A thought

So this post may make sense to you, or not. I just decided that I needed to pose a question and use this blog as an opportunity to start a discussion.

At our church we have been spending the last few weeks in the book of Colossians and moving forward in the transition that was started when Rodger left. It is the word transition that got me thinking. Shouldn't we as Christians always be in some form of transition? Is God ever happy to see us just stay the same?

This is played out several times by the Israelites as they stated time and time again that they should have been content to stay in Egypt or in the wilderness. This usually came after something happening that they didn't expect.

To me staying the same could be viewed as a refusal to grow and to be challenged. It would be like setting a goal to climb mt everest. When you reached the first camp and looked out over the amazing view you decide that you were content where you are and that it couldn't get any better than this. Life is a journey and God is continually showing us that there is so much more ahead of us. If the view is amazing where we are at now, imagine what it looks like to fulfill the dream that was began in you.

As this process continues I have resolved to no longer look at this as a transition but to be fully consumed by God's will for our church as the body of Christ. Whether that be administration, youth trips, planning worship services, or simply being still and knowing that this whole thing is in God's hands.

Our new pastor uses this phrase quite frequently: "You are more evil than you could possibly know, but you are more loved and accepted then you could possibly understand." - such a simple phrase but with it comes amazing freedom. We are wretched, sinful, horrible people, but despite that God offers grace to us so freely and says "get up and try again, I'll be here to catch you when you fall again."

Thoughts?

crashed!

Clowns are creepy...

I'll have a Patrick family update here in a minute but first a thought...Have you ever thought about how we as a society have become addicted to technology? I came to that harsh reality when a spike in power took out my desktop's hard drive. The good news is that I will be getting a new computer and the drive is alive enough to pull the majority of my files, including 27GB of music...the bad news is that the laptop I am working on now is currently trying to figure out if it wants to work or not....bummer.

Another bit of good news is that I will be moving into the world of apple computers with my very own iMac. I am very excited. Mark B tried for a long time to convince me of Apple's coolness and I just wouldn't listen. Okay Mark, you win, Mac is cooler.

On to the update...

Rachael was offered a job at the new Intermountain medical center! She will graduate on May 1st and will start her new job on June 9th. That means that we will get a month to hang out and possibly take a vacation.

I am working on World Changers in SLC this summer again. Currently we have 246 people coming and will be working on about 25 to 30 homes in the valley. Please pray for the details of this project and that things go well as I will be in charge of the whole thing this year. I also have about three more weeks of class until the semester is over so there is a lot of projects, papers, and final exams left. I am still very much on track to graduate next spring...full steam ahead.

Things at the church have been progressing well. Our new pastor Kevin is a cool guy who just wants to see Jesus glorified in everything that we do. He has challenged us to pick up and start moving forward which the church has been ready and willing to do so far. Keep praying for us as we will no doubt be challenging some deep rooted traditions that are antiquated and in need of change. We're having fun in the process which is a very good thing.

Currently listening to:

Fun stuff - Iron and Wine, Muse, Lovedrug, Copeland, and Sufjan Stevens.

Worship - David Crowder, Starfield, Leeland, Fee, and Chris Tomlin.

Until next time!