8.29.2005

el fine

i resigned from kingston-west yesterday. well, yesterday was the day it became public. it was a sudden thing of sorts. while i was away at camp at the end of july i felt God leading me in this direction and after much prayer, talking with karen, and thinking about it i finally went through with it.

i didn't resign because of any conflict or anything. everything was going peachy-keen. it's actually an extension of the process God has been working in me over the past year. i am feeling that i need to take some time away from pastoral ministry to chase after God and his leading in fine-tuning my call to ministry. at this point i am not sure what i will do. we are going to stay in kingston to be close to my aging grandparents, and i will look for a job somewhere doing something. hopefully something useful, but you never know.

i am very excited. it's sad saying goodbye to the church after three years, but mostly i am excited for what God has next for us. i am going to be staying in contact with free methodist leadership and finding a mentor through this period so that it is as intentional of a growth period as possible, and hope that at the end of the day i will be more ready to serve again in a church than i am now or ever have been.

september eleven will be my last sunday at the church. two weeks. it will go by fast. pastor mike asked me if i wanted to do anything that sunday, so karen and i will be singing a few songs. one is a song that i wrote especially for that day. the imagery in the song is from the story of peter stepping out of the boat to walk on the water. karen and i have been reading john ortberg's book if you want to walk on water, you have to get out of the boat and it has been excellent through this time.

take my hand

storm is raging on the sea
life tossed and turned
waves are crashing over me
solid places churned

wonder what's around the bend
what will life hold
now you're calling out my name
time to let go

take my hand, lead me on
lift me up, help me stand

now i'm walking on the waves
miracle in me
follow you for all my days
a new heart i'll see

take my hand, lead me on
lift me up, help me stand
(repeat)

this thing you're asking me to be, to be
not sure if i can
i need your, need your strength in me, in me
then i know i'll stand
so lift me up when i fall down, fall down
and i'll run back into your arms

take my hand, lead me on
lift me up, help me stand
(repeat)

if i had an electric guitar it would have a pop-punk rock-ish sound, but for now i play it on acoustic. i'll have to see if i can get some rough recordings of these to put on here so you can hear my songs instead of just read them. i did some on a tape recorder the other day and they turned out all right. quite rough, but it would give you an idea of what the song feels like. have to figure out how to get them from there to here first though...

anyway, that's the latest in the life of brandon. news that's been coming for a while, but i had to wait until it went public before i posted it here.

6 comments:

matthew said...

hey brandon. i like the song and i hope you have a great last couple of weeks at the church. i'm excited for what God will do in your life in the next couple years.

Robin said...

Brando, I hope the transition goes smoothly and that just the right thing opens up for you next. Enjoy.

Anonymous said...

Hi Brandon: Your lyrics are excellent, a real testimony of your authentic faith and love for God. Send us a recording when you can. Love, Dad & Mom

Angela said...

Brother,
I like your lyrics. Want to hear. We're praying for you guys.
Say hi to G & G for me. I miss them...need to call.
Hey- the first week of school went great! I can't believe that i'm so excited to be back in college. It was like dejavu (sp) only I didn't know anybody (and it's a University about 30 times the size of Bethany). I like what I'm learning though. It's fun. So if you ever need to know the name of a body part- give me a call!
Well this is a long "comment". Bye.

Aaron Perry said...

well, today was your last day. let us know how it went. keep strong.

Rachael said...

Brandon I respect your decision so much. You're such an "authentic" person. Keep being you! Good luck on this phase of your "journey". Peace.