A worldview perspective...

Our first born...Donovan

I'm currently wrapping up my Masters program at Hope International University. Lord willing, I'll obtain my Masters in Ministry before the year 2013 ends. Below is an excerpt from a paper I wrote in a Worldview class. I am often private with personal things, but I feel that this paper has some insight on where I've been and where I'm headed. It involves my ministry, my history, my family and my future. I challenge you as you read to think of your worldview and how it fits with God's Word. Enjoy :)

           To discover one’s own worldview is to find himself with a stronger understanding of his own history and life perspective.  I have been challenged by my own worldview, as I look deeper to understand where I came from, why I do what I do, and what consequences arise from my underlying perspective of the world. Looking back from my childhood, through my college years, and into my new life with Christ, many of my personal views on life, culture, and religion have been transformed as I have grown in my faith and my maturity as an adult, husband, and father.

            I accepted Christ into my life shortly after college, and as a result, much of what I thought to be true in and of this world changed. Insomuch as my belief in God, His word, the Holy Spirit set me free from a false perspective of life I had as a teenager and young adult, I know that my life before becoming a Christian has helped shape and mold me into the person I am today. Through study and prayer, I have found God’s word to be true. Jesus was a real person, sent from Heaven as God’s Son to die for our sins (John 3:16). God is love (1 John 4:16), sovereign and omniscient (Revelation 22:13). God created the universe and everything in it (Genesis 1:1). God sits outside of time and space (Psalm 139), and we are created in the image of God (Genesis 1:27). For me there is no denying that God is the Creator of all.

My life has been filled with some amazing people and experiences, and my parents have been the greatest source of influence and support in my life. Although I rejected God in my teenage and college years, my parents raised me a Christian home where I was shown real love and support in all I did. I saw a godly example of love and parenting in their marriage, and I continue to lean on their example as a husband and father. I look back at how I was raised and know I am truly blessed by the sacrifices my parents made for me, and I am eternally grateful for their love as I try to emulate that same spirit with my own family.

One of the characteristics I developed over the course of my life was a strong sense of individuality. I believe this trait is not just a result of my upbringing, but also the influence of our culture today, and I have found that my individualism often contradicts my biblical beliefs. Over time my human condition has been trained to be independent, even though my faith’s commands that I rely on God.

My caddie (Charles) on the course and in life!

The work ethic instilled in me by my parents and my sense of doing and accomplishing things on my own has always been strong - thus making it difficult to acknowledge that I need help or that I should be helping others along the way. I live on deadlines, getting things done and accomplishing things that represent me in a good light, and while that ideal works well in this fast-paced Southern California lifestyle, it isn’t really the kind of Christ-minded, self-sacrificing lifestyle God expects from us. As a result, I have attempted to change much of what comes naturally to me, not only for myself, but for my family and His ministry.

The term “selfishness” would sum up the over-arching theme that is described above, and it is what I believe is killing our country. This is a very individualistic and materialistic culture we live in, but my goal is to change myself so I will more readily line my self up to God’s word and fulfill the mission He has set before me.

            Sports have always been a part of my life and from a very early age, I always had a ball in my hands. I exceled at a number of different team sports, and while playing football, basketball, and baseball in high school, I received accolades and ultimately a scholarship to play basketball in college. Playing team sports my whole life has definitely given me a sense of team and unity, however, my accomplishments became my identity. Having now found Christ, I try more and more to detach my self-worth from my success as an athlete, and work more towards becoming the man God created me to be.

This lifestyle of playing collegiate sport and professional basketball has shaped and challenged me in many ways. The basketball culture and worldview from a professional athlete standpoint is very different then the one I hold today. Having found God and my identity in Him, I have been able to release a lot of the individualism and selfishness I once held. I no longer need to set myself apart on the basketball court, as I’m now a man who sees and uses his athletic abilities as a tool to share God’s great news of eternal life.

            Playing team sports and excelling as an individual has taught me many valuable lessons and provided great opportunities, but my view of these wonderful experiences has changed over the years. Yes, I worked hard, but the gifts I received in these opportunities were not ‘achieved’ on my own but given from above. My changed perspective has shaped my current worldview including why I do what I do for a living.

            Working in a church is about the furthest thing I would have ever considered as a job when I was young, and I know this blessing can only be from God. My job as a sports pastor is to infuse the power of God’s love into our community through the common bond of sports. One of the main components we strive for through this ministry is to create a Christ-centered environment where everyone in our community (of all faiths) has the opportunity to build relationships, fellowship, and learn more about God. Our goal is to break down the walls of the culture around us by discipling other believers to become leaders within this ministry and outside the walls of our church. Through all my life experiences, I believe the Lord was preparing me for this role even before I had a personal relationship with Him, and while our sports ministry very much has its own worldview and culture, it is my goal to help others find the proper balance between their love of sports and God’s leading in their lives.

Striving to put all things before God...all the time. 

I do not assume to always be in line with God’s word. However, it is my desire to constantly grow and align my purpose to His will for my life. This goes for my family life as I am called to be the spiritual leader of my household, and my leadership role within my ministry. I know how lost a man can be, and my passion now revolves around my worldview that one day we all have to give an account to God. It is because of this that I don’t want to see anyone miss an opportunity to make a decision for Christ. It is through God’s mercy and grace that I found a relationship with Him, and I believe He’s given me this desire and ministry to help others also know His grace.

            I have seen the other side of life without Christ, a view surrounded by individualism and materialism. I have tried living life without God, but I now know God’s amazing grace and transformative power. I understand His greatest gift, which is an eternity with Him for all who believe. Life is but a snap of the fingers in comparison to eternity, and it is this fact that fuels my focus to help others have a personal relationship with Jesus Christ. I live in faith that God is real, and He is the Creator who gives us all we need. The Church is His bride and we are being prepared and perfected for His return when He will make all things new (Revelation 21:5). I am so thankful that God has changed my worldview and I am honored to serve Him with my life.