Day in Seattle

I feel like a country bumpkin who heads to the city on occasion to get a taste of the "city life," and stock up on the groceries. Needless to say, we headed to Seattle yesterday and we had a blast.

Ok I hate to sound like a poser, but what the heck, I will; because Necole and I really love the city of Seattle. We've been looking for this kind of living for a long time.

Yesterday, we were blessed to hang out with Jason Hudson who is the Lead Pastor of Capitol Hill Church. Now first of all, Jason is a cool cat. We got to talk a lot about church planting, urban living, and all sorts of cool stuff. Plus, Jason took us to the famous Espresso Vivace Roasteria. These dudes make a wicked cup of coffee. I may never go to Starbucks again. Anyhow, it was great to connect with another pastor. I'm looking forward to hanging out some more in the future.

I had another interview with Keller Williams office which is in north Seattle, and after that we headed to the Greenlake area and ate some burgers at a local joint. There are so many cool places to live; Necole and I can't make a choice. And that my friends is a good problem to have.

Since we dug Espresso Vivace Roasteria so much, and Tre wanted to check it out, we headed back for seconds. Now, earlier in the day Jason took us to this amazing city park; Lots of kids running around having a blast. Capital Hill is just outside of downtown Seattle. I love that. We can be in a distinct neighborhood and still feel like it's city living, in other words, it's the best of both worlds.

Now, while in the park I noticed the kind of folks who were there: Distinctly urban, or city. About 25 folks were playing kickball, how funny. Anyhow, Capital Hill is now on our long list of potential neighborhoods that we would love to live in and do life with the folks in the community. And, of course, it would be a great place to plant a church!

Journey Into Sunset

Don Cheadle has a new film called Journey Into Sunset. Not sure when it will be released, but I think its great that this long-running issue (more info below) is getting more publicity...Which hopefully will cause change to take place. A little info below.

In May of last year, Academy Award nominated actor Don Cheadle and his family were invited to Kampala, Uganda to attend a charity screening of the film Hotel Rwanda to raise money for the children-the "night commuters" of Northern Uganda. They are called "night commuters" because every night they must flee their homes seeking refuge in large camps in the cities to keep from being kidnapped, dragged into the bush and ultimately forced to fight against the Ugandan government for the rebel Lords Resistance Army.

Do I Really Need More Books? YES!

I just fueled my addiction and order some books from my dealer.

I've been hearing good stuff about Simply Christian by NT Wright. I'm really looking forward to this read. Wright is one of my favorite authors and I seem to connect with his theological stream.



I also picked up Confessions of a Reformission Rev. by Mark Driscoll. I know Mark will be witty and authentic. I have a feeling I can learn a lot about church planting and ministry from this book. Also, I think every denomination should take a peek at Acts 29 and learn from these cats.



For some reason I've shelved Mclaren's book "The Secret Message of Jesus." Ken sent me Donald Millers new book "To Own a Dragon," which is about growing up without a father. Which I did, and so far the book is good, but hard to read...I will share some of my reflections later. In the meantime I need to make a choice, do I want a Fat Tire, some Bailey Irish Cream or a hot Cup of Joe?

Sunday Reflections

Another nice sunny Seattle day...Feels good. Yesterday, we worshiped at Pathways Church in Mill Creek. We really enjoyed our experience, the folks were friendly and the message was challenging. I LOVE the core values of Pathways; struggle, meaning, redemption, sacrifice & community. I really respect what Pathways Church is doing. They are in the "burbs," and they are really challenging their people to think and act like missional Christ-Followers NOT just Sunday church attenders, which is not an easy task. I'm sure if they changed their approach they could have more folks attending,(although they have a great crowd for such a new church) but their goal seems to be growth through mission & struggle.

After church, we headed over to John & Sherri Chandler's place. Now, these cats do not even know us. John and I shared a few emails in regards to Theohacks; which is a great podcast that you should be listening too. It was great to see our kids play with the Chandler's kids.

Necole and I enjoyed our time with the Chandlers. One of the reasons I love about moving to Seattle was the quality of friendships that I think I can build here, Lot's of sharp folks who are pushing the edge of theology and church. I know being in this kind of environment will cause me to grow and become a better Jesus-follower and pastor.

Although, I do have one frustration, John (being from Colorado and all) is a Denver Broncos fan. That my friend is a hard pill to swallow being a disgruntled Raiders fan. Who knows, maybe I will have the courage to become a Seahawks fan? In the meantime, GO Raiders! Maybe we can win 5 games this year????????????? Although I would not bet on it.

Anyhow, big props to the Chandlers. Thanks for allowing us to hang and taking time on a Sunday to welcome us to the Rain City!

Somebody Is Doing Something

The Global Night Commute is tonight. Folks all across the world are gathering to bring awareness to some HUGE issues in Africa. I just found out about this and I'm bummed that I can't be involved tonight in Seattle. Anyhow, check out the website.

Surfing The Web From Home

Yep, that's right folks...The cable dude just left the building. Now if I could just locate an xbox?

