Hello, readers! It’s an honor to be able to share on Paul’s platform--seeing Him embrace God’s call on his life has been a true joy and an inspiration to me!
My journey is one of ups and downs and great challenges, but with the theme of God’s beauty throughout! My journey is also first God’s journey, and second a shared journey with my beautiful wife Morgan and now three beautiful girls.
Since high school, I’ve had a passion to see churches unite to worship God and bring Him glory. I remember flipping through the phone book and calling pastors and asking them to join in. It actually proved very difficult… but it only grew my desire to see churches further unite.
Fast forward to 2008, I went to Cedarville University as a math major. During my freshman year, I felt God continually draw me to serve the Lord in vocational ministry, and at that time through music ministry.
At this point I want to include a key addendum: while that was God’s personal call upon my life at that time, I fully affirm the crucial role and calling of every follower of Christ wherever God has placed each one!! In the workplace, nonprofits, family, community and government. The Kingdom of God is the compilation of faithful followers of Christ carrying out His will and values, everywhere. If you are reading this in one of those fields that is not generally called “ministry”, let me affirm the ministry and value of what God has called you to!
After I graduated from Cedarville, I served as worship director at a church in Troy. It was a rich time of learning and serving! However, after six years of serving at the church it ended in very hurtful relational brokenness. Through that process I saw the brokenness and realness of humanity, even in ministry. And not just of “others”. My own brokenness. It isn’t until we can all acknowledge the brokenness that we bring to the table that we can find healing. Over time, God has brought healing from that, and I pray that it continues to full reconciliation. But that’s another story…
So I ended up without a job, and my family ended up without a consistent paycheck. I had never felt as hurt and lost in my life as I did then. What did God want us to do?
That was one of the first times in my life I asked God “What do you want me to do?” without putting limits on His answer.
The trouble was, He continually pointed me back to my passion from high school (that I had continued to pursue while serving at the church) of seeing the body of Christ united in corporate worship and service, that the world around us would see the reality of Jesus. What an inspiring vision!
With no paycheck.
So that began the beautiful, painful journey of simultaneously launching a nonprofit and support raising.
We had no idea what we were doing, so it was more difficult than it had to be. BUT, the storyline through it all is the miraculous faithfulness of God.
Do sign up if you are ready to learn to trust God in ways like you never have before.
Don’t sign up if you’re not willing to sacrifice in ways like you may never have before.
I realize it isn’t anywhere close to “suffering”, but it was difficult for me to sell some of our personal possessions to get by some months. It was humbling to invite people to partner with us when we were still processing our own hurt from our previous ministry. It was hard not to doubt our own calling when others couldn’t see the vision yet, and were grasping in faith to see the vision God was leading us to ourselves.
It has required great sacrifices of our family, both in time and resources. If Morgan wasn’t an incredibly trusting and supportive wife, we wouldn’t have made it. If God hadn’t made our kids to be so loving, forgiving and resilient, we wouldn’t have made it.
Despite all of the challenges, here is my conclusion five years into this journey of full-time support raising.
God is good, and so faithful and gracious! He has blessed me with such an incredible family to walk with me through this journey of faith. Even though He may have a unique calling on my life to serve specifically with Declare, with marriage and family that inevitably means that all of us share in the calling, journey and sacrifice.
I praise God that this year is the first year we have been fully funded! He is faithful! It has been such a journey of trust and doubts, but I rejoice in the work God has done in and through us!
My conclusion? Seek the Lord and ask Him to lead you and your family. Follow Him even when it is hard, you won’t regret it. And embrace your calling right where God has placed you! I truly believe that that vast majority of followers of Jesus are already serving in their “ministry field”, and simply need to be affirmed, equipped and inspired in their calling. So if that is you, stay in the zone and see the Holy spirit at work all around you!
No matter where you are, trust in the goodness and faithfulness of God, and celebrate His beauty all around you, even in the midst of the brokenness. What a joy life with Jesus is!
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