Pastor Denial

Welcome back. After a long awaited time off. God's Delay is not God's denial! in this podcast episode we talk about life, living authentically, and knowing that God has a plan for your life. 

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It has been so long since we spoke. I believe it was October of last year when I did the last episode. And honestly, I didn't know if I would ever come back to podcasting. I kept everything up with my subscription so that I could keep the podcast going and that people could listen to it. But I've had several people run into me lately and they're like, hey, whatever happened to your podcast? We missed it. And as I was praying, I felt like it was time to bring it back. And then out of nowhere, Amanda was like, hey, you know, you should bring the podcast back. So I took it as confirmation, and here we are. I want to bring the podcast back weekly. And I want to start out today just by updating you with what's been going on in our lives. It's a very crazy season where God has called me to change up everything. I think I told you guys before about leaving driving the truck to become a mortgage loan originator, and I did that. Within that process of doing that, I started ministry training. And since we've spoken last, I actually finished ministry training in February. And I'm in this season of waiting. I know what God's called me to do, but I'm just waiting to be able to get there. In my regular job, I ended up getting my real estate license as well and launching a real estate media company. So I not only do mortgages, I also help people find their homes and take photos of their homes. So I'm pretty busy with that. But we've been serving with the middle school ministry at church, and I'm so blessed because not only does the middle school pastor have one of the coolest names in the world, his name is Jim Bob. He has also been kind enough to share his calling with me. While I've been in ministry training, and especially here towards the end, we've been alternating every week. So one week he gets to spend time preaching to the middle schoolers, the next week I do. And then we're in Sunday school with him, and it has been life-changing for me. You don't realize until you're actually doing what you know God designed you for, just how much everything else doesn't compare to what God has for you. I love my job, but I love ministry. As a matter of fact, I've got a really nice desk at home. I've got two huge screens, but today I'm sitting in the corner of the bridge cafe, or the middle school ministry is called the bridge. This is where we feed the middle schoolers on Wednesday nights on my very small portable desk with a portable second screen and my laptop because I felt like recently God has been leading me to work from the church more often because I feel like every time I'm at church, ministry happens. Somehow, someway, there's always an opportunity for ministry when I'm here. And a lot of times it's it's like that in our lives when you're believing for something, whether it be something financial, whether it be something physical, whether it be something spiritual, a lot of times before you ever receive that thing that you've been believing for, that promise that you are walking in, where you're sharing the word with your family and saying, this is the word I'm standing on, this is what God is going to do. Before you ever receive that thing, sometimes you have to walk in it before you see it. And with ministry, I feel like that's what God is doing. And God is telling me that even before I have had my ordination ceremony, even before what he's done has been recognized by people, I gotta walk in it and realize that it's who he designed me to be. Our church is wonderful. Our pastors are wonderful, and they have trained me. But at the end of the day, God ordained me to be this. And for years I didn't walk into it because I kept saying, I'm not ready, or I would find an excuse, or now with the middle school since I've been preaching so much. A lot of the kids will call me Pastor Daniel. And for a little while I was like, hey guys, not yet. Uh pastor in training, don't call me pastor yet. And then my friend Thomas one night, he's like, hey, stop doing that. He said to these kids, you're one of their pastors. To them, you are Pastor Daniel, and you need to be that. And that was kind of the kick in the butt that I needed to stop waiting on God to do something and thinking about the one days, the one days, the one days, and just accept who I am and what God has tasked me with and who he's made me to be. Funny story about me being called Pastor Daniel. If you follow me on Facebook, you know that we had a young man come up to me one day and say, Hey, um, do you have a tech team? So I looked at him and I said, We do now. And he's been doing slides for us during worship, and he'll play around with them sometimes during the service. And on the back, we have a TV screen that has the time on it so I can keep track, and Pastor Jim Bob can keep track. In the middle of my service one night, I was preaching on preparing soil and the four types of soil that talks about Matthew 13. And I look up at the moment, like the crux of the sermon, you know, when you're about to call for salvation. And on the TV that has the clock, it says, You're doing a great job, Pastor Denial. Love the tech team. And it took everything that I had not to crack up and not to lose it, because that was so genuine and so kind and so funny too, because of the misspelling of my name. I saw a couple of the other adults laughing, and they're like, good job, Pastor Denial. But I just thought I'd share that moment with you. I'm excited about this new phase of life that I'm in, this new stage where I've truly had the opportunity to express my faith in God at a level I didn't realize. When I was driving, I did very well for myself. And one of the things that I struggled with was feeling like when I stepped out and launched my career, that I had let everyone down because I wasn't making the same amount of money that I was before. I wasn't making the same amount because it in our career it takes a little while to get the hamster wheel rolling. People have to realize that you can do your job before they give you any opportunities to do your job. But to let people realize that you can do your job, you have to have some opportunities to do your job. So really you're waiting on that first kind person to give you the opportunity. And I had