who am i?

a bit about me... husband, father, musician, missionary... what? yes, missionary. but more about that in a minute.

i grew up on the coast of northern california and lived there until the summer of last year. growing up i don't think i was ever really one of those people that knew exactly what they want to do for a living (i wonder how many people that is anyway). instead, my life aspirations were basically a set of general goals appropriated from my father: have the family, the house, and the good secure job with benefits, then retire as early as possible and spend the rest of my days doing what i wanted. and you know what? i got the family, i got the house, and i got the secure job with benefits - doing something that i wasn't at all passionate about, as good as it was (decent pay, good benefits, a job that i could leave at the office when i left for the day). it was exactly what i wanted, especially for someone of my personality type that needed security and stability... i tell people that i was the type of person that, when i came home, i needed to be able to depend on the chair in the living room being in the same place as i left it in the morning.

then something happened. actually, it was a lot of somethings, but i'll save you the even-more-long-and-drawn-out version. in the midst of my comfortable, basically unchanging life, God was allowing a series of events to take place to draw me out of my static life. the event that stands out in my mind as the point at which things really came to a head was a fantastic job performance review. in an instant, i felt like i had peaked in my job... and simultaneously with the excitement that came with the good review was a sense of dread. "alright... now what? 30 more years of the same thing?" what followed was an intense period of soul-searching and praying... and depression and confusion. it was during this time that, in the midst of my calling out to God for direction, i remember saying, "okay... You made me, so You know me better than i know myself... You know what will satisfy me... so either confirm that i'm supposed to be where i am now or show which way to step and i'll do it."

so... through another series of what my wife and i now call "God events," i started a new season in life that involved me leaving my secure job, my home, my friends, and so much more in california, and moving my family to georgia to join a missions organization called operation mobilization as a missionary working with the creative arts and specifically music. so to bottom-line it all: i now live in a place thousands of miles away from my extended family and friends working in a job that requires that i generate 100% of my income from independent donations. and on the other side of the coin, i'm in an occupation that marries my passion for music, art, and creativity with my passion for God. and i've never felt such freedom, purpose, and confidence in that i know beyond a shadow of a doubt that - at this very moment - this is what i'm supposed to be doing...