Half Way There

Chow everybody,

So I made it to the great land of the Germans, flowing with beer and chocolate. My journey so far has taken me to Sea-Tac, WA for 10 hours then 11 hours across the world to Frankfurt, DE. Now I am sitting near my gate, which is oddly under construction, but I am trying not to worry. Ha. I have been here since 12:30 local time and my flight is boarding at 2100. So I get another wonder filled layover. It is such a good thing that my flights were put years apart from each other because I have had to circumnavigate both airports. I wonder if I just don’t understand terminal maps or it’s really that confusing. I really think I took every back road and alley I could to get to the right gate. I really don’t make things easy for myself, but hey that’s the excitement of traveling.

But now after some free coffee that tasted like water, I have a moment to sit down and breathe.

I have to be honest with all of you now. I want you all to know the thoughts of my heart as I write this blog.

There are two ways to look at my trip, one being I am coming back to Germany to continue my mission I started two years ago. Or the second is, I am leaving Bozeman to move into a new life. I am really torn between the two thought patterns. I did not realize how hard it would be to say goodbye to my friends in Bozeman. I know I will see all of them again one sunny day. However, I would miss waking up and seeing their unique faces. I need to shout out to Mike Keller, you are really my best friend. I looked up to you all summer and I still do. You are one strong man. I was stoked the day I realized we were good friends, if not the best. I’m going to miss you man.

I have so much to say about all my friends, you guys are the ones that kept me wanting to push through the dark down days. I love all of you. In the best way, all of you are the reason I am headed back to Germany to pursue my purpose in life. I don’t want to be like you are the reason I am leaving but in the best way you all are. I felt so supported by each one of you. Whether or not you believed in the same vision as I do, you still told me to chase down my dreams and not stop till I changed the world. Thank you for that.

It doesn’t stop here guys, and girls; I am just now walking into the front lines of this battlefield. I still need to hear the shouts and encouragement of you guys as I fight forward. I know you wont leave me out here by myself.

I want to hear from you and about your life.  That is just as encouraging as a few nice words in an email. So I challenge you this week, to find fifteen minutes and write me some praise about your life or ask me a question you are asking your self. Lets get involved in each others lives.

Fight.

.

The end is near.

What do I even say. Am I excited? Am I nervous? Am I making the right choice? 

I guess you could say today is “one of those days”. I am so nervous. I am leaving everything I know and love to go to somewhere foreign. Man, the word Foreign is so intense.

It means strange and unfamiliar, not belonging to or the characteristic of, coming or introduced from outside.

I have left Montana many times before, but it was with the intention to return. I am not planning on coming back anytime soon. This is not a short-term trip. I have all that I own in my backpack. Even what is in there is not that important. I have been shedding all my unnecessary belongings to make it all fit in my bags, but now that I look at it all I really don’t need any of it. It’s the experiences that God has given me that are what is important. My faith and willingness to serve is all I need to go out and fulfill my purpose.

Here is to going forward into the unknown.

Please keep me in your thoughts and prayers today. I am not perfect and I am human. I will be nervous and skeptical about my calling, but as I long as I know God has called me, I will run to meet any challenge and stand my ground till I conquer the task at hand.

            I am ready to go. Follow me as I head out deeper into the battlefield. I need all of God’s chosen people to be fighting and reaching out.

            You are God’s chosen. Fight.

#sucess

This past weekend had my photo exhibition, and it blew me away. I had high expectations for this event, and they were surpassed. God used it to affect so many people. I had hung about 100 photos and about a dozen drawings. It was all my best work. I had spent all that week leading up to the show, cutting out matts and frames for my pictures. I had set the standard for the exhibition way high, like I tend to do, but unlike most other times, I had accomplished what I set out to do and did not settle for almost perfect. The set up for the show was the way I imagined it and the sweet tea was excellent. Cookies were out and piled on plates. Red Solo cups were stacked and my ATOM magazines were arced in the most perfect rainbow.

I went kinda OCD on the whole set up. However, when it comes to an art showing, you could have masterpieces, but if the display is off, they could look like a child’s work. An example, of that is Alphonse Mucha’s gallery in Prague, Czech Republic, has the poorest lighting set up. I nearly cried when I went there. I love his work more than any others, and to see it in such a state made me cringe.
 

It is my biggest fear to be shown in a gallery where my work is not displayed properly. The showing I had set up was outside and under the Montana sun. I woke up that morning and prayed that the rain would stop. It stayed overcast all day, perfect light conditions to show. I was happy.

            During the exhibition, I had about a dozen or more of my friends show up and stroll through. Everyone had questions about my art, which lead to great conversations and tons of encouragement. Man, what a perfect thing to do before I jump into full time missions. This is exactly what I will be doing in Germany, using my art to spark conversations about Jesus and His good news. 

