The Calling Post #2

"What a graceful return" said the man in a car with no air conditioning with 20 minutes until his upcoming flight back to Texas was to be departing. God was gracious to open the 7 lanes of traffic in the suburbs of Los Angeles for just a few hours for me to take a back and a forth to retrieve the one thing that would keep me from boarding the plane....my brand new Los Angeles tank top!

Just kidding, it was my wallet, but i'm still pretty stoked about the tank top.

Funny enough, the day of my departure from the sunny shores of California was the hardest of the trip. Well I take that back and before I explain..I feel that I need that God needs to be the one to lead this post. So please bare with me.

Dear Lord Father,

Thank you so much for giving me the courage and allowing me to suck it up and take a memorable journey that I will tell my future kids about whenever they wonder about taking a risk to do what you have called them to do. Thank you for the calling and speaking in a way that I could understand and thank you for putting people in my path along the way that gave me a roof to sleep under and a church to attend and fellowship and love that I can truly never repay. You are the mover of us and I cannot tell you how excited I am to see where this takes me. Please give me the passion to pray for more that whether I end up in California for this season or if this was just a warm-up for something bigger, I just want to stay in contact with you Father so I can follow you wherever you go. Thank you again for this life and for all the blessings you have shown through this time of uncertainty and showing me again what it means to trust in ALL aspects of my life. In your name I pray, Amen!

Thank you for indulging my bloggers prayer, ya'll. Anyways, here I go. If you haven't read the 1st chapter of this series, let me fill in a few of the blanks for you. A week ago, I bought a plane ticket on a whim to Los Angeles. I didn't know what to expect, all I know is and I am not exaggerating or throwing out some non-sensical superstition that you've seen from the movie "Saved". Trust me, I AM FULL OF CHRIST's LOVE! Quote from the movie FYI.

Anyways, since I have completely wasted the momentum I started for God's amazing work, let me start a new paragraph. God had recently prepared me for this journey with 3 words to my soul: "Are you ready?" Just those 3 words. I had no idea what it could mean, except that I knew something big was about to happen. Since that moment I had begun to feel a pull to California. So I went. Of course, it wasn't as simple as that. I definitely did some pacing and "logical" thinking, and by logical, I mean cynical thinking. How can I do this? This is crazy? What am I even going to accomplish from all this? If you know me at all, you know that as spontaneous as I can be, leaving in Texas has never been on the top of my to do list. I've been out of state and out of the country before and those were great experiences. I definitely still fantasize about taking a trip out to Ireland and living there planting a church for a few months, but I never thought I would actually think about moving out of the Lone Star State. The toughest thing for me at that moment was pressing that little "book flight" button at the bottom of the expedia.com page.

Sure I still had 24 hours to get a full refund, but I forgot all about that after the epic victory dance that ensued after the completed booking. Woot!

Now onto the actual trip! I will admit that the 1st couple of days I spent on the beach and seeing some of the coast. Two words: Blown away. I got to spend some quality bro time with my boy, Mike (AKA Sal), do some climbing and eat some pretty expensive food. Do not be fooled by the outside of California shanty eateries. Once you enter said shack and they lead you to an elevator to a private upstairs area...Run! Regardless, I got a lot of one on one time with God specifically in the 2 books of Peter


"Therefore, with minds that are alert and fully sober, set your hope on the grace to be brought to you when Jesus Christ is revealed at his coming. As obedient children, do not conform to the evil desires you had when you lived in ignorance. But just as he who called you is holy, so be holy in all you do; for it is written: “Be holy, because I am holy.”


What justification! What joy it was!


For the rest of week, I spent a lot of time in a Starbucks, applying for jobs and just making sure that I couldn't find anything that I could say was not a game breaker for this exodus. Besides the traffic, all I found was pro's. For a second, lets look beyond the city life, the mountainous terrain that eerily looks like El Paso and the beautiful beaches. Best Crepes ever! Homeless people have couches! You can set up a tent wherever you want! I know where to avoid, unlike Dallas where most of the You Will Get Shot area's are all muddled together ( cassie, I will not go to compton ) and street musicians. But, most of all, the 1st church I went to had some serious potential.


There is a revival coming there. Are you ready?


Now that i'm back, there is still some confusion in my heart over a few things. God will definitely be closing some doors or keeping them open and I am just trying to prepare my heart for how this is going to go and oddly enough, i'm okay with it. I know this isn't going to be easy, but I feel like God has set some priorities back into place in only a way that I could understand. He knows my heart and He knows what I need and as Joshua says


"Do not be terrified. Do not be dismayed. For the Lord your God will be with you wherever you go."


Lord God, I just pray for anyone who is reading this who is questioning their path or is wondering why you are being silent to their walk. I just ask that your voice be heard in the way they can understand and that you just give them the ears to listen to your word and can see that everything you do is for our good and for your glory and edification. That it is to strengthen us through perseverance and patience to see your love and so we can magnify that love to others. Let it be that we can say that we fought the good fight of faith and that we trusted in you to trust in you with all our hearts and not lean on our own feeble understand. Because, when have our plans ever worked out? If anything Abba, give us all the peace to wait on you and be good obediant children. In your name we pray, Amen!


God Bless, ya'll!