Welcoming "The New Guy"...

This week I (Heidi) get the opportunity to capture an amazing Historic Faith win story, so my plate has been feeling rather full, and my bloggin' noggin a little depleted.  

I have recently learned of an enthusiastic LIFER who is more than willing to share some of his story on the blog and I'm hoping he'll make periodic visits to "Shaping Your Spirit."   

So, give a warm welcome to the new guy, Kent Roberts, guest blogger extraordinaire.  He's got some great stuff to share.  (Hey, those last two sentences rhyme...I love it when I do that!) =D

 

Hi, I’m the new guy on the block, er . . . blog.  Yeah, that’s right, “guy”.  You see, I’ve been in contact with Heidi about doing some possible writing for her on “Shaping Your Spirit”.  She thought it might be interesting as well: In giving the blogsite another perspective; In giving herself a much needed break.  Still though, as one of her co-workers joked, “It's called 'Shaping Your Spirit'...what guy is going to want to read that?”

The scene: An AA-style meeting hall: rickety folding chairs placed in uneven rows, an old makeshift podium, a dozen people in various states, from mild attentiveness to all-out boredom and the pungent smell of burnt coffee permeates the air.  A man sheepishly approaches the podium, grasping it with white knuckles as he chuckles in awkward apprehension:

Me: “So, umm, Hi, my name’s, uh, Kent.”

Crowd: “Hi, Kent!” (Said as supportively as feigned interest can get.)

Me: “And I’m a, umm, I’m a guy.”

(With growing interest and knowing nods the crowd looks to each other with raised eyebrows and half-smiles of affirmation.)

Me: “A-a-and, I read ‘Shaping Your Spirit.’”

(Amid gasps of surprise, the crowd stands to their feet with spontaneous applause)

Facilitator: (steps to the podium, squeezing my shoulder in brotherly support as I pass by to sit down) “Thank you, Kent.  You’re a brave, brave soul.  I know how hard that must have been for you.”

Okay, not really; and I see I’m not the only guy here.  But I thought I’d take a moment to introduce myself.  To tell you a little about what brought me here in the first place: To the world of blogging: To the world of ministry through writing: To co-leader of our home group and as volunteer at RLM?   
It all started in earnest last January, when I unshackled myself from the wild, untamed jungles of retail customer service. It was ten years of my life. I’m not a fan.  I certainly don’t recommend it for the faint of heart or weak of fortitude.

The internal conflict I’d been battling for over a year came to a head over the last Christmas season.  I was NOT a happy guy: Ask my co-workers; my family; my wife!  Something was missing, I just knew it. How could I call myself a Christian, yet act the way I did towards others within my role in retail customer-service. I was amazed at the stuff I got away with saying. I was tired; mentally, physically and spiritually. I would come home and had nothing left: I didn’t want to play with my kids; I didn’t want to talk to my wife; I wanted only to veg, to do nothing more than zone out.

It was more than a little frustrating.

Then . . . something clicked.

I was driving to work, replaying various conversations with numerous people about where I was in my life and my spiritual journey. It felt like I was being asked to step out in faith, and trust: Just walk away from a secure job and comfortable paycheck and trust God.  The pat answer I used as a response to this prompting was, “I don’t have that much faith.”

All at once, it hit me. A new voice entered the mix, rocking me so much I had to write down the words that were said . . . while I was driving:

Faith—you either have it, or you don’t!
It’s not a question of degree.
You either believe that I will walk with you through this, or you don’t.
You either believe that I will work this out for what’s best for both of us, or you don’t. There’s no degree…no sliding scale…no averages.
It’s a yes, or no.
You either have faith, or you don’t.
You either have hope, or you don’t.
You either believe . . .
or you don’t

I gave my two-week’s notice that weekend.

Where I’m going now, I have no idea. Yet I rest in the confidence that He not only knows the road we’re on, but knows the destination. It may not be where I think we’re going, but it will be where I’m supposed to be. God has a sense of humor that way. 

God began slowly and seriously working on my heart about fifteen years ago. Still, I feel I’ve grown more in my walk with Him within the last year than I have at any other time in my life.  Now, all I know, really know, is that I’m not alone: God, family, friends . . . relationships, and time to grow them all.

So, Hi, my name’s Kent and I read “Shaping Your Spirit” (and quite a few others . . . I can give you a list, they’re all fantastic.)  Someday I hope to do this for a living, but for now, I’m doing it for God.  Oddly, that seems like just enough.