In the Beginning
Several years back when I first felt the call on my life to be a Youth Minister, I was still what is termed a baby in Christ. About a year beforehand, I had been living the double life that many "Christians" tend to live. You know, never really read the Bible much, attend service every time the door opens (except when you just don't feel like going so you make excuses). Though knowing that I was not living right, somehow in the back of my mind I felt I was OK in God's eyes. You know didn't drink, smoke or do drugs; Never been in jail or in trouble with the law. Yet I was not truly living for God.
In late 2000, a man came here to Family of Faith (Watson Evangelistic at the time) and was holding the same position I now hold. That meaning he was the Assistant Pastor that was going to take over the Senior Pastor ship when the time came; as well as being Youth Pastor. He however had the bigger task of being the daycare director and school principal here at Watson Learning Center. Boy am I glad I don't have to deal with that. Anyways, my best friend (who was living like I was) and I began hanging out with our new Brother whom we could connect with; being not quite 10 years older than us. Our relationship began by us helping here in the office and with some menial tasks. After finding out we were very into music and were "musicians" (liked to get together and make noise; no lessons ever), he thought we would be just right with he and his wife to form a P&W band for the Youth Group.
Wanna Play?
The first practice we held was AWESOME, not that we rocked the walls off, but we done something we had never done before (since we first picked up our instruments). We prayed. Of course this was the first time we had jammed with someone who was truly living for God. The Lord definitely heard our prayer that night for I felt something I had never felt before, the Presence of GOD. By our second practice we could play, and I mean play not make noise, 5 songs. Our first practice was the first time I had picked up the Electric Guitar, before that I had been playing bass. After the second practice I had learned 11 chords and could play almost every song he wanted us to learn.
I later learned that I was not alone in feeling the Lord's Presence for the first time that night. My best friend as well had felt it and we were both asking our Brother what exactly was going on. He explained to us that the bible says "Where two or more are gathered together there I am also." and that God is not some far off supreme being with no time for us mere mortals (which I now know to be many people's perspective of God as well) for he was controlling the cosmos. But that God wanted a personal relationship with us, and that His arms would embrace us If only we truly let go of "self" and reached out to embrace him.
As you can imagine this blew my MIND! Later that week, between my best friend and I, there were more than 300 secular Cd's laying on this man's office desk. And later that month we burned almost 400 secular Cd's in a burn barrel in front of our youth group. You see he had been giving a brand new Christian Cd by an artist of the same sound as the artist on the Secular Cd you trade him. So we added those to the collection. As you can Imagine, and some of you may have even done this in the past, but there were tons of questions about what were we doing(even some comments on how nuts we were). However, my best friend and I were there to give our testimony to those willing to listen.
Another Fresh Start
Within the next couple of months there were many re dedications and new commitments for the Lord. One Sunday we baptised 5. Though we had an awesome moving of God going, Satan slid his way in. Our new Pastor and our Senior Pastor had a few disagreements (theologically I suppose) and so he was out, and we followed. Two weeks later we were holding Church meetings in the front lawn of some others that left with us and a month or so later we were in our own church building. As time went on and the congregation grew so did the Youth. I felt the calling to preach, talked to my Pastor about it and so I was given the opportunity. Now being out of his full time Job, Pastor had to find some other way to make ends meet. He went back to painting houses and I joined him in that. So now we were seeing each other almost on a daily bases as Pastor - Youth Pastor, Band Leader - Band Member, just friends, now as Boss - Employee. At times the tension just became to much. I decided it would be best for me to step out of it all. So I gathered my things from the church and left my Key on his desk.
Backsliding here we come!