We spent the last few days hanging with Scott & Emma; these cats are so cool. It was great to see them and chat. We took them to the Fremont District for some yummy Thai food. Then we headed to Alki Beach. What a day, sand, snow-capped mountains and deep blue water; plus we ate at Alki Bakery, good stuff! After that, we headed down to Kirkland and took a walk along the waterfront, which was nice. (Except for the wanna be Paris Hilton chic walking around with her dog in hand, freaking lame, get a freaking life) Ok, time to calm down, but I HAD to RANT about that. :)

The next day we did our ferry-pilgrimage, picked up Scott & Emma and headed to The Original Pancake House. Yes, this place is soooo good. Of course, we also hung at Pike's Place; needless to say we had a blast. Scott, you need to start blogging bro.

Today we are just relaxing. Tomorrow...We head back to Seattle for church & lunch with a local pastor/blogger. Should be fun.

BTW-The Lakers are rolling baby...Since I do not have cable tv, I had to follow the game via the treo...Ya, that was like stressful. I hit refresh so many times, Necole almost took my treo from me. How mean!

Ryan Van Sickle

Ryan Van Sickle is now blogging. Sweet, and how did I miss this???

Prayer Needs

One aspect I love about blogging is the sense of community that I feel. I know there are folks who are keeping up with my story...So, I see blogging as medium to communicate and share with other folks. It's also a two way street, I feel connected to my friends because of their blogs...For instance, I know what Ashdown is reading, Jeff had a new little girl, Ken is spiderman, Mark seems to be having all sorts of fun with the family, Jason is trying to figure out why we blog and Wahba is helping Jodi catch a cat.

So, that is why I think blogging is cool. Therefore, I thought I would use this blogging medium as a prayer tool for my family. Below, I'm going to list some specifics needs that we have, and I'm going to ask my global community to join me in praying for these needs. I think it's a tragedy how sometimes we can be so individualistic in our culture (church included). I do not want to be that way, I want to rely on my brothers & sisters to stand before God and my behalf, and I want to stand before God on their behalf. So here it goes:

-Pray that Necole would find a good paying job with full benefits quickly.
-Pray that I can sell at least 5 homes this summer.
-Pray that we find a good church home, were we can connect and give back.
-Pray that I can get a car to do Real Estate.
-Pray that we can find a baby-sitter/school for the girls.
-Pray that we can find a long-term place to live.
-Pray that the Lakers beat the Suns tonight.


Ok, just kidding on the last one, but hey, there you go & thanks for prayer.

Hello World

Sorry for the silence, call me a blog-slacker if you want. Anyhow, things are going pretty well in Seattle. We are truly loving the city and the weather has been great.

Looks like I'm going to be working for Keller Williams in downtown Bellevue. They have a nice office. Necole and I love the business activity. We can walk to multiple cafes, movie theatre's, shops, breweries, restaurants, and of course my gym is across the street. So that is cool.

Wanted to say happy b-day to Amanda, Kezia & Diana. Hope you special days went well. Now your older...Like me...Rock on!

Last but not least, congrats to Jeff and the birth of Abigail. I think we bloggers should unite and send Jeff some coffee, since he will not be getting much sleep for awhile :)

Back to work. Must sell home quickly...Or else, I will lose weight...Not by choice.

Hello

We arrived safely in Bremerton...No border problems. We caught the ferry and headed to our appointment.

Mad props to Abundant Life Foursquare Church in Bremerton, WA. They are allowing my family to stay in the Genesis House for the next 6 weeks till we settle in.

The house is great, it's clean & stocked with everything one needs...This ministry definitely has spirit of excellence. We are so grateful. They even let us snag some wireless from the church. Yippee!

It's going to feel nice to find a rhythm again. This road trip has brought so much healing to my soul. It feels good to be around folks who care, to see old friends and meet new ones. God is so good, we face many challenges, but the light is at the end of the tunnel sorta speak.

Our time is Canada was quick, but great. Ken & Brenda have AMAZING families. So much love and grace. We stayed at the house Brenda grew up in. Jerry & Diana Moore (Brenda parents) were telling Bailey that she was staying at the same house that Brenda lived in as a child. Of course, Bailey responded with the typical "Bailey" comeback; She threw her hands in the air, and told Jerry & Diana that she lived in many homes and many states, she could not believe that Brenda grew up in ONE house :)

It was also good to see Kezia. She turns 30 on Saturday, WOW. Looking forward to spending more time with her in the future.

Then we hung out with Gerald & Sue Nussbaum. (Ken's parents) They cooked us a delicious meal, and of course we drank about 6 cups of coffee. (I thought Ken was bad, I think his pops can take him any day) We had great conversations about life and ministry etc. I'm not sure if Ken & Brenda really know how excited their parents are that they are moving back to the Northwest.

Anyhow, I got to go. The road trip is now officially over. I will post some stats tomorrow.

Peace & Love from Seattle...Which is now home!

Do Your Part

Some nice practical tips on 50 Ways to Save the Planet.

HT: Jordan Cooper

Mean Mean Mean

Well, we made it to Canada...Barely. We arrived at the border and the border dude was not so nice. We only had 3 birth certificates therefore the border guard guy made us go to immigration. Of course the immigration chic was also mean, she grilled us with the 20 question type of quiz...Question like, "why did you move to Seattle?" And, "how do we know if that 3 year old is truly yours and this social security card is not fake?" But, after 1/2 hour, they let us through. So, now we are relaxing at Brenda's parents place in Surrey.

