where do we go from here?

met with our good friends george and ann earlier today. they were in town celebrating their 46th wedding anniversary. we had a very enjoyable time, and i miss them both greatly.

both of our families have experienced a sort of "exodus" (from chURch) in the past several years. and after a couple of hours of conversation it all seemed to boil down to the question: "where do we go from here?" the short answer to this question is "i have no idea." but i wanted to offer up a couple of trail markers to look for along the way:

1. become more and more reliant on the holy spirit's work in our lives. i do not possess within me, the ability to discern god's will. i have TRIED and TRIED. so it is time to give up! prayer: "god reveal your will for my life and show me the things necessary to perfectly incarnate those things in my life, and then give me the power to carry them out."

2. become satisfied with the journey and stop living for the destination. there is some good theology in the phrase motocyclist use frequently "it is all about the journey, not the destination." god has begun a good work in us, that are trusting him for our salvation, and he WILL bring it to completion. he has led us this far, it would be foolish to not trust him with our future. this is where i find myself at the moment. i am filled with doubt and questions. not so much about the truth as revealed in jesus, but my part in that - my part in the story of god's work in human history.

so those are my trail markers. those are the two thoughts i can look at to tell if i am on the trail, or if i have wondered off the map. there are many more, but these seem to be significant to me at the moment - where i am on the "jesus road."

thanks george and ann for your friendship, and willingness to allow me and my family to be a part of your lives.