08859

- i have had an interesting journey this last week...the theme sems to be opportunities...here’s a snapshot...

...monday through thursday was spent, in part, preparing for and helping to pull off the annual fall fundraiser for the manna house. i’ve had the opportunity to serve on the board for six months now and i’ve struggled with my participation there for the following reasons:

a) i’m two decades younger than anyone else on the board
b) i have had a short term of service
c) i’ve never served on a board before and i’ve struggled with board “culture”
d) serving on the board seems to be a distraction from what is really important to me, namely building relationships with the clients

...but on thursday we raised over $9,000 and put on a great event...i got to show my promo video and meet a lot of the volunteers that make manna happen. new ideas are starting to surface...in a forrest gump moment i became the chairman of the planning committee and i’m starting to see how that influence can be leveraged. a month ago i saw little purpose for board membership but now i’m seeing how hanging in there with this opportunity could lead to some really cool things...

...friday i found out that a seemingly promising job opportunity fell through. by my count, this is the third serious job opportunity that hasn’t worked out here in durango. each opportunity would have altered (i.e. diminished) my role with the church. on friday and saturday i was pretty bummed, wondering why this opportunity had even come up and if i’d ever “get my chance.”

...back to thursday: chip and i met to do our yearly ctk staff evaluations...i’ve always struggled with feeling underutilized in my various ministry opportunities, but i left that meeting realizing that i’ve grossly underestimated my role in what is happening with our church community.

...sunday: rick snodgrass (head of ctk-usa) was in town last night to hang out with us and strengthen our connection with “headquarters.” rick is a super-encouraging man with an amazing story of his own. it was awesome to hear about how the ctk story continues to unfold in colorado (new mexico!), washington, and around the world. rick continually used the word “movement” to describe the ctk story.

...the thought i’m left with after all of this is that it is a privilege to play a role in this story...to be, in some small way, a part of a movement...and that this is my opportunity and i couldn’t be any more grateful for it.