Category: The Bivocational Life

‘Project’ Management: How to Live in the Joy of Our Divine Security (Intro)

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Two months into grief counseling, I’ve been thinking about certain deterrents, specifically those that rob our security in Christ. 

Why is it so many take momentary solace in the Lord, yet overall, feel less assured within His sovereignty? Why are some content in their acceptance of Jesus, but not in their walk with Him? 

Looking in the mirror, I’ve been compelled to take inventory, in part, to assist the new support I have on the ground. The fact I’m even in this position is a huge answer to prayer. 

Still, the reality and discovery alike are uncomfortable; hence, why I’m on the hunt for words, wisdom, and answers. What makes one want the safety of God’s protection without the anchoring? What keeps a man sealed but at times, unhinged? How is it one can mentally grasp his identity in Christ but not rest in his position in Christ? 

These inquiries are but a few I hope to address in this new ‘Project Management’ series.

Before we continue, let me define “project management” in this context. Because I can tell you straight up: I’m not talking about an application of knowledge and tools to project activities. Rather, I’m highlighting the human condition to project our insecurities when we’re dislodged from the truth, when we’re overwhelmed to the point what we’re doing to others is reciprocally perceived. 

Sometimes, we project insecurity out of feeling misjudged and misunderstood. Other times, we project insecurity to obtain a false sense of disconnection. Ever wonder why we play the victim card when we’re hurt and offended? Usually, the reason involves a desire to cast off our pain to fight or flight from it. The problem when we project insecurity, be it a suspicion, self-doubt, a reassurance craving, or unbridled fear, is we misappropriate humility and, in turn, miss opportunities to deal with offenses at their root level. Understandably, an insecure mindset can be taxed when confronting pride on top of everything else; however, we must realize if our belief in the reality of Christ is chained to seeing Him consistently reflected in the places He’s called us to, we can’t say we’re fully relying on Him. It’s one thing to be desperate for Christ to be known; it’s another to want His nature extended for our benefit. 

Thankfully, by God’s grace, we have His Spirit to draw us to misaligned places needing correction (2 Timothy 3:16-17; Hebrews 12:11). In many situations, this is enough to mitigate an insecurity before it matures into a weapon. Yet, for those who are suffering at a high level, wrestling with grief, perhaps not as aware due to a medical condition and/or neurodivergence, certain behaviors and thought patterns may be more suppressed. What about these cases? 

My theory is simple, though with application complexity under the surface:

Insecurity is a divergent manifestation of underlying thoughts straying from any root where freedom can be found.

In essence, it is a projection away from our original design by way of comparison, manufactured deficit filling, really any vehicle driving us away from surrender and reliance. Often, we project out, not up, when we’re shelled by concerns and anxieties outside our control or initiation. The question is: How do we project our way to Jesus, when the streams we’re in take us another way? For those in healthy places, how do we nurture cultures where God’s heart is evident, His power prevalent?

If I’m truly following Jesus for the sake of emulating Him, I’m not only putting myself in position to abide in my security in Christ, but also giving those around me a steppingstone foundation to orient accordingly. Put another way, our security in Christ ​doesn’t stop at the assurance of salvation but strengthens as we freely abide from the burden of condemnation, accept the credit of Christ’s righteousness (Romans 4:24), and replace unholy beliefs with radical, transformative truths. Adhering to this pathway, we can discover a new confidence amidst the freedom that purifies the way we love and partner with people. 

So, may it be with this series – that those in need of purified projection find traction and momentum, where they can live secured in their walk with Christ. Buckle up, my friends. It’s going to be a fun, albeit bumpy ride as we journey closer to the Son. 

