Pickens' Family Update
I sit at my desk in front of my computer screen thankful for what the Lord has given and what He has taken away. Many people have been asking me about what is going on in life and so I want to share. My natural instinct is to hold back and not let people in for several reasons...
1. Life's next step was so unclear that to even talk about a direction seemed irresponsible.
2. I didn't want to move myself nor my family in a direction emotionally without knowing clear direction from the Lord.
3. Does anyone even care about our drama?! haha
For those of you that do care, here is the scoop.
Since I was in college, God had given me a passion for discipleship and a love for young people. That pushed me into youth ministry, the area I have been serving in some capacity since I graduated High School. I thought I would always be a youth pastor! I used to cringe when people asked me about becoming a senior pastor and assumed I was in youth ministry as a stepping stone toward becoming a senior pastor.
Over the past several years, God began to open my eyes to a reality I could not ignore. I began to see the essential role that adults have been given in the role of discipleship... especially the home. I also saw that my passion for discipleship could be used in a more effective way to have greater influence on children and students through their parents and other influential adults in their lives. God showed me the absolute importance of the home when it comes to passing on the faith and that starts with adults! When I looked at all the ministries of the church, I saw that they were championed and staffed by adults. I also noticed how many adults were so busy "doing" ministry that there seemed to be a certain anemia about their own walk with the Lord.
As all these things were flooding my heart (among other thoughts), I began to evaluate and seek God about the most effective area of ministry for me. It was an obvious answer to me... the discipleship of adults. What was clear to me was that God had shaped me to become a senior pastor. I love to preach and teach God's Word, I am a visionary who is driven by a passion for the Gospel, and God has given me the gift of discernment. I would constantly get affirmation from others about becoming a senior pastor. What I was unclear about was the timing. I was asked by some people working with the church I was serving if I would consider shifting to a different position... Working with adults. At that time I began to think that maybe this is where God was leading. It would give me experience with adults while carrying out my passion for discipleship and I could work on my Master's of Divinity as well. It seemed like the right thing to do since I would serve Jesus by serving people that I had grown to love so very much at a church that I loved. Back in January, I announced my resignation confident that God was shifting my area of effectiveness. Regardless if I got the position or not at First Baptist of New Castle, I knew that God was moving me toward the discipleship of adults, so I asked myself the question... What is best for the Kingdom? It was clear that FBC of New Castle had just launched a vision that I believe in and that regardless of what happened with me, they needed to hit the ground running in the fall. I know how long search processes can be, so I resigned so that the process could start right away. Back in March, God shut the door on this opportunity and I was confused. I thought for sure God was leading in that direction, but He had other plans.
Ever since I announced my resignation, I began to aggressively search and apply to churches that I felt would be a potential good fit for where I was at. Time after time I would get back an email saying that they were looking for someone with experience with adults and a masters degree. There were several times that I made it through the first and second "cut" before I would receive a similar email. It seemed obvious to me that I needed to focus on my Masters degree, but at age 37 and two teenagers, this option seemed daunting. So I was confused and uncomfortable with where I was at in life.
