Changing...

Can I just say that ministry is hard? Though, extremely exciting, and rewarding...there are several days that are harder than others. I would most definitaly consider today as a hard day of ministry. Today I officially announced my resignation as Worship Arts Minister of Venice Church of the Nazarene. After much prayer, I recieved and accepted the call to serve as Worship Arts Minister at First Church of the Nazarene in Hutchinson, Kansas...as know as Hutch.
I will confess that the Lord has been dealing with mine and Ashley's hearts for a while. There was a since of unrest, but not sure what it meant. So we waited and prayed. And just when I was ready to make a plan on my own, God presented this opportunity to us. An opportunity that we did not seek out. And so we had conversations, and prayed; more conversations and more prayer; and finally leading up to an actual interview in Kansas. Going into the interview process, I knew that this ministry possibility would be a challenge for me and that it would take me out of my comfort zone. Even still, God made small confirmations throughout the journey that this was the plan He had in store for us. Now here's where it gets difficult.
We love our Venice family. This congregation and staff will mean more to me then they will ever know and more then words can describe. We have been blessed for over five and half years. But I understand that we are not called to location. My desire and goal is to live a life of worship. A life that is responding to who God is and what He is doing. I truly believe that true, genuine worship requires sacrifice. That is evident when read about Jesus. Honoring God with all that we are and all that we have requires sacrifice. For us, leaving behind good friends, a great community, a place of comfort, to journey into the unknown....is a sacrifice. But I also know and believe that God will bless the journey and bless both the Venice and Hutchinson congregations. So, with excitment, we begin this next chapter in our journey; never forgetting the time that we have shared with so many and celebrating how we have grown through grace. Below is a copy of my official resignation letter:
Dear Loved Ones,
“To God be the Glory for the great things He has done.”
That is one of my favorite hymns lyrics because it reminds me of the greatness of God and how He works and moves and shapes all things for our good. For over 50 years, Venice Church of the Nazarene has been a faithful community of Christ. As a community, VCN has worked well and we have shared our gifts to respond to God’s call in each new day and time. It is amazing to see how we have grown as pastoral staff, as lay leadership, and as a congregation. Over the past five and a half years, we have had an amazing partnership because we have lived, loved, worshipped transparently, where we are, and I believe that always leads us into God’s surprising future.
With that being said I would like to inform you that the First Church of the Nazarene in Hutchinson Kansas and its leadership have asked me to assume leadership in the Worship Arts ministry as they pursue its calling of making Christ-like disciples in the community of Hutchinson. Now, I must inform you that I have received and accepted the call to serve as the Pastor of Worship and Creative Arts. First Church is an established congregation that is eager to grow in relationship, discipleship, and community. It is clear that the worship arts ministry, and the congregation, have a desire to become Unquenchable Worshippers and to deepen their passion to make worship more than music…but a lifestyle. And Ashley and I feel that God has called us to unite with their ministry and continue alongside them through this journey.
Ashley and I, along with several others, have been praying for weeks about this entire situation. This decision was not made lightly as Venice has been a blessed community in which to serve and raise our family. You have embraced and loved our family deeply. That love was displayed instantly with the birth of Keller. We will NEVER forget how you saturated us and Keller with prayers, and your encouragement and support. Because we are confident of God’s promises, we are excited and empowered to take on this new venture in faith and in ministry. We ask for your prayers in the weeks ahead.
VCN, you have much to be thankful for. The warmth of this fellowship, the depth of our ministries, the creative ways of worship, the outreach, service and creative engagement with the local community is all inspiring, is known throughout the surrounding communities and the Church at large. And while a member of the Pastoral team leaves, a vibrant and blessed ministry continues. Ashley and I will be praying for all of you as you begin this new chapter of faith.
In closing, my feelings the VCN congregation and the community of Venice are best reflected in the letter from Paul found in Philippians 1:3-5
“I thank my God every time I remember you, constantly praying with joy for all of our, because of your sharing in the Gospel from the first day until now. I am confident that the one, who began a good work among you, will bring it to completion by the day of Jesus Christ.”
May God-who is able to do immeasurably more then we could possibly hope or imagine-continue to extend grace and give peace to you.

You are loved,

Thank you to all those who have prayed for us during this process and for your continued prayers as we make this transition. Over the next couple of weeks, I will be sharing post on reasons I will miss Venice; the church, the community, the coast.

Worship With Us

I am once again speechless and amazed by our God. I am overwhelmed by His grace, love and mercy in my life.

This week, in addition to our regular worship set, we are introducing a new song titled "More than Amazing" by Lincoln Brewster. I am attaching a link of a video with the lyrics.

Take a moment and reflect...and prepare to be amazed.

