Our New Journey

As of Oct. 15, Rick will no longer be on staff at Vanguard Church. After 10 years, our time has come to a close.

This is a process that began in our hearts several months ago. Actually, if you remember, I have been saying all year that I felt like something big was coming. I had no idea at the time that it would be this. Now, I know. God was preparing me. Rick has served in many roles at Vanguard since we started there 10 years ago. He started leading over small groups. Two years into our time, he took on the role of Executive Pastor. That role has changed and evolved somewhat since he took it on. As Vanguard has gone through cuts & layoffs, we felt that it was our time to transition. We aren't sure what is next yet, but wanted you to know.

We felt like our time in this role was potentially coming to an end, but thought we would see what transition God might have for us. Then, a couple of weeks ago everything changed. Rick was taken to the hospital by ambulance with all the symptoms of a heart attack during a very stressful day at his job. I have been watching my husband deal with so much stress over the last few years. After dropping the kids off at a friend's house, I was driving to the hospital, just praying that he would be okay. All the while thinking, "it is not worth it. We need Rick. "

The minute I saw him, we both teared up. He said, "Well, if that is not a wake-up call, I don't know what is." At that point, we had no idea if it really was a heart attack or not. We just knew that something had to change, and that something needed to be sooner rather than later. The next week brought about much discussion for us about our calling, what is really important and what we want to spend our life pursuing. In the end, we knew that he could not continue in his position long term. It wasn't healthy for him, for our family, or for Vanguard.

Throughout this whole time, the leadership at Vanguard was discussing HUGE budget cuts that needed to be made. These cuts included ministry cuts, benefits cuts, and staff position layoffs. After praying and seeking direction, we felt we needed to offer Rick's position to be considered. It just didn't feel right for us to keep our job or even potentially take on someone else's job if we weren't planning to stay. So, Rick offered and the leadership accepted. His position became one of the positions that was laid off.

This whole ordeal has come as a shock to many. Mostly, people don't know the whole story, and I wanted to share it. We have a peace about this and plan to stay at Vanguard unless God moves us from Colorado Springs. We have NO IDEA what is next. That is the scary/exciting part. We never imagined this would happen so fast. We really thought we would wait it out and seek something else when we felt certain God was moving us on. We would just move from our current position to a different position somewhere else. Well, obviously, that is not the case.

We are seeking God in what He has for us. We are open to anything He might call us to. We have experienced confirmation in our hearts and through other relationships as we have embarked on this new journey. We don't know where it will take us. I do have "freak out" moments. It is in those moments that God speaks to me. Just the other day, I was driving down the road and I was truly panicking. I thought, "What have we done? Who gives up their comfortable position in a down economy? What if we are making a decision that will destroy our family?" And then, right at that instant, God brought to my mind the last time I thought the phrase, "What if we are making a decision that will destroy our family?" It was during our adoption. I have absolutely no regrets about that. It was a very scary time. I look back now and am so thankful for the privilege of bringing Isaiah and Laila into our family.

We have been surrounded by kind, supportive, and encouraging words. We have received emails, texts, phone calls, and even offers to help us in this transition. WOW!! That is really all I can say. We love seeing God work. We love being in His will even when we don't know what it is. We are trusting Him to lead us exactly where He wants us to go. Some days over the last couple of weeks it has been a minute by minute process of saying, "Okay, God what do you want me to do in this moment?" On other days we venture into future thinking a bit.

So, for now, that is where we are. I plan to continue to share this adventure with you. We would be blessed and honored to have you praying with us. Thanks for journeying with me up to this point and for joining me on this new journey that our family has begun!!