“hi, i’m a middle school teacher!”

Well, once I defended my dissertation a few weeks ago I slipped into a much-needed virtual-realm-lethargy! And man did it feel nice! I now have 500+ emails in my inbox, dozens of Facebook wall posts and messages to reply to, a barren Twitter page, and a few silent weeks on the blog. After this vacation I’m now roaring to go!

One of the things that finally re-energized me out of hibernation was the acceptance that I am no longer a “professional minister.” Sure I still hold credentials. And I will always be passionately involved in the work of the Body of Christ. But I do not receive compensation for ministry, which frees me up to focus on ministry that grows out of God-given passions, and not out of a need to justify my paycheck each month. So how do I pay the bills? I’m a middle school teacher. And I’m happy about that!

Along with my vocational acceptance comes a revamping of my blog topics. For the last several months I have written almost exclusively on areas of theology, spirituality, and the church. While I’m sure that I will still write on those things, I think that I need to share my whole life on here. That means venturing into things like sports, politics, or just everyday life stuff. I’m pretty stoked about it. So, let me start by introducing myself, “Hi, I’m Jonathan. I’m a middle school teacher, husband for seven years, father of two girls, with a son on the way.”