Just like a coal pulled away from a fire, my zeal for God began to die as I no longer had fellow Christians to uplift me and fellowship with. I began to turn back to my old way of living. Now the difference was however; I knew it was wrong, I felt the separation from God, and it seemed at times I just didn't care. My best friend had bailed from out new church about a year or so before I did and was playing with a local heavy metal band. I began to hang out with these guys and low and behold their bass player was having some personal issues and couldn't keep up with them. I came across an awesome deal on a Peavey bass amp and took it without hesitation. I went one day and auditioned for them. They didn't even have to tell me I was in, their bass player handed me the bass and walked off. Their thoughts was well that saved us some trouble, my thoughts was Lord I'm no longer in your graces so why are you still opening doors. Quite a few practices and a couple of HUGE shows later, and the band dismembered. My friend, I, and one of our guitarist was all that remained. We tried a couple of singers from around here and a guitarist from Jacksonville. We got a few new songs going and a name change. Then our new guitarist had a job switch and no longer had practice time. While all this was going on, one of my best friends had a car wreck that almost left him paralyzed, took his fiancee and unborn baby's life then a year or so later his grandfather backed over his 3 year old sons foot with a lawnmower. I was trying to encourage him and help him though all this; in the meanwhile my life was miserable, and I only had one good thing going in my life. My best friend's sister.
A New Chapter
For a month or so I had been hanging with his sister, whom I had known since she was 4 years old. My best friend and I have been together since Kindergarten. I had been after her on and off for years to be my girl. So we are talking on the phone as I'm heading to Children's in Dallas with my other friends Grandparents to be with my friend and his son. She finally says shes willing to give the relationship a try. I felt like I could have jumped clean through the roof of my car. So we dated for a while and I asked to to marry me. I got a job was trying to get back on my feet. It fell through. I sat around a few more months still just miserable. She was still going to church here at Family of Faith, so she eventually talked me into coming back with her. I felt like a dog with a tail between its legs the first time I stepped in here. I had forgotten the Love of the people at this church. They all greeted me with open arms and saying how glad they were to see me again. At the time I was renting a very small trailer. Jeanie and I were engaged to be married Sept. 23rd 2006. Also I had began a new career in the oil Field making decent money and working daily with one of Jeanie's uncles who I had known my whole life. I found a larger place I liked here in Elkhart, but I didn't ever think I would be able to get it. Jeanie and I scheduled a meeting with the real estate agent and came to take a look at the place. That same evening I was signing a rough draft contract to get the deal underway on the house after talking them down off the price a few grand. A couple of months later I was signing final documents on the house with no closing cost and for the price I had in mind for the place when I first looked at it. I moved into it mid August and began preparing it for our lives together.
September 23, 2006
This date will always be remembered by me. Though a couple of things went wrong (I couldn't find mine or two of my three groomsman's shoes for one) this wedding is said to have been the biggest and one of the most beautiful weddings to have ever happened here. Here Jeanie and I were thinking hardly anyone would show up, and there was barely enough sitting room in our sanctuary designed for around 250. To top it all off a buddy of mine had wrote on our car with some kinda purple paint and it wound up getting on Jeanie's dress as we were leaving.
We attended church services the next morning, at lunch, and then headed to Galveston. We stayed at the Flagship Hotel, though not very clean inside we had a great ocean view. We seen all there was to see at Moody Gardens, played on the beach, and just plain spent several wonderful days together. I began to look at my life and think about how though I had went through some rough times, and still wasn't right with God. That it was time for a change. If I was gonna commit to my wife under the name of God, by the first institution given to man, then I was gonna commit to God. A couple of months later, we found out something amazing.
June 26, 2007
The next best day of my life. My son was born. A wonderful blessing from God. Born a couple of weeks preemie he came out with no health problems and ready to take on the world. I was not about to raise my son in the ways of the world. I had been living for God, but not fully. I had been serving God, but not whole hearted. I then told God that this time if I was gonna commit myself to him, he would have to take my all. I told him I was ready for whatever he had for me. Little did I know at the time what that would be.
My Service
The next few months were great. I felt better than I had in a long time. I was again building a relationship with the God I served, I had a wonderful wife, and was co-teaching our adult Sunday School class as well as being the Men's Ministry leader as well as serving as Worship Leader when ours was out sick.
