To be brutally honest, I was not looking forward to writing this blog, But if you know me, I always want to finish anything that I start. 2008 through 2013 were very challenging years for me at Smithtown Gospel Tabernacle. When I look back, I think about how my marriage failed but also how much I was burning out. It seems that when you have a gift and talent and the leadership of your church knows it, they expect you to do a lot! Even when I approached the leadership about my burnout, it was taken very lightly. I do want to say that it is not my intent to bash the leadership of my previous church or my ex wife. What took place in my life in 2013 and my "resignation" is over with and done. I don't hold any grudges and it's my desire to move on. What I went through in 2013 was horrible but it was 8 years ago. I have grown from it and I have learned a lot about myself! My biggest frustration from it all is how it affected my 4 kids and what they had to endure. I hope someday to be able to sit down with my two eldest kids to be able to work things out. I believe that day will come real soon!
Truthfully my last 5 years of Kids in Missions is a blur. In 2008 I had already been the children's pastor at SGT for 17 years, I was getting bored. I wanted a new challenge. I would have loved it if an outside church would have tried to entice me away from SGT. My family was not keen on that idea so I tried to make changes within the entire ministry, including Kids in Missions. I even had a meeting at a local Diner with my leadership team to discuss giving our kids ministry a new name and a new logo. I'll never forget the very first comment I heard after I shared my heart with my team. One leader said "But I already like how things are going in our ministry. Why should we change it?" It was a challenge to say the least! One highlight I had during our last 5 years was a week long mission trip to Friend, Nebraska in 2011 & 2012 to help a church there run a week long Vacation Bible School. All I can say is that while I was there for the first time in 2011, I felt a peace. I enjoyed so much going for walks and seeing the cornfields all around. It was so peaceful. It was there that I heard God speak to me. He said, "Dave, have something big for you to do." There was no doubt I heard His voice. I honestly thought God was moving me to a different church or perhaps a different position like the Young Adults Pastor. Maybe the Missions Pastor down the road? None of these ideas were true. I shared this with a few pastors only to hear them say "But Dave, your a great children's pastor. That's your calling" Although I heard His voice, I have patiently been waiting almost 10 years to find out what it is.
Kids in Missions came to an abrupt halt in 2013. Our very last outreach was at the Lighthouse Mission on March 2, 2013. My youngest son Tyler was with me along with 11 other students. I didn't know then that it would be our last one. My hope was always that once I left SGT, another church would hire me right away and I would be able to continue doing this program. That never happened. I did serve briefly at a church in Holbrook 4 years later but the kids were much too young to start the Kids in Missions program. When I look back I am proud that God gave me this great concept. I am not sure if any of you have ever heard of the phrase "it jumped the shark." It refers to when a television show is no longer interesting. It came from the show Happy Days when Fonzie did a water ski stunt and jumped over a shark tank. Many people felt that the show Happy Days was on it's way out. I was beginning to feel this way about Kids in Missions. I was hoping we could breathe new life into it. The old saying is always "All good things must come to an end." Kids in Missions didn't continue at SGT after I left. I would have gladly sold copies of my manuals to the new children's pastor but I guess it wasn't his thing. So life goes on and now I look to what God has in store for me next. I think He is directing me to write some books. Stay tuned!!
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