Cover graphic creds: Chuck Pierce

Dancing in the Pain: The Secret to Trusting God in the Storm (Intro)

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Quick post today – archiving some thoughts for future reference per a recent conversation at work. My plan will be to build a series off this concept in 2026…

There are times in life when ‘yes’ is and will be the right answer. You may not understand the full ‘why’; the logic may trail the intuition. But obedience as goal, we will ultimately encounter moments when reason must yield to faith. Sometimes, it’s as simple as seasoned patience, waiting for an open door to illuminate the path we’re meant to walk. Other times, it’s like guided flight within cloudy turbulence, watching God correct the trajectory as we cling to Him. Either way, God has a plan, a purpose, and a promise behind the places He takes us (Proverbs 16:9, Psalm 37:23-24, Jeremiah 29:11, Ephesians 2:10).

As for the effect of these places, we must expect variability. At any point, we always have the capacity to learn and grow from something for something. To breathe is to absorb. To absorb is to process. And how we process, in most cases, inclines critical choices from trusting God in the midst of challenging circumstances to those micro-moments every day when we must decrease.

So, what then when these impacts net negative on paper and in person? What if the only meaningful consequences are confined to scars and sagacities fortified in fire? For most, if they can’t carry a positive tangible forward, then they write off the exiting season as a failure. ‘Tis a mentality of the world and wisdom of the flesh.

Yet, in truth, in the Word, and every place that matters, the reality is you can’t quantify growth in motion or scale the ripple effect a fallen face turned hopeful can produce. When lessons learned become fastened to the soul, when they click, find momentum, and plant themselves as fertile seeds, what you have is a vital, appreciable asset – one of the most important of all! Some might call it ‘addition by subtraction’ character-building or by a ‘one step back, two steps forward’ platitude. But those wouldn’t serve due justice, let alone what is full in the Lord’s eyes.

Again, you can’t measure or compute the long-term influence humility has in the wake of voids and failures. Do you have much to learn, much to apply, but have subdued the urge to stay where you’ve fallen? If so, rejoice! Shake the dust off your feet and rejoice again.

My friends, we must not undermine the virtue of endurance as God intended. Forgive the versions of yourself that didn’t know better, that didn’t have the support you needed, that lacked the safe space. After all, you can’t move on if you don’t love on and you can’t love on if you’re committed to a hardened state. Remember what you crave, God already is. So…

Don’t just get up, look up. Don’t just sing in the rain; dance in the pain. Why? Because Christ in you, you can count it all joy because who you’re becoming is far more significant than where you’ve been.

Together we will get there, one more cry and one less ‘why’ at a time.

Cover graphic creds: Harvest City Church

Fall Forward: A Posture for This Season

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It’s been a weird month. One of those in which much could be said but…

For Lys and I, we’re exiting a pronounced stretch of remembrance. By now, each year feels more like clockwork with a grief uptick during the dog days only to lift by the fall equinox. Even now, I sense the heaviness dissipating. Lord knows He’s given me and my family plenty of reason to keep going.

Yet, taking a corporate temperature, I can’t help but wonder if our present peace is set to stun mode. Restless nights have picked up for some, for others, the fatigue of the unknown (i.e. what to do next, how to respond now, etc.). Of course, there are those, who may be weary with their former toil. Probably a combination of ‘all of the above’, if we’re perfectly honest.

I know for me, there’s been much I’ve needed to release of late – the weight of carrying past positives into the present, the hope of connection and reconciliation in certain situations, the right for my right calls to be seen. Sometimes, it’s hard to make sense of the burdens we desperately want to flush out. Thankfully, as complex as our knots may be, the opportunity to surrender them is anything but.

Take last Tuesday for instance. Sitting on my front step, I started to go down a familiar rabbit hole, the one in which I try to make sense of where I’ve been and where I’m going. But unlike other episodes, I hit a point of exhale earlier in the process. Maybe it was the lower humidity and refreshing air mass. Perhaps I was giddy from just setting up some fall decor. Either way, I looked down the street from my porch on a hill and with what seemed like misplaced contentment, started to empty myself in the moment.

Then, after a few minutes, something bizarre happened: I began to shiver…in 75 degrees, calm winds, and a setting sun to my right. Suddenly, I needed a second layer and a flip to 1 Corinthians 2. With disrupted thermodynamics, I dug in.

