CALLING

It’s been 2 years since we left CCC at the Air Force Academy. It’s been a long journey for us. Colorado to Montana to New Mexico. The lush, green beauty of the Northwest to the dry, arid desert of the Southwest. In many ways, we feel like we have gone from a lush, green life – full of vision, purpose, friends and community in Montana – to a dry, arid life – full of confusion, questions and loneliness here in New Mexico.

We have wrestled with this thing of “calling”. We knew when we left CCC that God was moving us on to something else, although unclear … and we’ve now spent 2 years trying to find out what that something else will be. We’re seeking God’s face and searching our hearts to discover our calling.

When we left staff, Steve was feeling like his heart was being pulled toward the local church, instead of para-church ministry. So, he applied for seminary and we visited 2 different schools. It didn’t seem like God was opening that door, so we moved to Montana. During our time there, God brought us together with Ben to help him with Elevation church, a local church plant. While there, Steve applied to a handful of churches nation-wide. Without an “inside connection” he couldn’t get an initial interview anywhere.

After Elevation church closed its doors and became a home-church, Steve knew he had to find a way to support his family and it didn’t seem that it would be through Elevation or church ministry. That’s how we ended up here in ABQ. We were feeling discouraged and disappointed, maybe even disillusioned with ministry and couldn’t seem to make sense of how and where God was leading us. So, a Masters in Sports Admin made sense – and a good way to make a living and support a family.

It didn’t take long after arriving here to realize that we were even more confused and seriously questioning whether or not we made the right move. Our hearts are still pulled toward full-time ministry in the local church. So, recently, Steve applied for another pastoral position with a church in Seattle. This time, he had an inside connection through his best friend from college. The church actively pursued him as they initiated a phone interview, a follow-up questionnaire and even flew him to Seattle for a personal interview. Much to our disappointment, the church decided to hire a local guy and told Steve “No, thanks” about 3 weeks ago.

We desperately long to know what God’s calling is on our life. We continue to question if this degree and career field is indeed the right thing. We pray daily and ask God to show us His plan for us and His calling on our life. We feel like a fish out of water here in ABQ and long to get back into the water.

Another opportunity has presented itself, as there has been a new development with the church in Kalispell. We are actively seeking God’s face and waiting for Him to show us what we should do and what our role might be.

It’s a difficult task, hearing God’s voice and determining His calling and will for our lives. He is faithful to close doors He does NOT want us to walk through. BUT it’s not always easy to find the door that He DOES want us to walk through. So, we wait and listen and pray … knowing that He will make it clear in time.