Transitions

Sunday March 8th was my last official Sunday to serve on staff at Lifespring Church of the Nazarene in Milford, OH. We have served on staff for a little over two years at Lifespring and it has been a great blessing for our family.

We will continue to attend Lifespring as we search for what God has next for us in life & ministry. The mission of Lifespring is to help people develop three key relationships: with God...with other Christ followers...and with the world.

I thoroughly believe in the church's simple approach to loving God and loving others and wish Kevin & Leslie God's best for their ministry as they continue to lead this church forward.

For the past several months, I had become increasingly uncomfortable with my own role in the ministry and just had an overall sense that God wanted to use me in some other ways. Resigning and leaving a ministry is never really easy but I think it's especially difficult when you are yet unsure as to where God is leading. So we find ourselves in this liminal...in between...awkward...time of transition.

For several years now, I have had the intention of pursuing a teaching position with a Christian Campus. I have looked into such schools as Mount Vernon Nazarene, Cedarville, Huntington, Asbury, Cincinnat Christian, Ohio Christian, etc but nothing came of the search until now. With a couple of college buddies working at Indiana Wesleyan, I made the connection and got in line for the interview process. After a few months of managing all the right hoops, I landed my first class with IWU which just started this past week... Philosophy & Christian Thought (yeah...too bad I couldn't have started with something a little more user friendly!) ;-)

And as my teaching career gets off the ground at a snail's pace, I am trying to discern where God is leading in regards to my other two main vocational passions: coffee & campus ministry.

It's no secret that since my love affair with coffee began on Valentine's Day 2004 (not kidding) at a Starbucks in Westerville, OH...I have been finding excuses to work at, be at, and/or volunteer at a coffee shop ever since. And it really isn't that I'm a hopeless coffee geek or espresso addict...I truly believe in the kinds of conversations and relationships that seem to spontaneously generate in any kind of authentic 'third place.'

Recently, I've come to realize (or perhaps remember) that my hopes for landing in some kind of university or campus context is not just about teaching. I thoroughly enjoy the university setting! I love being with students who are launching out into the unknown, forging their path, reshaping their faith, and making critical decisions about their future. That collision between faith & reason is a healthy place but I'm afraid most in the church steer clear of the campus because we don't know how to deal with conflict, aggressive humanism, liberal ideology, etc, etc. And certainly in my own tribe of Nazarene-dom...we've neglected this opportunity to engage missionally with some of the most interesting, adventurous, energetic, and enjoyable creatures on the planet...the university student.

So I am in conversations with our district leadership for the Nazarene church down in this corner pocket of the Buckeye state...pitching a proposal to engage this campus culture for Christ. Part of this journey has led me to connect with some great people in an organization called the CCO. What I love about this diverse bunch of campus-lovers is that they partner with local churches and non-profits to contextualize an effective ministry to campuses. I spent some time at their main event back in February called Jubilee. It was a fantastic gathering where students were challenged to integrate faith & learning/work/vocation. With the kind of networking, training, and camaraderie I saw among CCO folk at that event, I knew it would be a great organization to partner with.

So the transition continues...which is definitely not pleasant...but the future is certainly hopeful.