Then I got a call from a friend who told me about this church in Michigan who was looking for a senior pastor and asked me if I would send them a resume. I went online and checked out the church and thought it could be a potential fit. I sent my resume thinking that I will probably never hear from them. In the mean time, We moved from New Castle to Lima to stay in the house that my wife grew up in. It was sitting empty and was in need of some remodeling, so we moved and began waiting and working on the house. Trish was looking for a full time job and this point still very unclear about the future. One of the options that we had was to just land ourselves in Lima, Ohio and there I would get a part time job and try to get my master's degree online. This process has been very difficult for all of us, but especially my wife. In mid July, after talking, praying, and crying together, I decided that we should just land in Lima and make it work. Then 30 seconds later, I got a phone call. The search committee at this church in Michigan wanted to know if I would be interested in a phone interview with the committee. I agreed to the interview, but that meant we were back in the land of questions. You have to love that place! I interviewed and thought it went well. I wasn't sure what they were thinking, but I was pleased with what I heard from those whom I interviewed with. A couple of weeks later I got a call asking if I would interested in coming up there to meet with the deacons and preach as a guest speaker for the morning. So we headed to Lowell, MI not knowing what to expect, and were overwhelmed with the potential of this church, and the people were incredible. We really enjoyed our time with them, and the waiting game resumed. I knew they were looking at other people as well for the position, and I knew that my lack of a master's and senior pastor experience was a hurdle. Then one morning my wife received a call about a potential full time opportunity. She interviewed and they offered her the job. It was decision time. We certainly needed the money and direction seemed to be nice thing as well, so I again made the decision to land in Lima. I sent an email to the committee in Lowell, MI dropping out of the process to focus on my master's. The next weekend I went to a pastor's conference in Grand Rapids (just west of Lowell) and I could not stop thinking about First Baptist Church of Lowell. I thought to myself, "Did I make the wrong decision by dropping out?" Well, as uncomfortable as I was, I knew I had already made the decision so it is what it is. In the mean time, I registered for classes (which start Monday) and committed to an internet contract. A few weeks after my email to drop out of the process, the chairman of the search committee calls me asking me to reconsider. The committee was sensing the Spirit leading them to me and at the same time I was sensing led in that direction as well, but I knew that meant living in the land of uncertainty again. Trish was away that weekend, so when she got back we talked, prayed, and cried together... both desperately wanting to be obedient to Christ. We both sensed God's leadership in this, and without making a long story longer, we were asked to candidate on November 13th and 20th. We both recognize that we are still living in the land of uncertainty. We don't know if the Lord will shut that door or not, but we are very excited to go through it while it is open. So please pray for us. The kids are doing great! They understand that this is a time of uncertainty and you bet that it takes it's toll on them, but they have been wonderful. I asked Tori what she was thinking when I was reconsidering jumping back into the process, and she said to me... "Dad, what is best for the Kingdom?" That is a courageous thing to say!
In the mean time, I start classes on Monday and have several sermons to prepare in the next three weeks, so I will not be blogging on a regular basis unless time permits. Thanks in advance for your concern and prayers for the Pickens' family.
1. Life's next step was so unclear that to even talk about a direction seemed irresponsible.
2. I didn't want to move myself nor my family in a direction emotionally without knowing clear direction from the Lord.
3. Does anyone even care about our drama?! haha
For those of you that do care, here is the scoop.
Since I was in college, God had given me a passion for discipleship and a love for young people. That pushed me into youth ministry, the area I have been serving in some capacity since I graduated High School. I thought I would always be a youth pastor! I used to cringe when people asked me about becoming a senior pastor and assumed I was in youth ministry as a stepping stone toward becoming a senior pastor.
Over the past several years, God began to open my eyes to a reality I could not ignore. I began to see the essential role that adults have been given in the role of discipleship... especially the home. I also saw that my passion for discipleship could be used in a more effective way to have greater influence on children and students through their parents and other influential adults in their lives. God showed me the absolute importance of the home when it comes to passing on the faith and that starts with adults! When I looked at all the ministries of the church, I saw that they were championed and staffed by adults. I also noticed how many adults were so busy "doing" ministry that there seemed to be a certain anemia about their own walk with the Lord.
As all these things were flooding my heart (among other thoughts), I began to evaluate and seek God about the most effective area of ministry for me. It was an obvious answer to me... the discipleship of adults. What was clear to me was that God had shaped me to become a senior pastor. I love to preach and teach God's Word, I am a visionary who is driven by a passion for the Gospel, and God has given me the gift of discernment. I would constantly get affirmation from others about becoming a senior pastor. What I was unclear about was the timing. I was asked by some people working with the church I was serving if I would consider shifting to a different position... Working with adults. At that time I began to think that maybe this is where God was leading. It would give me experience with adults while carrying out my passion for discipleship and I could work on my Master's of Divinity as well. It seemed like the right thing to do since I would serve Jesus by serving people that I had grown to love so very much at a church that I loved. Back in January, I announced my resignation confident that God was shifting my area of effectiveness. Regardless if I got the position or not at First Baptist of New Castle, I knew that God was moving me toward the discipleship of adults, so I asked myself the question... What is best for the Kingdom? It was clear that FBC of New Castle had just launched a vision that I believe in and that regardless of what happened with me, they needed to hit the ground running in the fall. I know how long search processes can be, so I resigned so that the process could start right away. Back in March, God shut the door on this opportunity and I was confused. I thought for sure God was leading in that direction, but He had other plans.
