To say that this is a journey is a goal for me to become a better leader with what I do is to make myself enter a place I don't want to go. When I come to a place where I can sit back and say, "Man, I am really good at what I do," that is the day I will quit what I do. First and foremost, this journey is not about myself. It is first about God and secondly about others. I am merely a willing vessel for God to use to bring glory to His name.
#1:God- I can look around and see that God works in each and everyone of us and is ready and willing to work in any situation that we allow Him to. So if God wants to come and invade a college ministry in Chattanooga, who are we to say no? Who are we to think that we can run a ministry without Him? I mean sure we could meet every Tuesday, we could play loud rock music that could get people excited, David could get up there and give a morally correct message and people could walk away having a good night. We could do all that without God. But no one would leave changed. So what's the good in that? I'd rather sit at home and watch baseball if God isn't in it. I've seen and partaken in ministries that kind of seem to have God as a secondary player and really there has been times when I wouldn't go anymore. It's all about God and I think so many times we just forget that factor. He is the one and only we should even consider when engaging in worship. If we forget that, we are done, things fall apart, people start blaming one another, things get nasty real fast. I've seen it happen.
#2:Others- Jesus told us that the two greatest commandments were love the Lord your God with all your heart, soul and mind, and love your neighbor as yourself. That is why I don't want my inadequacies (I actually spelled that word correctly without spellcheck) to come between the students who come to The House and their encounter with God. I know that sounds silly and I know that if God wants someone to encounter Him, it won't matter who stands in the way of Him, He will get there. At the same time though, I want to do my part to point those who join us each week directly towards God and His glory, mercy, and forgiveness. I'll be the first person to admit that I am a messed-up, dirty sinner who doesn't deserve any forgiveness or mercy or to even dwell in the presence of a living God. But God is love and because of His endless pursuit to bring all things to Him, I receive this free gift of salvation. It is for that reason and that reason alone that I sing.
I want to come to a place where even if I am dealing with tons of crap, I can know that the minute I step on that stage and play that first chord, that it is just me and God and that I can look to Ashley or Ryan or Nathan or Trenton or AJ or Eric or anyone else up there with me and know that it is just them and God. I think when we all are focused on God we can truly worship. Also I have found that when we as a band are in a place of togetherness, the students can experience God's presence clearer. So my one and only goal is to focus on God. The rest will follow.
