Kingdom Hearts

Sunday morning after worship services here in La Grange, I had an exciting, yet difficult announcement to make.

As many of you know, since receiving my masters degree a little over a year ago, I have wanted to get my license in professional counseling (LPC).  The downside of this exciting goal is that I have known that at some point, if I ever decided to pursue this, I would have to take at least a 2-year hiatus from preaching in order to accumulate the 3,000 supervised hours I need to be awarded my LPC.

The opportunity has been presented.  After much prayer and deliberation with my wife, I have decided to accept an offer to work as a therapist at a psychiatric facility for inmates near Tyler, Texas.  I will be working for University of Texas Medical Branch (UTMB).

This decision is difficult on so many levels.  My heart is in preaching the gospel of Jesus Christ.  It always will be.  There is not a more important work in the world, and I will miss it immensely.  I am going to miss the congregation here in La Grange.  I am indebted to you in more ways than you will ever know.  I love you brethren dearly and cannot express in words how much you mean to me, Cody, and the boys.  The elders, as well as membership as a whole, have stood behind me, and have supported me in my growth not only as a preacher, but as a Christian.  This is extremely hard to walk away from.  This will be a tough adjustment for me, for sure.  I love my work as a preacher and it is all I have known for 11 years now.  I am so thankful to my wife for allowing me to do what I love doing. 

But it is time to move forward now.  And I have so much for which to still be grateful.  My family’s last Sunday here as La Grange residents will be Sunday, September 6^th.  We will be moving to the Longview/Tyler area.  I do not know what the future holds as for 2 years from now once I obtain my license.  Perhaps I will come back to a career in preaching.  That option will certainly exist.  Perhaps I will stay where I am if I like it there and enjoy what I am doing.  At this point, I simply do not know.  Or maybe I will even one day have a private practice as a therapist.  That opportunity will also exist.  I thank God for the doors of opportunity He has opened for me and my family. 

I covet your prayers.  I am convinced that this is the right decision for my family and me right now but it is still painfully difficult.  This will be a big adjustment for me as well as for my entire family.  I need your prayers for strength, courage, faith, love, and grace as I continue my partnership with Christ in His kingdom.  Please say a prayer for me, that regardless of what I do in life, I will be the husband, dad, Christian brother, friend, kingdom citizen, and now co-worker that God has called me to be.  And may I always remember, regardless of whether I am a preacher or not, that I belong to and have responsibilities in the greatest kingdom that could ever exist.

We love you all!