Where there is no revelation, people cast off restraint;
but blessed are those who heed wisdom’s instruction.
Proverbs 29.18 (tniv)

It was about a month ago when my pastor used this verse for our staff devotional time.  It made me feel good because I know we have a great vision as a church and so it is easy to focus and not “cast off restraint.” Personally though, I have not had that focus.  It has been easy to focus on the vision of the church (to free people to follow Jesus), but I have not had a real vision for my own life.

That changed this past week as I met with Pastor Jay to talk about my calling and some things I was struggling with.  Over the past year or so I have started to see my current position as the only thing I would ever be able to do at my church because of how I thought everyone else sees me.  Deep inside I have had this desire to go into ordained ministry of some kind.  When I was younger I thought it was missions, then student ministry, then as a worship pastor, then as a campus pastor for a future campus of North Way.  When I met with Pastor Jay, he encouraged me to think outside the box and not think of being a pastor in the traditional sense.  One of the major church trends right now is online campuses (like lifechurch.tv and northpoint online). An outreach pastor who leverages the internet and online connections is one example of a nontraditional pastor.

This got me thinking about innovating in the church to start the next movement of outreach and growth.  It has given me a vision and something to work towards instead of just maintaining.  I am going to start working on my Master’s through Trinity Evangelical Divinity School and should be finished with that in about three years.  What it’s all about is freeing people to follow Jesus.  I am making it a personal goal to find and/or create new ways to do that.

Proverbs 29.18 (msg)
If people can’t see what God is doing,
they stumble all over themselves;
But when they attend to what he reveals,
they are most blessed.

I couldn’t see what God was doing in my own life.  I believe He has revealed a glimpse of His future for me, so as I hold to that, I am looking forward to the blessings He pours out, not only to me, but through me.