I'm Not Lucky... Or Am I?

Well, we have been in Hawaii for about a week and a half. I would describe the last week and a half as "waiting".

I will get to what the last week and a half has looked like, but first I'm going to talk about me and my family being "lucky".

One of the most common responses Katie or I heard from people when we told them God called us to Hawaii was: "Boy, you guys are so lucky!"

And that drives me crazy.

First of all, I don't believe in the concept of luck.

Proverbs 16:33 "We may throw the dice, but the LORD determines how they fall."

That verse makes it pretty clear that even though we make think there is "random chance" in truth there is not. God, who exists outside of time, knows EVERYTHING that is going to happen. To Him it has already happened. There is no luck because God knows how everything unfolds.

But... I know when people say, "You're lucky to move to Hawaii." they don't mean random chance. They mean I am lucky that I was called to Hawaii of all places. 

Not random chance kind of luck, but more of a fortunate kind of luck. Like it is good fortune that I was called to Hawaii. Wait, is being fortunate the same as being lucky? I digress.

Ultimately they are saying they are jealous because I get to move to paradise and share the good news of Jesus Christ to the people of Hawaii. In fact many did actually use the phrase, "I'm jealous". They wish they could be called to Hawaii. And that is what drives me crazy!

Yes, God called me to Hawaii. Yes, I have always wanted to move to Hawaii. Yes, I am INCREDIBLY thankful God called me here. But, it is not what people think.

This is not vacation Hawaii. This is work-harder-than-I-have-ever-worked-in-my-life Hawaii. When most people think of Hawaii they think of vacation. They think of beaches, surfing, hula, coconuts, sand, ocean, volcanoes, and everything else that a vacation here would offer. The only thing is: I'm not on vacation.

I'm here to do what God wants me to do and that meant giving up a lot.

I had to pack up my family and move out of our beautiful 3 bedroom house. It had a large fenced back yard. It had a gigantic office where I got to WORK FROM HOME! It had a tree in the front yard where I built a swing big enough for my whole family to sit on. I loved that house. I still do. Now I am renting it out because I moved to the farthest possible place in the United States from my home. That wasn't easy. It wasn't simple. But I'm glad to because I can follow God's will by doing so.

Here we will be incredible blessed if we even get a two bedroom apartment a third of the size of our house. More than likely we will get a one bedroom apartment that is only a quarter of the size! And even at that it will most likely be two to three times more expensive to rent than our mortgage! In fact right now we cannot not even come close to affording ANY place in Maui. But I know with absolute certainty that God will provide. Hence the waiting part of the last week and a half.

Both Katie and I gave up great jobs. She had an amazing job and she loved working with people she loved. I had a great job where I could work from home. You can't beat that commute! Now both of us are here and trying to get any work. Again, I am 100% sure the God will provide. But that doesn't make it any easier. The finances we had saved up for the move are dwindling at an alarming rate. I know God does not care about money like we do, but still it is difficult to watch your bank account slowly decrease with no way to refill it. The dozens and dozens of job applications we have filled out seem to not yield anything. 

There is so much that we had to let go of in order to move here. Well over 90% of our possessions we either gave away, sold or threw out. We moved here only with what we could fit in six suitcases and six carry-ons. That is it!

All of the above, though, we did gladly, excited to follow God's mission. However I would not call that "lucky".

But boy am I blessed.

I think the biggest thing that made me upset when people said I was lucky or that they were jealous is that they were getting hung up on the Hawaii part of "God has called me to Hawaii to work in children's and youth ministry".

It is not about Hawaii. It is not even about the children's and youth ministry. It is completely about the "God called me" part. That is why I am blessed, because I was called.

In my first post I talked about how I had been wanting for years to hear God's voice and go where He called me. Finally I have.

In that way, I am blessed (or lucky/fortunate if you will).

It is not easy. It will be harder than anything else I have had to do. Most likely Katie and I will have to work different shifts and won't see each other as much. Most likely we will live in a tiny place that will be cramped with four people. It will be VERY hard. Definitely not a vacation. 

But I do it all gladly.

Thank you for reading this. Just knowing that people are reading these words and listening to our story fills me with happiness. God is going to do things here. What kind of things I'm still not sure. But I am sure God has a plan.

Please, please pray for Katie and I and our two beautiful children. Pray that I will have the courage and strength to stand firm and keep faith in our wonderful God. Pray that our children can adjust to a different lifestyle and so many new changes. Pray the God will give us a home to stay in and work to do so we can support ourselves as we look towards our ministry. Please pray.

Also, if you feel called, you can support us financially. On the left hand side of the blog should be a "Donate" button. (it does not seem to appear on the mobile version so you would have to look it up on a computer or change your mobile settings to view the desktop site). I know God will provide for us. I have no idea how, but I have faith in Him. Maybe that is through your generosity of donating so we have more time to get on our feet here. Maybe He will provide us with a better job than we can even imagine!

Anything and everything you can do is greatly appreciated. Again, this is not easy. Truthfully, though I knew it would be hard I did not expect it to be this hard. But I know God will provide because He has called us here. If you can't donate then please pray. Help us on this journey and this mission.

And,

Aloha Y'all!