7/17/2025
Ok, the tension is working itself out as I type. And I know that it will continue to work itself out over time again and again.
I didn’t realize there was tension until a few days ago when Cru25 began. But now I realize that it has been there for several years. It probably started when we began the process of looking for a Base Camp for our family in 2019.
It was time to find a more permanent housing solution than the rent house we were living in since we moved to San Antonio to be a part of the Destino team there. We had been serving at Cru’s global headquarters in the National Campus office in Orlando. Before that, we were in Little Rock serving with FamilyLife, our first assignment when we joined staff.
So when it came time to start looking for a house to purchase, Heather proposed going into the next move as if it could be our last. I am so thankful for that, because it caused me to pause and think about the reality that our kids were growing up and would be moving away to college soon.
Note: we are explorers, and that passed through to our kids, so we always expected them to go off somewhere to college.
And when I began thinking about that, I remembered how ungrounded I felt when I was a college student and had no place I could go that was home.
So we decided to pursue a family base camp for our kids.
And grandkids…
And great-grandkids…
And while we know that the Lord directs our steps and will continually offer our ‘yes’ to whatever he has for us, we decided to try to create some roots for our family.
In thinking about that, it became clear that I did not want to live out my days in the city. I wanted a little place where we could raise some cows and hunt doves off the back porch. And Heather, being the amazing wife that she is, understood that about me and was very supportive.
It was like returning to my own roots. And it rekindled the old dreams of being a rancher. The same dreams that led to my Ag Business degree.
While our family Base Camp is still in progress, we have had a batch of steers that we watched finish on Base Camp grass and have been able to fill our own freezer with great beef and also offer beef packages to others. It is like a dream come true, with the possibility of much more to come. I am so very grateful.
But we can’t do everything.
So we have to make choices. And as I visit with dear staff friends and hear stories of God’s mighty works through those who have served for many years, I am drawn back to my calling.
I am a sent one.
Sitting here this morning thinking and praying about all this, I am open handedly offering it to God to sort out. And I know he will. Because I know this:
I am a child of the Most High.
I am raised up with Christ and seated with him … Eph 2:1-10.
He knows me and loves me. He knows my family and what is best for us. I can trust him.
And I know that I am one sent on a mission.
I am called to go … Mat 28:19on
And so whatever else I might do, I am optimizing as a sent one with Cru.
I will do the best I can and let the chips fall where they will.
So right at this very moment, I am feeling no tension about that. Thanks for being a kind ear.