Ever since I announced my resignation, I began to aggressively search and apply to churches that I felt would be a potential good fit for where I was at. Time after time I would get back an email saying that they were looking for someone with experience with adults and a masters degree. There were several times that I made it through the first and second "cut" before I would receive a similar email. It seemed obvious to me that I needed to focus on my Masters degree, but at age 37 and two teenagers, this option seemed daunting. So I was confused and uncomfortable with where I was at in life.
Then I got a call from a friend who told me about this church in Michigan who was looking for a senior pastor and asked me if I would send them a resume. I went online and checked out the church and thought it could be a potential fit. I sent my resume thinking that I will probably never hear from them. In the mean time, We moved from New Castle to Lima to stay in the house that my wife grew up in. It was sitting empty and was in need of some remodeling, so we moved and began waiting and working on the house. Trish was looking for a full time job and this point still very unclear about the future. One of the options that we had was to just land ourselves in Lima, Ohio and there I would get a part time job and try to get my master's degree online. This process has been very difficult for all of us, but especially my wife. In mid July, after talking, praying, and crying together, I decided that we should just land in Lima and make it work. Then 30 seconds later, I got a phone call. The search committee at this church in Michigan wanted to know if I would be interested in a phone interview with the committee. I agreed to the interview, but that meant we were back in the land of questions. You have to love that place! I interviewed and thought it went well. I wasn't sure what they were thinking, but I was pleased with what I heard from those whom I interviewed with. A couple of weeks later I got a call asking if I would interested in coming up there to meet with the deacons and preach as a guest speaker for the morning. So we headed to Lowell, MI not knowing what to expect, and were overwhelmed with the potential of this church, and the people were incredible. We really enjoyed our time with them, and the waiting game resumed. I knew they were looking at other people as well for the position, and I knew that my lack of a master's and senior pastor experience was a hurdle. Then one morning my wife received a call about a potential full time opportunity. She interviewed and they offered her the job. It was decision time. We certainly needed the money and direction seemed to be nice thing as well, so I again made the decision to land in Lima. I sent an email to the committee in Lowell, MI dropping out of the process to focus on my master's. The next weekend I went to a pastor's conference in Grand Rapids (just west of Lowell) and I could not stop thinking about First Baptist Church of Lowell. I thought to myself, "Did I make the wrong decision by dropping out?" Well, as uncomfortable as I was, I knew I had already made the decision so it is what it is. In the mean time, I registered for classes (which start Monday) and committed to an internet contract. A few weeks after my email to drop out of the process, the chairman of the search committee calls me asking me to reconsider. The committee was sensing the Spirit leading them to me and at the same time I was sensing led in that direction as well, but I knew that meant living in the land of uncertainty again. Trish was away that weekend, so when she got back we talked, prayed, and cried together... both desperately wanting to be obedient to Christ. We both sensed God's leadership in this, and without making a long story longer, we were asked to candidate on November 13th and 20th. We both recognize that we are still living in the land of uncertainty. We don't know if the Lord will shut that door or not, but we are very excited to go through it while it is open. So please pray for us. The kids are doing great! They understand that this is a time of uncertainty and you bet that it takes it's toll on them, but they have been wonderful. I asked Tori what she was thinking when I was reconsidering jumping back into the process, and she said to me... "Dad, what is best for the Kingdom?" That is a courageous thing to say!
In the mean time, I start classes on Monday and have several sermons to prepare in the next three weeks, so I will not be blogging on a regular basis unless time permits. Thanks in advance for your concern and prayers for the Pickens' family.
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along the way is me and mine.
Kingdom come Thy will be done,
Your Family,
Together for life...