www.youtube.com/watch?v=qIt_C04h-Wk

If you missed my message from week three of our Vintage Faith series where I announced that I’m leaving True North, you can listen here. A few things: 1. The message begins with 60 seconds of silence (so there’s no issue with the file). 2. This message was very much influenced by two sources (other than my own experiences obviously)  – Jeff Henderson’s The Waiting Room series from Buckhead Church and Pete Wilson’s book “Plan B”.

Vintage Faith: Abraham (Waiting)

After my post (and message) this past week I have received many emails and comments. Many of them explained how they were either in a waiting period themselves or said that my publicly speaking about my willingness to “go” has really challenged and encouraged them. I said in my last post that I was inviting you all into this journey of mine. I do appreciate your prayer and words of encouragement, but I would like to also invite you to get a little transparent as well. Maybe you feel like God has told you to do something, but it scares you to death. You have been so afraid to act, so you try your best to ignore it. Why not take a small step right now? Post it in the comments below. Share it. I know it’s scary. It wasn’t easy to speak for me to talk about my situation in front of three services full of people. But I have seen God using my story & experiences to touch others (maybe even you). It may seem risky, but God can use your story & experiences to touch people too. Maybe He wants to invite someone else into your story. Let’s gather together to pray for one another & speak encouraging words. Just maybe we can kick fear in the teeth a little.

So how about it – What’s your story?

I announced on Sunday that I am leaving True North.  Honestly, I never thought that I would be leaving the church I helped plant almost 5 years ago. There is no problem or issue, no bad blood or conflict. Logically, it seems foolish to leave. Everything is on an upswing. True North continues to grow and is headed towards an incredible facility. The economy is horrible. Homes are not selling & people can’t find work. But as often is the case, God doesn’t ask us to exercise logical, but to exercise our  faith, and be obedient. In case you missed it, or aren’t from True North, let me recap:

This past January, I felt God opening up a conversation about leaving. There are ways that God wants to use me, more things He wants to do in and through me, that won’t happen unless I step out in faith and believe Him. I prayed for confirmation & reconfirmation. Time after time, He did just that. After talking with my wife initially, then needing some time apart to pray & think, she came back to me and said if God is saying to go, we should go. This was yet another huge confirmation, as I know this is not an easy decision for my wife to come to. Faced with this new difficult reality, my wife and I started to do all we knew how to do – start to walk this out. Our home was already on the market. I had conversations with Bert, and then the True North staff. I started to get my resume together & out there. I began to pray for guidance and direction. My daily prayer has been, “Lord, for today, what is the right next step?”. I have been fortunate enough to have a few people who have been walking with me through this.

At this point there are still more questions than answers. I have been waiting, and waiting some more. After doing all that I can, I have been resting in believing that God is faithful, and doing things behind the scenes that I cannot see currently. I choose to believe in who I know Him to be, not in what circumstances tell me. I believe that God is writing an amazing story for His glory.

This has been a time of surrender. Surrendering my home, my family, friends, community of faith, and job/ministry. I believe that God has dreams & a vision for my life that has yet to come. I believe just as 8 years ago, He had plans and purposes in calling me out of the graphic design marketplace into ministry. And then again, into helping plant True North. I believe that He has plans for me to join Him at work in another community, so I am trusting Him to provide for every need, big & small.

To be completely honest though, I don’t know where God is taking me & my family. I don’t know exactly when. I don’t know what role I will be playing (other than something inline with my wiring & passions; something where I can flourish in my design & creative abilities). But amidst my upside-down world and myriad of unanswered questions, I cling to what I do know. I know my God. I know He is faithful. He is Good. He has plans and purposes. And He has invited me to join Him. It’s my choice. And my decision is “Yes, Lord”, even before I know exactly all that He’s asking.

I would appreciate all your prayers in this time of transition for me, as well as True North. Bert & the staff have been supportive all the way. Pray for what comes next in this next chapter of True North’s story. Pray for my wife and kids, that God would provide for their every need, as only He can.

