From Salesman to Pastor

From Salesman to Pastor…

I have a confession to make. I have known since I was 14 that God wanted me to be a pastor. I was sitting at the church I grew up in, and was listening to Charles Shields preach a sermon. I heard an undeniable voice from God tell me that this was what He had in mind for me. No, it wasn’t the food I ate the night before, either.

Who would have thought that I would finally answer that call 20 years later by becoming a pastor at Grace Fellowship here in Lynnwood, WA? There were times over the years where I thought that God was maybe giving me and my family the green light to be a pastor, but for various reasons, it never panned out.

Surprisingly, one of the biggest hurdles in this process was that I loved my previous job selling water for Crystal Springs. I never thought I would ever enjoy a job that was not paid for by a church. Yet there I was, at a great job that taught me so much about myself, my faith, what motivates me. Plus, I was paid a lot of cash to do something that was easy and enjoyable for me.

Yet all the while, I had that experience at 14 where I knew God wanted me to be a pastor.

In October of 2006, my wife Amy and I were fully on the same page, and were ready to make the leap of faith to join the staff of Grace Fellowship.

I love doing puzzles, especially with Amy. They are great because you get the opportunity to talk with your wife and do an activity together at the same time. My friends make fun of me because I get really into them. They call me the “Rain Man” and that I need to buy some more underwear at Target. But I love it when you match the shapes and textures. When the pieces start to come together and the full picture emerges. When you put the pieces together in the way they are supposed to work. The best part is right at the end when there are like 5 or 6 pieces left. They all fall into place and the picture is complete.

Becoming a pastor was like finishing a puzzle. Everything about my life came together just like the pieces of a puzzle. The picture was complete. I saw my life as it was designed by God to be- serving His people.

This puzzle was not like the other puzzles, though. It does not end with this initial picture. This was only the start of a much grander, more majestic picture that now includes starting a church from the ground up.

My next post will have several parts about why on earth we would plant a church.