In his letter, Paul confirms his posture in v. 2-3 (AMP):

“I made the decision to know nothing [to forego philosophical or theological discussions regarding inconsequential things and opinions while] among you except Jesus Christ, and Him crucified [and the meaning of His redemptive, substitutionary death and His resurrection]. I came to you in weakness, fear, and great trembling. And my message…[was] not in persuasive words of clever rhetoric but delivered in demonstration of the Spirit operating through me and of His power stirring the minds…so that your faith would not rest on the wisdom of men, but on the power of God.”

Relating and resonating, I kept on.

“For what person knows the thoughts and motives of a man except the man’s spirit within him? So also no one knows the thoughts of God except the Spirit of God. Now we have received, not the spirit of the world, but the Spirit who is from God, so that we may know and understand the wonderful things freely given to us by God. We also speak of these things, not in words taught or supplied by human wisdom, but in those taught by the Spirit, combining and interpreting spiritual thoughts with spiritual words for those being guided by the Holy Spirit” (v. 11-13, AMP).

Now, I’m not the savviest theologian; however, I’m confident when in doubt, in trouble, and/or in pain, the best response is to invite God in by making room for the Cross. In doing this, we position ourselves to be overwhelmed by the power of the Spirit, a move we cannot conjure or manufacture. Far too often, we’re consumed by our own capacities when we must remember there’s no capacity for what matters without the Spirit. We may crave daily bread, but we cannot receive it without pure vertical reliance in which we declare our substitutions, replacing worldly guesses and opinions with God’s Word. Every day, we must be mindful of the exchanges we’re called to make, especially if we long to process through clear channels; hence, why this chapter is so enriching. By God’s Spirit, the depth we were designed with has access, not just a channel but an invitation to know what He’s thinking, at least bits and pieces.

My encouragement to you, friends: Let the Spirit bridge the Cross’ wake to your present circumstances and fall forward. As challenging as your immediate may be, simplicity can still be found in moments of surrender. For in the power of God’s Spirit, we can know Christ and Christ crucified more intimately as we breathe, live, move, and have our being (Acts 17:28). The more we mature in this mindset, the more we will experience this as a sweet reality from our personal walks to corporate communions.

As for what keeps us from standing together, praying with/for one another, and sharing with one another, may we be willing to put them all on the altar as we lay down our dreams, agendas, weapons, all the way down to our revisionist fantasies. In all that we do, may we embrace and rediscover the joy of holy dependency.

After all, a new season dawns. May it be one in which we let go and let God all the more.

Graphic creds: Shutterstock

Sevenfold: A Workman’s Guide to the Leadership Gifts

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Last decade (2010-2019), I worked in state government: The Department of Labor and Workforce for 2.5 years, and TDOT (Tennessee Department of Transportation) for 7.5 years. As one might expect, the environments, well, they were kind of like your favorite soda but flat – very little in terms of bubbliness, morale, positivity, widespread humility, grace, selflessness, and other hallmarks of a healthy culture.

After my first year at TDOT, I started getting frustrated with God as to why He opened a door for me into a place I didn’t fit, let alone have a clear, defined future. At the time, I was two years into a six-year youth ministry assignment, which provided some sense of purpose punch. But by day, I sometimes wondered ‘God, why did you bring me to this desert? I know you made me for much more than this.’  

After a few months of wrestling, I decided to meet up with my dad and my wife, Lyssah, for lunch. During our talk, we discussed our royal priesthood (1 Peter 2:9) identity and how the concept of being commissioned for ministry was largely confined to licensed liturgy (I.e. only pastors and those called to ‘ministry’ can be ordained, etc.). As we dissected this issue, Lyssah and I disclosed some of our frustrations, one of them being how much energy we were sowing outside our calling, or rather, our perception of calling.

But by conversation’s end, I started to realize how my construct of God-given purpose was off.