Looking forward to hanging with Ken's parent tomorrow and also double agent kPaul in Vancouver. I also may have to find a little cigar shop with some real Cubans :)

We are off...

to Vancouver B.C. for a few days. We will be staying with Brenda's family. It will be nice to get to know them.

Also, Sunday...We where heading to Pathways Church. John Chandler who does TheoHacks podcast is on staff at Pathways, and since we do not have a church, and we do not know anyone, we thought we would check out Pathways. So, Necole was backing the van down the hill, she mis-judged a little and our back tire slid off into the cliff-yikes. I thought the van was going to flip over into the small ravine below. So, I had to get the family out before we all died on the day that Jesus lived. Then of course, I did the manly thing and tried to get the van out myself, which I only made the problem worse. Go figure.

We called our insurance company while we prayed the van would not slide down the cliff. The tow truck guy came and he looked at the van in disbelief. He tried to get the van un-stuck but he had no luck. So, he called a second tow truck to come help. Finally, they got the van out and we were worried that the gas tank or oil thingy was damaged...But, we were lucky and we had no damage.

Needless to say, we missed the service...Then the Nussbams called...Not Ken, but Ken's brother Tim. We headed out to Bremerton Island (via the ferry, which rocks) to hang with Tim & Rachel. We had a blast and we are looking forward to getting to know them more.

Anyhow, It's time to load the van and hit the road. Peace & Love!

Update

I wanted to give a shout out to Wahba for showing the world my hidden hobby-cheerleading :)

So far Seattle has been fun, Necole and I are learning to take each day as they come, when we left NC we had no clue where we would end up...Although, we had a hunch it would be the great Northwest.

Anyhow, we were in Cali for a few days and we absolutely hated it...Just not our cup of tea. So, we left and headed north to the Rain City. We knew we had a place to stay for a few days...After that, we were not sure; we even thought we may buy a tent and crash in a state park or something. While we have enjoyed the journey, and God is teaching me a lot about life and trust, we also miss our rhythm that we so love and hate. Little things like beds, a kitchen and of course the greatness of the internet.

Our kids are getting a little ADD, and they are asking if we are going to find a "real" home sometime soon. Long story short the Nussbaums were working behind the scenes to try and find us a place to stay.

Well, today we got a call from a Foursquare Church that Ken's brother is a Youth Pastor at. They have a house called the Genesis House. This house is a transitional house...The church is close to a Navy base and I guess they use the home to bless the local military community and also missionaries.

They informed us that we can stay for free till mid-June. This is HUGE for us. So, sometime at the end of next week, we will be able to move in and relax for a bit. We hope to get our business going and find a church in the next few weeks.

Monday we leave for Canada to hang with Ken & Brenda's family for a few days. We also hope to hang with Kezia while we are there.

Seattle is a great place. I hope to post some pics soon.

Until then, the journey continues...

You have new Picture Mail!

You have new Picture Mail!
Originally uploaded by Ancientwalk.

Bailey is in a really good mood!

You have new Picture Mail!

You have new Picture Mail!
Originally uploaded by Ancientwalk.

Kenzie enjoying The Original Pancake House.....

You have new Picture Mail!

You have new Picture Mail!
Originally uploaded by Ancientwalk.

Ya, Seattle rocks...

Seattle....Here we come

That's right, we are leaving early tomorrow morning...Necole has a job interview on Friday at 2PM, so please say a prayer. Also, we have a place to crash for the weekend. But, we may have a temporary place to stay for like a month. Which would be great.

We are sooooo stoked to land in the rain city and begin a new chapter of our life. I can see the mountains, the ferries, and the deep dark blue puget sound. So sweet...Peace and love from the road, the journey is almost over. :) :(

Life is Good

Hanging at Cafe Flood in Sac-town. Cool place, great coffee, music, & vibe. This is nice cafe, they offer curb side coffee in the morning, so you can drive up in a car and they will bring your coffee to you, which of course, the Starbucks across the street is not doing that. So props to the "flood team" for being creative and what not. This cafe is also connected to the church, which is Flood Sacramento. However, once again they have done a great job in creating and independent vibe. Anyhow, cool stuff.

Necole and I are really pumped to move forward in our lives, to dig into a city, connect to a community and find folks to do life with. Please join us on our journey and pray for the following:

1. Jobs.
2. Real Estate will do well.
3. Place to live.
4. Church home.
5 Cash Flow.
6. Mission, how can we make the city a better place and allow the Kingdom of God to shine through our lives, etc.
7. Friends for Bailey & Kenzie.
8. Sunshine :)

Peace & Love from the road...

Seattle is Home

Well, after months of thinking, praying, debating...Necole and I have decided to call Seattle home. At the end of the day, we just love the city, we do not like Sacramento AT ALL. So, we head off to the great Northwest next Monday. We are pumped to live in such a great city and be close to the Nussbaum's. Peace & Love, and the road trip will end soon.