more like Him...

God gave us a spirit not of fear but of power and love and self-control. 2 Timothy 1:7             As we enter the month of October, normally reserved for ghosts and trick or treating, we should remember that God did not give us a reason to live in fear of things such as Paul wrote in the verse above.  Instead he has provided us with the Holy Spirit to provide us power, love, and self-control!  So think on that as you go about your daily routine remembering that He gives you the strength to overcome, the desire to love on those whom you encounter, and the control to avoid the many obstacles Satan puts in your path. 

Ok, so this post may end up being one of those blogs that is more a non-sensical rambling than an actual post.  First I must state this disclaimer that I am in no way attacking the belief system of any particular group of believers for their doctrine, nor am I confessing any particular belief from a doctrinal perspective that would allow people to lump me into a particular group (i.e. Arminist vs. Calvinist - just as an example!)  Most people who know me already know where I stand on those issues but as I listen to God through study and prayer, I find that I am continually thinking through situations and areas of my life where the things I may have thought any issues dealing with God's stance on the subject were settled, are not always so and I begin to work through them again.  Seeking God in those circumstances is important so that I can know how to deal with them.  Yet, I am wondering if the 'knowing' part of that is not what God wants me to get out of all of this...

So some of you have come here for the Big Announcement from my status on Facebook.  Well I'm not trying to be mean but you will need to read through this blogpost to find out what it is...;-)  As most of you know, I resigned from my Student Minster position at Westview back in January.  There were some issues there and I was really feeling pulled by God to go back to school and finish my degree.   I want to say to anyone reading this who might still be at Westview that contrary to what may have been said or presented to you, things are not always what they seem.  I also want to say that I loved and still do love all the students I was privileged to have ministered to while at WBC.  That being said, I knew in January that my ability to minister to students within the framework and leadership of Westview had ceased to be possible and it was time for me to move forward with God's plan.  I enrolled as a full-time student at the BCF extension taking 19...

Most people that know me, know that I have a passion, okay maybe an obsession with the St. Louis Cardinals.  I grew up in Missouri and spent almost every night during the summer either watching a Cardinals game on television or listening to Jack Buck and Mike Shannon on KMOX radio call a Cardinals game.  That was life for me growing up!  I lived, breathed, ate Cardinals baseball.  I remember being upset as a 7 or 8 year old when Whitey Herzog broke up the '82 World Series team by trading away Keith Hernandez for Neil Allen.  Most people would be like Neil who?  Keith who?  But that was my life.  I still love baseball and especially the Cardinals.  So much so that my son has been indoctrinated/brainwashed into supporting the Cardinals himself.  Some of the first English he learned when we got him home to the states was 'Ewww....Cubs!'  Why is all this important?  Well it's because as I was feeding my need/addiction to Cardinals ...

     January 2010!  Really!?  It's been that long since I have posted on here?  Hard to believe and even harder to realize all that has changed since then.  There is so much that is different in my life since I last posted.  I am no longer the Student Minister at the church I was at...long story and maybe more to come later on that but for now just know that I resigned that position in January of 2011.  I haven't talked much about the reasons or circumstances that led to that publicly yet, and for now the official reason is that God is preparing me for something new in ministry.       Part of this preparation has been my returning to school full-time to finish my degree.  I took 19 hours this past Spring semester (received A's in all 8 classes, too! Praise God!), am taking 9 currently over the summer term and will finish the last 14 hours needed in the Fall to graduate in December.  I say all that to e...