that, and then I had another and another and another and another, and it's been building on itself and it's been building up. But for that first period of time, I was like, what are you doing? And then God shifted. God shifted my mindset to where when things didn't look the way I wanted them to look yet, my mindset changed to being, what are you doing, God? To saying, God, thank you for this opportunity to express my faith in you. Thank you for this opportunity to see you do magnificent things in my life. Thank you for this opportunity for me to see that you are providing for me, and it's not that me that's providing for myself. I'm so blessed to have this chance to put my faith in you and to watch you operate and watch you work. It has been an amazing shift and an amazing just moment to realize that that's what my mindset should have been the entire time, my entire life. Sorry about that. I had to take a break for a second because Lucy got home from school and she was messaging me wanting to know if she could walk the dog. Also, I have a 14-year-old kid who's going on 15 who likes to think that she's about 30 sometimes. So nobody tells you that part of parenting either. It's you see everybody when when their kids are little, and you don't really realize that there's gonna be a day when they hit their teens that they kind of transition and you start seeing who they're really becoming and who they're actually gonna become. I'm so proud of the young lady that she's becoming. There was one night, you guys are gonna hear all the middle school ministry sounds of like refrigerators and everything behind me, so just you'll be alright with it. If you've listened to me, if you're back listening to me, you know there's always some kind of background sound. So deal with it. But there was one night that I was preaching and there were two little girls praying. After Aldercarl was done, they were still praying. So Miss Kathy was praying with them. I went and put my hands on Miss Kathy's shoulder and I prayed too. And when I opened my eyes, I saw Lucy had left her seat and she was down there praying with the girls too. And it was one of those moments where I just stopped and I just looked at what God was doing in my little girl's life. Because it wasn't that long ago that she felt like the same as Winnie is. Winnie's five and Winnie's a princess. Winnie gets her crown, wears it everywhere. She sits with daddy, she always wants to talk with daddy and spend time with me. And she's little. She's still a little girl. But in that moment with Lucy, I saw that she was becoming a young woman for God. It's one of the most surreal moments that I've had lately, and a very proud moment. I think every one of your kids gives you those moments. We do a devotional at night before bedtime, or at bedtime right before we go to sleep. And Bear has been volunteering to read devotion. Hearing him read, we have this Lee Strobel, the case for Christ, devotional for kids. Hearing him read that, and then ask us the biblical questions at the bottom. Like, what do you think the Bible is? What is a rule that seems funny to you? And just having those conversations with my kids, you realize more and more and more that the state they're in today is never the same state they're in tomorrow. They're constantly changing, they're constantly growing and evolving. And it's my job as a dad, it's my job as a middle school pastor to help guide them and direct them to Jesus. And the only way I can guide and direct them to Jesus properly is by me living a life that is properly chasing Jesus. I don't get it right. Not all the time. My kids see me fail, they see the best of me and the worst of me. The middle school kids, they always see the guarded version because they don't, they're not going to go home with us. They don't see when I stub my toe or when things don't go my way, or when my faith wavers just a little bit and I have to realign with God. And I pray that my kids see me and they see the realness of who I am and they see me autocorrect or correct myself whenever, whenever I start to get out of alignment with who God's called me to be or what God's called me to be. I hope that they see the turn and they see it fast and they see me turn back to God and say, whoa, this is not the lack of faith I'm supposed to have. This is not the mindset I'm supposed to have. Let me stop and pray. If I can lead them to God through my lifestyle, if I can lead them to God through my love for them and for Jesus, then I will be the wealthiest man in the entire world. No matter what happens in my life, no matter what God does, as long as I make my ministry what God says, I'm me for be focused on showing my kids and other people's kids and other people that God is good and that God loves them and is real and has a plan for their lives. And he takes them even when they're messy, even when they're imperfect, and he works in all of us, and he's working in me. If I can show them that, then I've succeeded in life. If I can show them just how good God is at all times of the day, just how good God has been to me at all times of the day, even when you don't like looking from the outside in, there are things and you're like, what are they doing? And you wonder if God's moving. But then if I break down the internals of every day, like, oh man, this was a great opportunity for God to move. And look how he moved. Look how he provided. Look what he did. Look how this door opened up. Look how this ministry thing happened. Look how that thing happened. Look at what God is doing. If I can really show people that part of my life, it's the inside, it's the things that he's doing, and not just the outside, not just the Facebook page, not just the Instagram. If I can show people that part of my life, that's the biggest ministry I can ever have. Show them the realness of who God is and him working in me. If I can show people that, there's no denying Jesus. In your lives, if you can show people who God is, then you've succeeded. Stop worrying about looking like the Instagram version of everybody else or the Facebook version of everybody else. And just be the version of you that you wish you were yesterday. Be the version of you that God designed you to be. God's mercy is new every day. And he's had a plan for you since before you were born. God has a plan that is going to blow your mind. He'll provide all of your needs. He's got exceeding riches beyond anything you could ever imagine. And he will meet every need of