Our purpose isn’t given to us by our settings and surroundings, but is given as an inheritance, a faith downpayment, a gift from above that not only connects to our original design but one we’re called to exercise throughout our lives from home to church, from market to marketpla

Once this lightbulb went off, I immediately understood why God called me to the desert – not only did He want to break off strongholds, like pride, ego, and faulty belief structures, but He wanted me to see how it was because He had more for me that He called me there.

For years, I compartmentalized my view of what being on mission, what being in ministry, looked like. Yes, I had a youth pastor outlet; however, I was still often annoyed given the pressure to cram a full-time effort within part-time hours. This is partly why my grudge against the state grew before my eyes were opened to see how God was calling me to lead in both church and marketplace arenas.

While there’s more I could say about this season, what I can speak to now concerns one of the initial impacts. Starting in 2015, I started to study the spiritual gifts (as unpacked in Paul’s letters) with a fresh pair of eyes, all the while creating content catered to two sets of vocationals:

  • Those who had a leg in corporate and ministerial arenas.
  • Those who were called to ministry outside the church.

In some of my explorations, I started to assess the spiritual gifts through work-based themes like work/home/church life balance, leadership, conflict resolution, networking, technology, goal setting, time management, etc. The more I dug in, the more I realized there is no hierarchy or exclusivity when it comes to “working with Jesus”, partnering with Him in daily tasks and fulfilling God’s purpose on our lives. We may be diverse in function but we’re co-equal in value given we’re co-laborers with Christ (1 Corinthians 3:9). The same worldly systems that promote entitlement, reciprocity, self-gratification/preservation/medication, etc. are the same systems that push leadership as a ladder to climb when the Word is clear in its trope of leading being the overflow of serving one another in the hope of unity, in the spirit of humility. 

Concerning the spiritual gifts, not only are there more than we might remember, but our spiritual identity with respect to them is no stranger to God. For each person, there is a divine order with varying weights that often goes unknown or misunderstood in spiritual journeys. Accordingly, it is my belief that any faith-based institution should be keen on helping its participants discover their ‘loved by God’ identity through the gifts and then seeing how they can be at work…at work. 

I like this graphic primarily due to its layout. While we don’t have time in this post to dive into all of them, I want to focus today on the seven gifts at the bottom of the screen, starting with the fivefold ministry gifts described in Ephesians 4: Apostles, Prophets, Evangelists, Pastors, and Teachers. These are leadership gifts given by Christ not just to the ordained ministers of the world but too all believers to equip the saints for ministry, build up the body of Christ, and foster unity and maturity in the faith.

As for the two in the bottom-right, these are grace gifts as defined in 1 Peter 4:10-11, service (deacon) and ‘teaching’ (elder) in an exhortation capacity, In this passage, Peter states how God has given every believer a spiritual gift to serve one another as good stewards of God’s grace, with the goal that all things glorify God through Christ. These gifts are not self-focused but are for the benefit and building up of the body at large with different gifts being empowered by the same Spirit and needing to be used with God’s strength for His glory. 

Having said all this, here’s the ‘crashiest’ of courses you may ever receive on the seven leadership gifts and how they’re meant to function in the marketplace…

Prophets…call God’s people to God’s ways. They are more about developing the design of organizational mission, less about developing people. They ‘redeem’ an environment by expressing a wisdom that gives clarifies organization’s vision/mission for co-workers.

Evangelists…those who are gifted to reach unbelievers. They tend to be more gatherers with acts of service being their community gift. Evangelists are more concerned about developing the organization through developing people. They ‘redeem’ an environment by creating an inclusive team environment through love and acceptance.

Pastors…those who encourage believers with the spoken word. More concerned about developing people than managing systems. They ‘redeem’ their environment by creating joy through encouraging people on how important they are as people to the organization and by helping them see how their temperaments complement the organization.

Teachers…those who systematically make disciples and develop management systems. More concerned about preserving the organization. They ‘redeem’ their environment by raising team morale through breaking down systems into easy action steps and by helping them see how the systems help everyone reach their mutual goals.

