The First Rung

This seems like a first date, although I've been fortunate to only have one of those! But it's a strange feeling: I'm not really sure what to say and I hope I don't have any spinach stuck in my teeth!

Haha, ice breaker! Well, I guess I should welcome everyone to my blog... I'll start off by explaining the purpose of this blog and the meaning behind the name.

This blog is a way for me to express my heart and vision when I'm not always able to see them come to actuality. I know God has something huge planned for Bolivar, MO. I have been praying for months on end, and there is an overwhelming passion building up inside me that must be expressed.

I love this town! There was a time where I never thought I'd say those words, but God has a funny way of developing passions and relationships. He placed Bolivar on my heart, and I've come to love it as my home. My wife, Mary (you'll hear a lot about her throughout my posts), and I are currently in the process of purchasing a home in Bolivar and beginning our family here- sorry Moms!

This blog is an outlet for me to process ideas and a way to get feedback from you on how I can be more effective in these missions.

Now, on to the title of the blog: Ladder Builder. This comes from an amazing analogy I heard from Tommy Sparger, pastor of NorthPoint Church (Springfield, MO). You can check them out at northpointnow.org. Tommy is a man with a vision: "It's all about changed lives!" Anyways, he came on stage one morning with a ladder. He compared this ladder to our Christian journey and said that the church has specialized in climbing the ladder, while removing rungs behind them. While the church sits on top, they ask why no one else has followed.

We have made the church a country-club.

Christ never intended for us to complicate His message or His mission. He said to "love God and love others" (Luke 10:26-28 paraphrase). I am being convicted that my purpose it to rebuild the rungs- to create accessible and desirable ways for the unreached and overlooked, whether that's on SBU's campus or in a trailer park outside of town.

I am excited (actually- beyond excited) to see what God's putting together! My pastor, Rayden Hollis: createahungrychurch.blogspot.com, has an amazing vision for our church- Southern Hills Baptist Church! And we are ready for some action...

So I'm preparing the materials, gathering my tools, and setting out to rebuild a broken ladder!