your life. I can tell you that. Like, honestly, the season when I launched my business and I went from getting a very steady, very good paycheck to being 100% commissioned. There were times and days that I'm like, God, I need you to provide. And every day He has. Every day I leave the house with shoes on my feet. Every night I come home and I eat dinner. Some nights I had ramen noodles. Some nights I had steak. But every day, God has provided. Every moment, God still provides. In everything that He does, He has been amazing. I've rambled and I've talked. And I think it's like one of those moments where you see a friend that you hadn't seen in a while. So you talk to him and you talk about everything, and it seems like you talk about everything and nothing all at once. That's been this episode of the podcast. It's been everything and nothing. But also the most important thing because everything points back to God. God's love and his mercy and his faithfulness in my life. And if you've taken anything from this, just know that from October to now, God has been merciful. He's been gracious and loving in everything that he's done. He's grown me more than I thought I could be. He's given me opportunities not only to grow my faith through trial, but also to share my faith with people that I really care about and people that I love. He's brought people into my life, and it has been a fun ride. Even sometimes, like a roller coaster, it gets scary. It's been exciting and fun. And I pray that you have an experience with God similar to what I've had because it is amazing. It is amazing getting up and just knowing that God is taking care of you. I don't know how he's doing it, but he's doing it. I don't know when he's moving, I just know he is. And I finally reached the point in my life where I quit submitting my plans to God. For the longest time, I would go to God and be like, hey, I specifically want you to do this, this, this, this, and this. That will allow me to do this. And that was wrong. I was going to God and telling him my plans and ignoring the fact that he's had a plan for me since the beginning of the world, since the very foundations of the earth before I was even a thought to my parents, before my parents were even alive. God's had a plan for my life. And who am I to tell him that my plan is better? Who am I to tell God that my timing is better? That's one thing that I realized is it's been, I was 16 years old, I'll be 38 in June. So it's been nearly 22 years since I felt called to ministry. 22 years. And I heard a podcast say it right. Actually, Amanda sent it and she said, at minute 25 is a word for you. And they said that God's delay is not God's denial. And that hit me hard. Because there was a long time in our lives, especially before I I've been in ministry training and it's it's been about two years now. But probably five years ago, that I thought God denied me and said, Hey, I made a mistake calling you. I'm not going to use you. But what I thought was a denial was just a delay. And God delayed it for this moment so that I could be in this moment. Because even though I'm sitting in a corner at a portable desk in a middle school ministry cafe, he is doing something that's going to blow my mind. And no matter where you're listening to this at, no matter what you're doing, God is going to blow your mind with what he has for you. You just have the job that sounds easy, but is pretty hard of submitting yourself completely to his will. Get yourself out of the way. Listen to God. Obey God. Trust God. Read your Bible. Stop basing your faith on social media. Social media presents what it wants you to see, what it can do to emotionally affect you so that you watch more. It doesn't give you the whole story. The Bible gives you the whole story. Reading your Bible will strengthen your faith. Reading your Bible will help you grow. Reading your Bible will help you be the person that God's designed you to be if you apply that Bible that you read to your life. It's easy and hard at the same time. It's easy because read your Bible, apply what you read sounds simple. I think that's the term. It's simple, but not easy. It's very simple. If you want to succeed, read your Bible, apply the word. You'll succeed. 100%. Guarantee you, if you read your Bible and you apply the word of Jesus to your life, you will succeed. But it's hard because applying the word of Jesus means you have to stop applying what you want. The Bible says there's a way that seems right to a man that leads to death. You gotta stop applying what just seems right to you. Truth isn't subjective. God's truth is objective. And when you apply it, you will have objectively good results. I love you guys. I want to pray for you real quick. I'm gonna bring back the podcast with structure. This time, this is a very unstructured episode. But we're back. We're structured. We're gonna be weekly again. And it is gonna be a fun time. I can't wait to tell you what all God's doing in our lives and what all God's doing in the lives of these middle schoolers that He has trusted me with and these sheep that he has put. In front of me to shepherd. Heavenly Father, thank you for today. Your name is above every name in the heavens and in the earth. I praise you and I love you and I thank you for calling us apart and setting us aside for your mission. God, I'm so thankful that you have a mission for every person here, that you have a job and a task that we cannot explain. Lord, I ask that you help us to forgive those who have hurt us with the same kind of forgiveness and grace that you have given us. And Lord, anybody that we've hurt, please help them to forgive us with that same forgiveness and grace. I thank you for your provision. And I just ask that you continue to radically provide not only in my life, but in the lives of those who are listening. I thank you for the opportunities to express our faith and our trust and our love in you, God. We trust you every day. I ask that you move in every person's life that is here and that is listening, and that you continue to lead me and lead them closer to you every day. Help us to stay focused on you. Let us be light everywhere we go, and let us show people what authentic Christianity is. Let us not be afraid to show people that you are working in us. We are not perfected, but you are in the process of perfecting us. We love you and we praise you. And it's in your precious holy name we pray. Amen. Love you guys. I will see you next week. Bye.