth from the people that work here as they dream about how to reach out to future generations.

If you have never been to Forest Home then you have never seen the 500 acres in which it is located. You have never seen the 13,000 people that come to the camp each year. You have never seen the different campsites in which minister to a different age group; Indian Village is for 3^rd and 4^th grade, while Adventure Mountain is 5^th and 6^th, Creekside is Jr. high and Lakeview is Sr. High. Then there is Family Camp, where for some this is the only week a year when mom and dad don’t have cell phone service or access to their e-mail. Family camp is the camp where you hear stories of marriages being reunited and the power of prayer in its ability to comfort in times of plenty and in need.

Forest Home truly is a remarkable place which truly is making the world a better place.

As you may or may not know our primary responsibility was to the staff of Forest Home. Here are some of the things that the staff had to say about the summer.

“When I finally ran out of my own strength and stopped striving it was beautiful. God showed me he was outside of my control waiting for me to realize how much I need him—how much I want him. When I went dry and God overflowed with grace and beauty.”

I experienced his love for me specifically through the staff. God showed me my value. Never ever have I felt so valuable.

God has taught me perseverance and just how great and amazing he is. I have learned to love God more this summer than I ever have.

This past semester was full of some difficult and challenging experiences. Being able to live up here for the whole summer away from routines and distractions has been a breath of fresh air in my life. Through the environment and the people here, I have restored my walk with God and have been truly inspired to seek him wholeheartedly.

God taught me that His strength will shine through me when I have none.

I have seven pages of quotes from people expressing what this summer meant for them.

The two most frequent questions we have received from our friends and family are: ‘are you glad you went? and was it what you expected?’ So I thought I would answer those questions for you.

Shannon and I could not have chosen a better way to spend this summer. While we missed seeing our friends and family, this summer was one that we will remember for the rest of our lives. We will remember the creepy cabin in which we called home, we will remember the great people that we worked with, we will remember and we will remember the feeling of being a part of a ministry that is truly living out the gospel message. Yes we are glad that we came to Forest Home because it has shown us that we are indefinitely called to be serving as ministers of God’s word. It has affirmed us in the calling of which you support us both with your finances and with you prayers.

It is harder to answer the second question. For myself I had not been to Forest Home before. Truth be told working at Forest Home was a lot like previous jobs that I have had. It is constant interaction with people, some more needy then others. It is always changing as to what our responsibilities are and with what my daily “tasks”are. It is extremely service related, both to the staff and to the campers in which seek Forest Home as a place of refuge and retreat. It also has minimal sleep and time off…

Where it has exceeded my expectations was in the staff in which was hired to work this summer and the ‘programs’ which are designed to connect campers to the spiritual rhythms of the Almighty God. Like I have never experienced it before was the power and potential unleashed through people that are committed to serving God with all their heart, mind, soul and strength.

Once we were done at Forest Home I left to go to Northern California to help my brother with his business for two weeks trying to make as many connections as possible with churches in the San Diego County. Once arriving home I interviewed with a church in Vista called Grace Presbyterian and shortly after the interview I was offered the position of being their Youth Director for both Junior High and Senior High school groups. I have been here for almost two weeks now and I am loving it. There has been a bit of a learning curve as Shannon and I have started school, a new job, trying to catch up with our friends from the summer and looking for a new place to live; but, life has been great and the future is one that we are approaching with excitement.

I am so grateful for the experiences of the past year. My time at EFCC was life changing working for and with such a great group of people who continue to support and encourage me. Forest Home was amazing for Shannon and I on so many levels and Grace already feels like home to us.

I have decided to terminate my support raising account with SMI as I am now in a full time position and by the blessing and providence of God we are able to survive without it. I have been so blessed by the experience of support raising. Something that was approached at first with much hesitancy as now turned into such a blessing. I look at where I am at now and know that it has nothing to do with me, and everything to do with God who has enabled me to be here through you (the reader).

Thank you and I am looking forward to writing more about my adventures in youth ministry!

Wrecking Ball

My apologies for my inability to keep up to date on the blog.  Life has been very full for us.  A fitting analogy is that of a wrecking ball.  With finals and Forest Home right around the corner, in the past week we have moved our stuff into storage and our necessities in the spare bedroom of my parents house, research and credo papers due in the next two weeks, and the sad news of loosing Shannon's grandma early this morning at 1:30 am, life is like a wrecking ball that we are trying to stay in front of before it clears us out of the way.  

Ready or not, in two weeks we will be done with our 7th quarter of seminary and into our new job's at Forest Home.

