I have the privilege to share testimony of what God has done for me. And I want to share this morning actually specifically what God has done in the last several years, about the last four years. Which has included me seeking him, seeking to know where God would have me, and then bringing me out here. And then what He’s done for me since then.

 Back in the winter of 2005, I graduated seminary, in December 2005. And after I got done with seminary, I went, I had some time. I didn’t have a job yet, so what I decided to do is, forty days in the wilderness. Like Jesus did before he went on in to his ministry. And so I don’t know if you guys have heard of the Appalachian trail, actually you guys have the Pacific Crest, back there we have the Appalachian trail. It’s a pretty big trail. And I was out there for forty days. That in it of itself is a whole other testimony that I don’t have time to get in to today. Unless you want me to preach. But God really moved in that in it was wonderful. When I came back home, I actually… when I got back from the trail I had moved home by that time and so I was living with my parents. You can imagine what that’s like being – well maybe you can, being 27 years old moving back home living with mom and dad is a little weird, to say the least. I think I was 27, I don’t know somewhere like that.

That kind of really began a season for me of frustration. A season of seeking. Where I was seeking Him, but a season where I was really frustrated. Because truly I found myself that what I was doing, I really was seeking to know where God, where He wanted me. I really wanted to know what he wanted to have for me and where He wanted me to be serving. And yet at the same time, T didn’t really want to go and do it. That doesn’t really belong in the same sentence, but that’s really is where I was at. I wanted to see. I wanted to know where He wanted me. I wanted to serve Him and but I didn’t. Because in reality, there was some faith issues in there. I wanted to serve Him, but I wanted something that was a slam dunk. I wanted to see really exactly where to put my feet. Know exactly what I was standing on. Know exactly where I was heading and all that stuff. Really I wanted God to show me where to go and I’ll just go there on my own. Because, I didn’t want to have God move on my behalf in order to for something to work out. Because I didn’t trust Him. That’s just really what it came down to. I didn’t trust Him and that’s why I was seeking and yet not really seeking. Because even though I wanted to know what He wanted, I didn’t want to go with him. I thought of a little illustration. You can imagine an eagle it’s got it’s learning to fly. It’s got its wings, it’s waiting to leap off its perch. In to the world, you know, and just soar like an eagle can, yet not willing to take that first plunge. You can imagine how frustrating that is, to know you got these wings, Gods given them. You know you can just soar but not willing to take the jump.

This was actually a period of about as I said, it took about a year and a half. And at the end of that year and a half, a spell. I had some people challenging me saying, “You know Keith, you really want to know what God wants from you, then you need to do your part in that. It’s like God is just not going to lay it in your lap.” Which is just what I wanted. “He’s not just going to lay it in your lap. That’s just not usually how he moves. So what needs to happen here Keith, you need to let God do His thing but you need to do your part.” So that entailed for me was sending resumes. I began to send out a couple resumes I don’t know how many. But either way I got a response back from a church in California, down there I think where the fires are right now. So I don’t know that’s maybe not all so bad. But when I got the first, they emailed me asking for some more information. And so I responded, sent them the information they were asking for. And didn’t hear anything from them. So I emailed them back saying “Hey what’s up you know, I sent my stuff.” They said “We never got it.” So I sent it again, I did this Three times. Like I got so frustrated. Finally one night literally I was, I was mad.

 So I got online. Anderson Churches of God, they send out an email for all positions that are available. And Neighborhood Chapel had theirs up there. You were among like four or five that night, that in frustration I sent my resume to and Stacy called me the next day. And that really kind of began a direction I almost from the beginning even from the first conversations I had with Stacy, I pretty much knew it looked like this is what God was doing. Looked like this is where God was sending me.