No doubt some of you may be wondering why I am “going public” with this at this time. Things are messy. There are unanswered questions and incomplete information. Honestly, it would be much easier and less vulnerable if I waited until I knew all the details. But I believe that God wants to use even this messy, difficult part of the story. I believe He may use it to encourage those who are and have been waiting, perhaps feeling alone and forgotten by God. (You have not been abandoned.) Or maybe for those who have felt God calling them to something but have been paralyzed by fear, or reason. I by no means have it all together.  I have filled journal pages with questions. I have struggled, doubted, and felt like I have come to the end of myself many times. I have cried a lot. So I say all that not as a “look at me. I’ve successfully navigated these waters” but rather, I’m here too. Waiting. Believing. Trusting. And I would be honored if God would use this part of the story to encourage someone, offering them hope.

So there’s no bow on this yet. I believe great things are coming. For now I’m in the waiting room. The in-between. But wherever I land, may it be to the glory of God.

And I extend to you an invitation. An invitation to pray for me & my family, to walk along with us, to see what God unfolds as He does so.

I will be updating the status of things here on my blog if you care to journey with me. I appreciate all the thoughts & prayers many of you have expressed already. Your support is treasured. Thank you all!

So yesterday, I tweeted out about my 5 year old daughter’s imaginary friend (whom she names all by herself) called “Hang-Hang-the-Hang-Hang-Ho”. She made up a theme song & everything. She can tell you all about him. (Don’t mention it to her in person though because she apparently gets embarrassed (so being the good father I’m blogging about it…))

Me? I actually never had one. Instead, I had a Grover stuffed animal & later graduated to Start Wars action figures.

So my question is: did you have an imaginary friend growing up (or still do)? What was his or her name? Give over the details. Comment below.

I just finished reading John Ortberg’s The Me I Want to Be where he makes the following statement:

What we translate in English as “word” comes from the Greek word logos. It is where we get our word “logo.” Jesus is God’s logo. It is as if God has said, “I want my icon, my character, my representation, my will, my symbol to be wrapped up in one single expression. It is Jesus. He is it.”

Jesus is God’s logo. One single expression. What would your logo be?

Mine is a bone. Why? Find out here.

www.youtube.com/watch?v=J5gCeWEGiQI

My daughter came home today with one of those masks that help you sleep. I think she got it from her cousin. Anyway, she decide (all on her own) that her Hello Kitty needed a sleeping mask as well so she set out to create one for her. Faith grabbed a piece of paper, scissors, tape and did what she set out to do. One problem, enter our dog, Biscuit. Faith left her creation on the table and Biscuit saw it as an opportunity to snack on something new. I managed to calm my crying daughter and told her she could just make a new one. So she set out on mask number two. A few minutes later, Faith storms into the kitchen, throws mask number two on the floor and stomps on it. Then she crumples it up & throw it out all in a fit. Apparently, mask number two ripped when she tried to fit it on Hello Kitty’s big head (no offense Kitty). Defeated, she fell to the ground to cry and sulk. I swooped into Daddy mode and told her “let’s do one together”. I took her by the hand as we gathered new supplies. This time a new design was in order complete with a rubber band. I explained that sometimes when you have to redo something it comes out even better than the original. She cut a new mask. we taped the rubber band. She drew some smiley faces & a heart. The new mask was now ready. As we slipped it onto Hello Kitty, the big grin came back to my daughter’s face.

I thought about how often in my creative process something happens to ruin my creation. A toasted hard drive (with no backup). Dissatisfaction with what I created. Finding out I have the wrong specs after the fact. Usually not the dog eating it, although that’s not out of the realm of possibilities. When that happens I often find myself in the same mood & posture of my daughter. Frustration takes over. Feelings of being overwhelmed. Maybe the crunch of the deadline and the thoughts of “how the heck am I going to redo this in time?”

All the while, I think God’s there waiting for us to invite Him into our process. He sees us all frustrated, overwhelmed, crying… a mess. And He gently says “Hey, why don’t we redo it together”. He’s got better resources. Better designs. More experience creating. In the end, it may be obvious that you had some help, but I don’t think that’s a bad thing. The next time you are tempted to sit & stew in your frustration of a project gone bad, why not remember that we have a Heavenly Father who not only loves to be part of the redo, but would love to be invited into the process from the start. After all, if He created the universe I think He can handle our little Hello Kitty sleeping masks.

www.youtube.com/watch?v=uZfRaWAtBVg

smoked crab

Originally uploaded by miketruenorth

I found this yesterday down by the Sandspit docks while taking some photos. It was just a crab claw & not too far away, the cigarette but. It tells a great story I think. Smoked crab.