I recently had the great honor and privilege to preach at my childhood church Cornerstone Church of Escondido.  There is a link to the sermon audio on the top of this page.  I have begun the process of trying to figure out where God would have us at once our time at Forest home is over; but we also are committed to giving our best to Forest Home while we are there.  

This week The Gathering is going to have a fair-well evening for Shannon and I.  It has been a very challenging and emotional process for us to leave a group of people that we have been so committed to over the past two years.  It has not simply been a job, but a community and a family of brothers and sisters.  Leaving Emmanuel Faith will be us faithfully stepping away from what has been home for us and into a hope for what is in stored for us in the future. We are so grateful for their support and encouragement of us as they prepare to send us off this week into what God would have next for us.

We are excited for what is waiting for us and somewhat stressed with how much we still have to do.  We are eagerly stepping into what God has for us and diligently working where God has us.

chaos and celebrations...

Well life is a little nuts right now. Our apartment is full of boxes. It is pure overwhelmingness. I have found that the only place where I can have peace in our house is on my bed... and I am okay with that. As we pack up and prepare for Forest Home and the adventure the Lord has prepared for us there, I have begun to reflect on the lives around me. I think transitions tend to do that. We come to the end of a time and the beginning of another and we seek to connect and reconnect with each other because, that is what keeps us stable and grounded. So for me though this transition will bring stretching in me, I find that more than anything I am deeply grateful. In this gratitude I have found many celebrations happening around me.

Last weekend we celebrated the wedding of a good friend of ours as he married his sweetheart in a misty-fairy tale like ceremony. Congrats Travis and Olivia! On Saturday, the day after the big move, we will celebrate the wedding of Amanda and Kelby, two who are very close to our hearts and ministries. My sweet "San Diego friend" Lauren just called a few days ago to tell me the great news... she did in fact get into law school. And though it will be a challenge she and her husband Nels will be quite a matter to reckon with when they are both done and both... lawyers. As we prepare for camp we also prepare to be in three weddings in the next four months. My very close roommate from college is marrying the love of her life and we have been so blessed to see God's hand at work in their relationship as He has brought them together in a very unexpected and surprising way. Em, I can't wait to stand with you on your big day! Dan's brother, Aaron will tie the knot in June to the lovely Desiree (whose name we like to say in a southern accent just for fun). She is fabulous and they are very great together. Then our great friends Tara and Matt will share their vows in September.
As the fall hits, we will become an aunt and uncle... again but this time on my side as my brother Keats and Sister in law April bring into the world a beautiful baby....? It's a surprise. As I celebrate all these big milestones, I also celebrate two women who are great encouragements of me being in ministry and pursuing my MDiv. I celebrate them for different reasons. One for showing me the ropes and the pitfalls, reminding me that I don't have to fall where she has, and one because though she is not called to ministry herself, she is a huge proponent of women in ministry. So Jessie and Corrie... I celebrate your lives for walking with me, and for aiding in my acquiring of courage to follow the call.

Yes indeed life is very full. But we are additionally very celebratory because every life must stop to celebrate those around them and to drink gratefully the life which God continues to breathe into these relationships.

the good things project- day 2: good fruit

We are in the middle of a week of remembrance. It is holy week. The week where we as a church walk with Jesus through his excruciating death, the mourning of that, and then the celebration that all was not lost when Christ died, instead all was gained. It is in this celebration that we find our true selves dead and brought back to life, to this new life.

For the second day of my good things project I will share with you a great quote I read today from a good friend, Bill Robinson, who is the President of Whitworth University. It is a great reminder to keep pressing forward, that anytime is fruit bearing time.

"Yesterday we observed Palm Sunday -- the "triumphal entry." Sadly, it only took five days for Palm Sunday hosannas to become Good Friday hisses. It only took five days for "Hail him!" to become "Crucify him!" It's interesting to look at what was going on with Jesus during those five days. On a walk from Bethany to Jerusalem, he got hungry. He spotted a fig tree, and that probably made him hungrier. But there was a problem. It wasn't fig season. That shouldn't be a problem for someone who can turn tap water into fine wine. Still, when Jesus found the tree fruitless, he cursed it rather than "fixed"it. The next day the tree was shriveled and dead. We could chalk that up to Jesus being in a bad mood. Who could blame him? He knew what was coming. But maybe he was sending us a message. Maybe he was telling us and his disciples that every season is fruit season. In today's environment, we all have a good excuse not to bear fruit. Sometimes you just want to survive. But Jesus says that bearing fruit is how you survive. It's how you keep from shriveling and dying. Feeding the hungry is not seasonal. Giving more than anyone expects is not seasonal. Waiting around until the season changes doesn't work. We need to bear fruit all the time."