Even though I could see that and even as conversations with Stacy and then conversations with Karen and Gloria over the phone. Even though I could sense this really was where God was going, I wasn’t yet ready to trust in him. Again as I said, I wanted to seek Him, but I wanted to do in my abilities. I thought if I can control the issues that nothing could go wrong. Right? How many of you are like that huh? Control freaks? This guy and I hate it too. Either way God began to really encourage me with a passage of scripture. As I said for me to come out here, there was a lot of risks involved. At least in my eyes there was a lot of risks. I’m leaving my family, I could be lonely, I hear it rains out there a lot. I’m kind of concern how it will go over for me, what about the people, what about the pianist. But God really began to move to mold my heart, to comfort those concerns. And actually he used a passage of scripture out of Joshua, and this passage of scripture, Moses has lead the people. He has lead the people out of Egypt and in to almost in to the promised land but because of disobedience then He sent them in to the wilderness and forty years later he’s got them back to the promised land. And Moses at this point dies. And Joshua is going to take over leadership of this great awesome big nation and go and conquer the promised land. And what God tell him is in chapter 1 verse 9. And he says in there, “Be bold and courageous for I am with you.” And I knew that – I knew that’s what God was telling me. He just put that in my heart deep when I read that many times. “Be bold and courageous for I am with you. Be bold and courageous” Why – why should you be bold and courageous ? Because “I am with you. And I am enough.” In the end it came down to me saying – answering this question of, “Do I really believe in Him to be who he says He is.” You know this is where the rubber meets the road. Do I believe He is who He says He is? Do I believe that? He was asking me to step deep in to that promise. That He is enough. And just trust Him. And so I did it, as you know I’m here.

I can remember the first day. Well the first day I was here I was lost, sort of, in traffic. I got my first taste of Seattle traffic, which drove me crazy. The first night I got here I couldn’t get off of 18 or I couldn’t get off of 90 on to 18. The exit there was back clear up to the interstate. I called Scott and said “I’m Late.” And getting through the traffic all the way in to the apartment. And is anybody been to my apartment, it’s like 65 miles long. So I didn’t know where my apartment was when I got there. So Scott had to talk me in. It was kind of funny.

The next day I was out taking a walk and I was talking to my friend that’s in Texas, a worship pastor friend. (Lightning Flash) and um, (Loud Thunder) I was waiting for that because I could see the flash and thought that’s going to be loud. I could hear it too. Did you guys hear it? I mean obviously not the… Sometimes it takes something like that just to hear Him. I was out walking out on the trail next to the apartments and I was talking friend. He’s a worship pastor friend and I said, “Jeff you know I’ve got a lot of concerns, I’ve got this and this, all there different things. And what about this and I could just terribly horribly fail out here. I might not connect with the people at all and there’s type of things that come to mind. And I just stopped in mid sentence because I had far enough, I got to a break in the trees and I could see MT Rainier. I just stopped, I said, “Jeff, I’m looking at MT. Rainier, it’s awesome, it’s gorgeous.” And Jeff said these words, I think I’ve shared this story before, but Jeff said these words to me, he said “Keith the same God that made that mountain is the same God that’s going to help you with all the stuff you’re talking about.” And I can say he has. I mean, it’s been so good out here he is… I truly, I truly honestly I had never been more alive in my life. I can say that, I know life, life unlike I’ve known before. And I know here’s the cool thing, it’s only going to get better. It’s not because it’s going to be easy, but it’s because that’s who God is.

I just wanted to share a couple, couple ways of which I know God has just filled my cup to overflowing. He’s over and over again proven that He’s faithful. In stuff that comes up, issues, concerns that I’ve had, either with the church or personally, over and over since I’ve been out here. He’s proven that He’s faithful. He has provided the family who loves me, I feel the love. You feel the love? I feel the love, I feel the love. And that is so wonderful because not every pastor gets that. In fact I know I have friends out here. People who true friendships, I have a number of friends out here. I was reading a book that we are reading for the board. And in that book they quote something that just scared me. It’s a 1991 stat but I don’t spose anything changed a lot changed since then. It say that 70% of pastors do not have someone that they consider a friend. I count myself blessed, because I don’t just have one but many out here.

He’s brought emotional healing. He’s renewed, given me a sense of wholeness again. And as I said already, it’s not because things had been easy. In fact a lot of the strength a lot of the growth that I had in things that God has moved on my behalf has come to the tough stuff. I’ve been hurt since I have been here. I’ve been disappointed since I’ve been here. Even in that stuff God has proven himself faithful, and He’s proven himself enough. And that He always will be. Say I can get you through the easy stuff, guess what, but I can get you through the hard stuff too.

I’m just going to read this last little bit, God has yet affirmed that He is faithful. He is a faithful foundation of which I can trust in and of which will not fail me, no matter what. That he is indeed enough and will always be enough. That in him I could take risks and not only walk across the stormy waters of life, but even run and dance and soar and fly as I traverse them. Praise the Lord, Praise the Lord.