Author | Steve

Well…I’ve finally had a chance to catch my breath after an amazing 27-day journey that has covered 10 states and 3 time zones and more miles than I can remember (both in the car and on foot)! As always, God has been faithful to both bless and shape me all along the way. This is nowhere near everything that we have experienced, and it might be a little disjointed as I learn to re-engage the blog. But here’s just a few of my highlights and learnings…

I’m having so much fun I don’t want to write

I mean I do, but spending time with our families, with each other and a lot of physically exhausting outdoor activities has pushed writing to a distant second over the past 27 days. Well, that and its really hard (not to mention illegal in a few states), to try to type out a blog-post on your phone while driving!

I’m learning a deeper level of trust

This season of “homelessness” has really tested my faith when it comes to trusting our Father with my children (His children). I love what I see Him doing in them, and what they are witnessing Him doing in me and Jamie. But, I have to regularly place my children back in His hands as I watch them wrestle with what He is doing in our family and through our family. We are all learning similar things about ourselves, our world, and our God at the same time. Following Jesus has truly become a family affair and team sport! Every day we either fall apart trusting ourselves or clinging to the past, or we learn to sing a new song as we trust Jesus, the author and perfector of our faith.

Tent Camping at 9,000 feet for over a week is…fun??

You bet! Austin and I, along with about 50 0ther men, learned a lot about ourselves as we lived in the Lincoln National Forest south of Cloud Croft, New Mexico for 8 days.

It rained every day – often very hard. One night it hailed like crazy. It was a great time of drawing near to Father to hear Him, to know Him, and to be blessed by Him in the community of other believers while also learning a lot of practical wilderness and survival training.

One of my favorite parts of the week was watching Austin push himself to run the last 100 yards of the Mountain Wild Man Competition when he thought he had nothing left in the tank! There was so much growth for both of us during this week – way more than I can write about here. I’m sure many of the things Jesus revealed during this week will show up in future posts.

Last Leg of the First Chapter of our Trust Adventure

We are headed to eastern Oregon next to visit a long-time friend of Jamie’s who was in our wedding. After that, we are off to stay with a friend in Idaho. Then, we are going to hit a number of National Parks on our way to my Aunt and Uncle’s place in Phoenix. Soon we will be back in the great state of Texas where we anticipate…

A Big-Little Announcement

After visiting with numerous friends and family over the past five months, as well as a lot of soul-searching prayer, we believe God is leading us to the next chapter of our Trust Adventure. We are in a time of waiting and resting in this invitation before stepping into it fully. Hopefully soon we will write about this next chapter as it becomes a reality. Please keep us in your prayers as God continues to invite us to trust Him and to follow Jesus wherever His Spirit leads us.

A Question Worth Asking

I’ve got to pack the car for the next leg of the journey. But before I do, I want to share a request King David made of God that I have been sitting with most mornings recently:

Search me, God, and know my heart;
    test me and know my anxious thoughts.
See if there is any offensive way in me,
    and lead me in the way everlasting.

~ Psalm 139:23-24

As I begin my days, I’ve been asking God if there is anything He sees in me or in my life that He wants to address, that He wants to redeem, that He wants to kill and resurrect. It’s not a natural question to ask. In fact, my broken, sinful nature wants to avoid those areas at all costs. But I’ve discovered that God is gracious in what He brings up, because He doesn’t do it to destroy me, but to cleanse me by His perfect light. It’s the best place to begin my day. It’s the best place to continue my journey…on the way everlasting.

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Check out our first blogpost: The Beginning of Our Story

Check out Jamie’s blog about Uganda: Some Things I Learned in Uganda