Risk it: It's Worth it, Baby!

It is good to risk and live with freeness in life. I’ve had this deeply impressed upon me in these past few years, with numerous decisions facing me and little clarity as to the exact path I should travel. Such circumstances trouble many, but I find them arresting. There is exhilaration in forging one’s way through life, one tentative decision after another. This is part of the beauty of early adulthood. Contemplating post-graduation in college, I was not sure what to do. Go to seminary? Work in Maine? Go home? Soon enough, something came up. From my closest friend, I heard of a church internship in Washington, D.C. It sounded good from the moment I heard it, and after visiting the church and being approved as an applicant, I decided to go. This was not without much prayer, of course, but even prayer did little to directly inform my course. Confronted with a big decision, I risked. D.C. it was.

The Lord blessed my time with a richness and depth I had not known before. In what would eventually become a challenge to happiness, I made many dear friends, was mentored by wise, godly men, and grew greatly from a potent teaching and preaching ministry. A year after I arrived, it was time to plan a new way. Southern Seminary came on the radar, and again I was faced with a big decision—stay or leave? After consultation with friends, prayer, and much thought, I left. The parting was not sweet, but it was sorrowful. I soon entered into one of the most difficult stages of my life. A demanding schedule, isolation from familiar friends and family, and location in a new region—this was the stuff of trial, or so I thought.

But God has seen fit to richly bless me here at Southern. It is a good place to be, as He continues to show me. Someday soon, though, there will be other decisions to make, other risks to take. When they come, I will welcome them, and let prayer, counsel, and thought guide me. And then, I will move forward, trusting that the sure hand of the past will guide as it always has.