What's been going down...

From California with love

It never fails. Every time I return from a trip at least two people (friends, neighbors, etc.) ask me how my vacation was. Given how often I travel for work, I find it comical that people think I am just constantly taking vacations. My trip to California was far from a vacation, but it was still very enjoyable. Last April I spent two and a half weeks meeting with partners, speaking at churches, casting the vision, and sharing about my ministry. I get really excited when other people get excited about God at work. Sometimes, in the day-to-day, it feels stagnant, like it's just another job. Sharing the stories with you all helps me keep perspective and remember that we are building a divine kingdom.

Naturally, I make plans, and naturally, God gives me something different. I truly relish those unexpected moments and conversations that creep up. I reconnected with old friends and family, but also met a number of new folks. If you didn't get a chance to hear my presentation, you may watch it here. Even though I didn't raise all the funds I had hoped I would on this trip, I did make a sizable dent. Thank you so much for your support. I am still in need of $500 additional monthly support to be fully funded. If you would like to give, click the "Partner with me" button at the top of the page.

And all that jazz

Although Mosaik Nord never officially merged with our partner church, EFG Eschersheim, over the years we have grown closer together. Recently our Lobpreis (worship) team leaders met to plan out the schedule for the rest of the year, and my name kept popping up. Some of the leaders from the EFG stepped down this last year, creating a void. I have a history playing with some of their bands and even led for one of their services. So, in the coming months I will be pitching in and leading more worship, which I am happy about. These changes at church actually are in line with what I have advocated for, the merging of our teams. We are not there yet, but we are certainly moving in that direction.

Outside of church I am playing bass in a jazz band. As part of our goal to reach the city through creative means, our artists' collective formed a jazz band, and despite extremely limited experience playing in one, I was recruited to play bass. It has been equal parts fun and rigorously challenging. For months now our troupe has been practicing and have a date for our first gig next month. Additionally, we are hoping to play a concert this summer at the refugee center where we played a Christmas concert.

That's all he wrote (for now)

As I write this, I am still processing the decision I finalized this week. I never thought I would, but I resigned from the GEM Storytelling Team. This was a decision that I arrived at after over a year of discernment and seven month leave of absence; so, not lightly by any measure. Being, one of the founding members, it feels surreal after over five years to no longer be part of the team. I won't go into details, but just say there we parted on good terms, it was just time to move on. I will always be grateful for the work we accomplished together, what we built, what I learned, what I contributed, and how we shined a light on God at work in Europe in a time when Europe desperately needed that. In my heart I remain a storyteller and will deeply miss this particular ministry.