Power in His Name

One would think that the title of this post would be enough for any believe. "There is Power in His Name." The simple step of calling out to him-in any situation-and soon, He has revealed himself in a new way. That should be enough for us...and yet, some times, we still are asking the question, who is God?
Recently, I started reading the bible again from the beginning. Once again, I found myself rereading the story of Moses. It is comforting to know that, people like Moses, Noah, David, Paul-all these biblical characters- are just like us. We try to describe who God is, and yet words fail, or we over think and over analyze who He is. Which brings us to Exodus 3:13-15.
Of course we know the story: Moses is hanging out, going about his day, when he spots a burning bush...that isn't really burning! That would just stop me in my tracks. God chose to reveal himself to Moses at Mount Horeb and reveal His plan to Moses. He has heard the cry of his people...and it was time to act. But he needed a messenger to proclaim the news to the Israelites. That messenger was Moses. We have all been there...the moment when God has showed you His plan and it leaves you dumbfounded. "How is this even possible?" "God, You want me to do what??" etc.
Face down in the dirt, Moses puts the question out there; "Suppose I go to the Israelites and say to them,
'The God of your fathers has sent me to you' and they ask me 'What is His name?' Then what shall I tell them?"
God's response is the best part! He says,
"I AM WHO I AM. This what you are to say to the Israelites:'I AM has sent me to you' God also said to Moses, "Say to the Israelites, 'The LORD, the god of your fathers-the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob- has sent me to you' This is my name forever, the name by which I am to be remembered from generation to generation.
I have to believe that Moses did not understand this statement at first....thinking that he would get a much more clear answer. But this name-"I AM", tells Moses and us, that God is unchanging, constant, immeasurable...He is God.
This is a powerful reminder for us today. When we start looking around at the things happening in the world, and in our personal lives. When we are calling on his name and we don't quite understand His response. Now more then ever we need to be reminded that He is the One that "exists and who will be dynamically present then and there in the situation to which He is sending us." (paraphrased from Expositor's Bible commentary). God is always with us and will never leave or forsake us... and always working on our behalf.
I am reminded that God-though He is vast beyond measure- is a personal God. The story of Moses reminds me that God is who He is and forever will be...which is the God of our salvation. We can face whatever we are called to because He is always with us. We glorify and magnify His name because we know that we can healing, hope and joy in His name.

RG

Statements by Keller: Kindergarten Edition

This week has been a busy week in the Gage house. Our son, Keller started Kindergarten! I must confess that it is really hard to process the fact that we have a kindergartner in our house. Of course he has been ready to go since May! In fact, there were times that he wanted to skip the summer altogether, so that he could start school.
So of course, I had to post a blog about his first statement in the classroom. He was really excited about meeting his teacher and new friends. My wife and I, along with all the other parents were helping getting the kids settled into their seats. The final bell started ringing...and before the teacher could say anything to the parents, this little voice chimes and says:

"Okay Moms and Dads! That was the bell to start school, and now it's time to say good bye to your little ones."
He then began to way good bye to us and all the other parents in the class room.
So clearly, our child has made his mark on Garden Elementary. The rest of the week consisted of our child being reminded that he was indeed the student and not the teacher, and that he needed to as he would say, "worry about Keller and let them worry about themselves."
Week 1 down...how many more to go?

Worship With us

Our songs for service this week are listed below:

SUNDAY AM

All Hail the Power of Jesus' Name
Hallelujah! Your love is Amazing
In Your presence Praise
Worthy is the Lamb
I have a Hope

SUNDAY PM

Is our monthly, Summer Hymn Sing!

To Boldly Go....

It was a once in a life time opportunity...literally. I was one of the lucky 150 people chosen to attend the NASA tweetup for the final Space Shuttle Launch. Many people don't know that I am a science geek and proud of it. It started with my love for all things Star Wars and Star Trek. There was even a point in my life that I thought that I would be a singing astronaut. As I got older, I discovered that I my natural gifts for singing would out weigh all the studying I would need to do to comprehend the complexities of Science. So I chose music, but never lost the wonder and awe of space and space travel.
I was in first grade when I watched my first shuttle launch. It was the Challenger Incident. It was a sad day, and yet, I remember being ever so curious about how they were about to launch people into space. More importantly, I wondered if they would ever do it again! And of course they did!!! So imagine my heart jumping out of my chest when I found out that I was chosen to attend the final launch...which was the ending of the Space Shuttle Program.
The two day event consisted of our group meeting astronauts,administration, and Elmo.

Next to the launch itself, one of the best parts was the tour of the facilities...which included the Vehicle Assembly building and driving down to Launch Pad 39A. And here's the deal, when you watch this on TV for so many years, you understand that these places and things are big, but you don't really get it, until you are standing in the center of the VAB and you realize that the Statue of Liberty can fit inside and still have over 250 feet lift.
And of course there was the shuttle itself. It is beautiful, amazing, astonishing...the list could go on. She is a marvel to behold. There is nothing in the world like it. When I saw it for the first time, I was just frozen in amazement. My admiration for the people who dreamt, designed, and constructed this vessel, grew 100 more then ever before....and we hadn't seen it take off.

The day of the launch had arrived. When we concluded our tour the day before, they were not sure if Atlantis was going to fly due to the weather. But we all believed that she had to do! She just had to make her final launch! So as we waited, we were greeting by more NASA Officials, talked about future space projects, previewed a song in honor of Atlantis, and more. Then the moment arrived! We were go for lift off. As were waiting for the countdown to resume, a gentleman told me that if at all possible, I needed to just watch the launch with my own eyes and not through the lens of a camera or recorder. The man was right...however, i was able to guide my camera with my gaze and take some really great photos of lift off.




To all the NASA Team members who made this Tweetup possible, I offer my sincere gratitude for this experience.
To all the NASA employees who spent 30 years developing, maintaining, the Space Shuttle program, Thank you for your years of service.
To the Astronauts, Thank you for dreaming big and reaching for the stars...literally. And for inspiring a new generation of space travelers.
To Anderson Cooper and the team of CNN, I am sorry for unplugging one of your plugs. It was my clumsy feet and my desire to meet Anderson, AKA, the Silver Fox!!! I am a fan of your work and am proud to be #cooperized (for more on this last comment, you would have go on twitter and search the hashtag #cooperized...that's all I can say!)

Worship with Us

Worship Sets for August 14th

SUNDAY AM
Days of Elijah
Stronger
Revelation Song
Still
Friend of God

SUNDAY PM
God is Great
Today is the Day
Lord I give You my heart
Your Name