Change

Life is change. Like the slowly shifting surface of the earth, we are all subject to change. Some changes are obvious and dramatic like the forming of Reelfoot Lake. Other changes take thousands of years of imperceptible alterations, like the forming of the Grand Canyon.

In my life I have seen evidence of both. I remember the first big change in my life. We lived in Abilene and attended Hillcrest Church of Christ on the north side of town. I remember my best friend Bethany Bell, who lived down the street and was the preacher's daughter. Then we moved to the country about 10 miles south of Abilene and began attending Southern Hills. We had to say goodbye to our home, our church, and my closest friends. I grew to be very thankful of that move, but it wasn't that way at first.

The next big move was when I transferred from Jim Ned Elementary, to the school district of Wylie, where my mom had begun teaching. Again, I had serious reservations about going to a new school, but again, I grew to become very thankful for the change. Life was stable for several years before the next big move to ACU. Granted it was only across town, but it was a huge change in lifestyle. Then came graduation, marriage, Korea, Troy, and having Jude.

Each of these changes brought with it a certain amount of stress. But each of those changes have contributed to making me into the man I am today. ACU changed me from a dependent child into an independant adult. Korea forced me to confront some predjudices I wasn't aware that I had. Marriage and parenthood have taught me to love deeper than I would have thought possible, and how to serve sacrificially and joyfully. While the past 5 years at Troy have been somewhat calm and stable, I can look back and see that my time here has changed me more than I could have hoped for. I can also look back and see that my life has been slowly shifting into a new course, and a new change has been brewing under the surface.

I had a conversation with my brother several years back about why I wanted to be a youth minister. I told him that it was largely because of what my youth ministers had done for me. My teenage years were largely shaped by our youth group. I attended every youth event that was available adn my closest friends were those I worshiped with and studied the Bible with. In my upper classman years, I was especially close with Scott Meyer. He didn't just teach us, he walked with us. He struggled with us and encouraged us. His influence meant so much to me that I wanted to imitate him. I wanted to honor him by being to others what he was to me. There were several other factors as well, but Scott was perhaps one of the biggest influences. My brother noted that there were several positive influences in his life, but he couldn't imitate them all. I had a few great teachers in high school, but I don't think I will ever teach at school, I had a great youth minister, but I will never be Scott Meyer, I have wonderful parents, but I will never be just like either of them.

These thoughts, and some other circumstances, led to a conversation I had with Sarah about 18 months ago. I never felt called to be a youth minister; meaning, I never thought that this career was perfect for me. There were always misgivings. The thing that kept me in paid youth ministry for this long, was the fact that I couldn't see myself doing anything else. I couldn't think of any career that I wanted to pursue. So Sarah and I talked about the possibilities. We talked about my gifts, my goals, and what would be best for our family. While I love small group Bible studies, I am horrible at reaching out to teens I don't know. While I love taking the youth group on trips and activities, I am horrible at delegating and including others. While I don't mind being the leader, I would much rather have a task delegated to me.

While considering my strengths and weaknesses, it became apparent that I was best suited for teaching at the college level while volunteering to help minister to a local youth group. In order to do that, I would have to pursue and MDIV (84 hours) and then a PhD. This is not a pursuit that can be done well while living in Troy, where the nearest available school is 2 hours away.

So with much prayerful consideration, Sarah and I have decided to move back to Abilene at the end of the summer so that I can pursue graduate school full time while having the support of mine and Sarah's families nearby.



This decision was not made lightly, nor is it without a great amount of pain that we will be leaving Troy. The church here has been an invaluable blessing in our lives and we will always be grateful for the time we got to spend with you, but we still have 6 months before the move, and we want to make the best of it.