Apostles…coordinate the other gifts and helps them work together. Leading and directing are their community gifts. They ‘redeem’ their environment by coordinating a team in a way that generates hope by maximizing each team member’s gift and designing products/projects that emphasize a redemptive gift of the organization.

Elders…those who impart themselves. More about managing people/Less about developing people. They are big picture minded in that that they see the value of systems, but they REALLY see the value of helping people find their places in the system. They are manager-developers who gravitate to systems but are motivated to help people find their seat on the bus.

Deacons…more about managing systems for the sake of people. They are motivated to implement proven systems that help people work together*. A deacon is part of the pastoral gift cluster, but in the workplace may not be in a direct support capacity but a ‘hidden’ support capacity. They ‘redeem’ their environment by creating an atmosphere of goodness and gratitude through giving and bringing order to the organizational environment.

*Note: A deacon’s gift is the broader concept of “serving others” through the use of whatever spiritual gifts one has received from God. This isn’t limited to a specific role, but encompasses a general ability to use God-given talents, like mercy, hospitality, administration, and giving, to serve the needs of the Christian community.

Graphic creds: Walk with Scripture

Dust in the Wind: The Beauty in Being ‘Dirty’

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Recently, Kansas’ ‘Dust in the Wind’ came on my local oldies FM.

I close my eyes
Only for a moment and the moment’s gone
All my dreams
Pass before my eyes with curiosity
Dust in the win
All they are is dust in the wind

Sounds depressing, right? Like a poor man’s romantic anthem to Ecclesiastes…

“‘Meaningless! Meaningless!’
says the Teacher.
‘Utterly meaningless!
Everything is meaningless’” (Ecclesiastes 1:2).

Applied to our hopes and ambitions, these lyrics can seem maddening. What about my God given purpose? Is it void, useless, just a vain rat race underneath the cosmos?

Hardly! If anything, within these lyrics lies an affirming contrast, one that marks not only our earthly identity but vocational calling. To illustrate, let’s consider the difference between chaff and dust.

When exploring the reasons why we live, chances are we’re not considering the byproducts of grain processing. Still, the Word is clear our physical bodies were created from dust and will return as such (Genesis 3:19). With eternity in mind, we must accept the metaphor as core to our finiteness. While dust may seem unpleasant, by definition, it is a pure particle occasionally suspended in air but designed to settle whereas chaff is a scaly covering intended to be separated or burned. No wonder the Word often references chaff in the context of iniquity. For chaff to be purified, it must become a new creation. But with dust, it is already fine and capable of influencing everything from cloud formation to nutrient cycling.

Tying this to the surface, we find personal meaning. Although our bodies are fragile pillars, albeit with mind, heart, soul, and spirit, it’s still a sacred vessel created for finding rest and inspiring growth, even in times of displacement and turbulence. Kind of like, oh, I don’t know…dust!

Some of you reading this may be caught in chaotic currents or stuck in a false sense of worthlessness. You may feel as low as dust, easily swept away in the wind, not strong enough to stand in your own strength. But I challenge you, friends, to see the beauty in that. If all else, stand firm (Ephesians 6:13) and if you can’t stand, then settle in Jesus with every intention to rely on Him to carry you. You may feel like you’re passing away; however, rather than wade in insecurity, dare to consider where you’re passing away to.

‘Cause truth is: God can use you even if you feel like dust in the wind. He can use you to inspire vertical growth as you wisp for His glory. He can sustain you as you ignite precipitation to fall and become rivers of living water. He can strengthen you as you sow and position seeds in tough terrain to receive what they need to flourish. I could go on.

Just remember none of this is possible without the Creator and Sustainer of dust; hence, why Qoheleth prologues his book with ‘meaningless’, as life is without the answer and the reason of life. How sweet it is to know with His breath, He purified us from the ground so the ground would have no ultimate authority over our final destination. Yet, even as we come back to it in this life, we can fulfill God’s original design for our lives.

Cheers to being dust in the wind alongside you…

Selah…and remember, friends, be excellent to each other...

Cover graphic creds: iStock