             The more I think about what I am flying to Germany to do, I realize that the location of my mission headquarters does matter. Gods people are everywhere, I can spread the Good News were ever I stand. I realized I have started my full time missionary life style already. This will be the last week of working landscaping and then I will begin my full time work for God and the Kingdom. . .

Backyard Gallery

Hey guys check it out! I am having a Photo Exhibition. I will have quite a few photos hanging up for display. I am asking people to come out and enjoy a bit of art and home made sweet tea. I am going to string up line across my back yard and clip my photos up for my first outdoor gallery presentation. This is a fundraiser for my re-entry to the full time mission’s life style. I am set on going to China to help a good friend set up and tear down art in a high-end gallery there. I want to be there to minister to those who come out and see his work. I will need money for a flight and my stay there. I plan on using any donation from this exhibition towards this trip. I will need around 1000 US dollars for this this month long outreach. I believe God has people there who need His Holy Spirit released into their life. I want to be used by God in China to save His lost children there.

            If anyone sees a photo of art piece they would like to have as their own, I will ask for a donation of any kind for the piece. I want my art to be spread through the world. If it brings you enjoyment, I want you to have it. That makes my goal as an artist fulfilled.

            I will be having a raffle for six framed photos. Tickets for the raffle are complimentary for coming to the exhibition. If you really like the photos, any kind of donation will get you another ticket. First draw will get first pick of all six, and so on! So be sure to stick around for the drawings.

            Having this photo exhibition, I just want to share with you my passions and my life goals. It would mean the world to me if you stopped by and gave me a few minutes to share it all with you!

 Click the link below to get more info on the Photo Exhibition.

https://www.facebook.com/events/498045020282951/

Double Dog Dare Ya

                The first question I hear as I tell someone about my journey to Germany and the nations beyond is “where will you get the support?” I never really have given an answer that satisfies the one who asked it. I will tell them it will come from individual supporters and just the goodness of God. They say, “Oh, so like a church will support you.” I wish a church would have me as their missionary. What an opportunity to be talked about in a church. Your work and the mission God called you on are being announced in front of believers, who are in church for encouragement. I could be that encouragement. For now though I will have to be an encouragement to those who see me on the street.
                The money I have raised for this trip, so far, has been through the sweat on my back. I have worked from sun up to sun down, to bring home the bacon. I am not bragging on my accomplishments, I just want to share that with you. To show you that being called to be a missionary doesn’t mean that all your finances will be handed to you. I believe God has given everyone a creative mind and a will to work to survive. I also be God blesses those who put His tools to work. Like the parable of the three men who he had given ten sheckles to. For modern times sake lets just say He spotted these guys ten bucks.  I guess now days, ten dollars wont get farther than breakfast, so lets make it 1000 dollars. Now with this amount you can start to make money off of, if put in the right place. Jesus said ill be right back and then ill need my money back. So these men being ambitious went out and took advantage of the money they were lent.  The first man went out and bought some stocks and by the end of the week had double the amount. He got to keep what he earned and gave the original amount to Jesus. The next man went out and bought a old car, fixed it up and got one and a half times what Jesus gave him. He got to keep his earnings. The last guy took his money and stuffed it in an old boot and kept it there till Jesus came back. He gave Jesus all the money he had lent him. He expected Jesus to be pleased that he was still able to repay the full amount. However, Jesus was disappointed at the man’s complacency. He congratulated the other two men because of their responsibility and was happy with them. This showed me that God will provide me with resources, such as money or a job or a clever mind, and it is my job to go out and use them to support myself.
                I understand that living off “support” can be and is sometimes looked down upon. It seems like it is an easy way out. That I don’t have to work and I can go travel the world of other peoples hard earned money.  That is not how it is.

In the bible, it says to tithe ten percent of your income. Some people will take that literally, just for a specific numerical amount. Yet God simply asks for an amount you think you can live with out. God longs for our trust and He loves providing for us. He wants us to put our selves in a place of 100% reliance on Him. He challenges us to tithe, as a practical starting point to be in that place of 100% reliance.  It is up to us how much we give. There is no scale on what amount is the enough; just that it pushes us out of self-reliance and into Gods arms. A poor man could give his last quarter to God and that would mean just as much as if the rich man gave his whole paycheck to God. A funny challenge I was told once was to out give God. Like some one Double Dog Dared me to do that. What happened? He out gave me every time. He loves to win if you haven’t noticed, haha.  
If you believe God is calling you to tithe, and giving your money to a “church” is out of the question, then its time to get creative with where to invest your resources. Gods work on earth is not solely through churches. They do a great work in their community but its not the only place Gods work is. Here in Bozeman, there are a ton of Christian college groups that reach out to the students and city. For example I am involved with Snowboarders and Skiers for Christ. These guy do so much to minister to the community, they need support. Campus Crusade does the tons of work too. I could go on, but I just want to give examples of different avenues to give your tithe offering.

Break the norm, and give outside of the church. Find someone or some group to support next time you have enough for an offering. Change things up.