In the meanwhile, our Pastor's health had slowly been deteriorating. Her sight little by little was getting worse and worse adding to an already long list of problems. Our church had been on the search for a new Pastor for about the past couple of years. We thought we had found one, and about a week prior to Mother's Day 2007 he came on staff and our Pastor stepped down. She had told him that many of our church members was old, that they knew a change would be made, but that he may want to take it slow, and ease them into new things. Our worship still consisted of songs from an Old hymnal. The Mother's Day message wasn't a message for mother's, he had a total disregard for our Worship Leader and planned that aspect of the service himself. It was as if we were the same church at a different Church's service. It ruffled feathers to say the least. To top it off he spent a several grand of the church's money with nothing to show for it. He stepped down as Pastor before the next Sunday's service and we held a business meeting that night voting Dr. Wilson back in as our Pastor until a replacement was found.
Fast forward a little ways to where I am the Men's Minister and I wind up sharing the fact I had been called into the ministry. I had been praying that God would give me a job change. Working in the Oil Field, I was missing alot of my son's life working long hours and also at times having to stay outta town. So this deacon winds up, without my knowledge, telling our Pastor about the calling on my life. She along with the board of deacons hold a meeting one Sunday, that I later learn was about me. A couple of weeks later she calls my wife and I into her office, and presents to us that the She and the Deacon Board, were I willing to accept, prepared to offer me this position as Assistant Pastor. My mind became a whirlwind.
All of these things the Lord had been allowing to fall into place began to make sense. I now had a knowledge of how to deal with the youth department. I had a house not even a quarter of a mile from the church. My knowledge of the word of God in over the past year had grown immensely. My relationship with God was at a point it had never before been in my life. The church then offered to match what I had made the previous year in the Oil Field on a salary. To me that was a big step up right there, the oil Field work fluctuates. Had I stayed in the Job I was in, I would be willing to bet money I would not have made the same as I did the previous year, not even close. To top it off I would have insurance, I would have a cell phone, I would have a 401k and anything I did for the church I could use one of the church vans. I was to be in full charge of the Youth Department including, VBS and Sunday School. They would put me through college and when the time was right move me into the Senior Pastorship.
It all sounded so great, yet such a heavy load. My wife and I told her that we would pray about it. Around a month later I came to her and told he we would do it. I gave my two weeks notice at work and it was the longest two weeks of my life. The last month of work in the oil field I hardly worked with my new boss. He was in and out of the doctor sick with pneumonia and bronchitis. For the last six months I had been training to run the rig, and studying to get my CDL liscense. These two things together would have ment a $5 an hour pay raise to become relief operator. The last day of work, my operator was in the hospital in tyler. We came in and I cleaned my stuff out of the work truck, walked in the shop, and another of the operators walked out and told me that My operators wife had just called and said that he had passed away the night before.
The devil got right on about his work, he put it in my head that this was God opening a door that I was to stay in the oil field with an operator job at $8 more an hour with a company truck and phone. I knew then that it was all temptation for the Lord would not have taken someone out just to open a door for me. I walked away from that Job a better man, I felt complete. My life was now to serve God, and I was now walking the path he had for me. I went on here full time in April still what some may term as a babe in the Lord, but I have been nothing but blessed every since I answered the Call. I have met so many more people with an awesome zeal for the Lord, have got to work with some of those, and my relationship with so many of the people at this church has grown so much closer. We are getting new families in our church and even some who are eager to help. I even have some of my own family who had strayed from church here with me now. The Lord has something huge in mind for Elkhart. This week as we go through our community revival I pray that many hearts are stirred up in these area church's members and we get out there and fight to reclaim the people of Elkhart for God. This is so much bigger than what I am now, or even what I will be for the Lord. Praise God he is allowing me to be a part of it. Praise God that While we are yet sinners, he still loves us. Praise God that will I was in the darkest points of my life he never left me, but kept me in his Grace.
