happy.mother’s.day

I am blessed with amazing kids, and an amazing wife to mother them!

This post is to honor my wife’s greatness!

She loves them, cares for them, corrects them, laughs with them, cries with them, hurts with them, celebrates with them, teaches them, talks with them, she’s proud of them…and the list goes on.

This Mother’s Day will be tough for her, it is the first Mother’s Day since losing her own mother. But her mother lives on through my wonderful wife, after all, she is the mother she is today to my children because of the wonderful mother she was blessed to have influence her.

I know it may be tough for my wife to think of today as a “happy Mother’s Day”, but I hope and pray she feels the love I have for her, and the love our amazing kids have for her, and the fact that our daughters will one day be incredible mothers themselves because of the influence she is having on them now.

Happy Mother’s Day, babe, there is no one I’d rather have as the mom for my kids!

 

i.miss.the.office.(.not.the.one.on.nbc.)

Yesterday, for the first time in a very long time, I spent the entire day in the office (at Glendale Nazarene Church). From first thing in the morning until around 8:30 in the evening.

…and I completely LOVED every second of the day!

BTW, thank you, Jesus for yesterday…seriously, thank You!

I was reminded just how much I love being a part of what God has called me to do and be.

I’m only part-time at this church, so I’m not here in the office a lot, but being there for a full day makes me miss, so very much, being full-time in ministry. It renewed my desire to be back in the saddle full-time. I really simply can not wait for God to reopen that door in my life.

I hope and pray that He does this sooner—rather than later.

this was my view yesterday from my seat at my desk

shopping.carts

I have been a worship leader/pastor/director for over 20 years now.

It’s my life calling!

It’s what brings me joy/meaning/fulfillment/purpose in life.

It’s been a tough few years of ministry (I’ve been laid off 3 times over the past 3 years)! I SERIOUSLY can’t wait for the economy to turn back around!

Right now I’m working part time as a worship leader/director at Glendale Nazarene Church (and I’m thankful for the opportunity to lead God’s people into worship each weekend). I’m also working part time at Total Wine & More (hey you do what you have to do to get by).

Part of my job at Total Wine requires me to go out in the parking lot and gather shopping carts. I’m gonna be brutally honest here…it’s a very humbling experience for me. Don’t get me wrong, in NO WAY do I think I’m above getting carts. It’s just, here I am at 45 years old working for “not very much an hour” gathering shopping carts in a parking lot…it just seems so meaningless. Gathering carts has no impact on anyone’s life (other than making it easier for a customer to get a cart when they are ready to shop).

Part of me is saying, “Come on God, I could be doing so much more than this right now!”

Then I’m reminded of this…

God uses the weak to mess up the strong / He takes those who are first and makes them last, and those who are last He makes first / Pride comes right before you fall flat on your face / He knows what’s best for me, even better than I do for myself / He loves me…so very much that He sacrificed His One and only Son to pay the price of my salvation.

So who am I to question God about gathering shopping carts?

Later today as I go to work…and no doubt gather some shopping carts, God help me be the best shopping cart gatherer that Total Wine has!!!

also.standing.on.this.today

This may very well be MY MOST FAVORITE worship tune of all time!!!! The lyric is AMAZINGLY simple, yet AMAZINGLY powerful! If you’ve never heard it, take time to listen…you can thank me later.

first.day

Today was my first day at Glendale Nazarene. I loved being up front leading the church in worship once again…leading worship truly is my heartbeat and passion! Thank you God for opening this door for me to do what I do!

new.church.pictures

my desk

sanctuary

stage

view from stage

cleared.for.landing

We’ve accepted the position of Worship Pastor at Glendale Nazarene Church (Glendale, AZ). We are very excited to see what God has in store for our family and for the church…and can’t wait to get started! Our first Sunday will be, Sunday, January 8.

A big shout out and thank you to all of our family and friends who prayed for our family. We appreciate your prayers so very much…and we ask you to continue to lift us up in your prayers and for God’s blessing to be on our new ministry position.

Now…Let’s Do This!

thankful.thursdays.part.03

Today I am thankful for the fact that God has always been there for me and my family, and will always be there for us!

I’ll be honest, today I may feel like this: “God, where are you, are you really there with a plan for our lives?”

Yet, even though I may have these feelings, I am still very much aware of the fact that YES, God does have a plan for us, and He will show us that plan when His timing is right…and when we look back on this period in our life (even though I may not see His hand working now), I’ll be able to see just how much He really was in control and leading us in His ways.

Thank you God for having our backs!

thankful.thursdays.part.01

I’m thankful for my amazing, beautiful, loving, caring, funny, awesome wife. She’s always been there for me, no matter what we’ve faced, she’s always had my back! I love you babe and I’m thankful God graced my life with you!