Portland, Ribbon dancing, and breaking up

Many things have occurred since my last post.

- I have decide to go to Portland, Oregon.
- I had the privilege of being a ribbon dancer on Easter Sunday
- Candice and i have broken up

Now i shall explain.
Barring application rejection, I will be doing college ministry in Portland from Sept - June. It is a sweet set-up through the North American Mission Board. It is more than i could have hoped for. I can't even come close to describing how excited i am about this. I'm giddy. And i think i've told most people more than once just because i'm so excited about it.

That's right, ribbon dancing. First, i was asked to be a regular dancer because they wanted more than just girls on stage. Then during our second rehearsal they say, "and this is where you'll grab your ribbon, run down the aisle and perform the other half of the piece." At first i was like, "oh crap, what have i got myself into." Then someone made a joking, offhand remark like, "I bet when you said you'd do anything for God you weren't thinking of ribbon dancing." He was right. That made me realise that the only reason i didn't want to do it was because of my pride. How often do we (myself included) refuse to do something just because we are holding on to our dignity. Jesus said to have a child like faith, and i think a lack of indignation is a huge part of that. I trust the leaders at my church. So, if they think that my ribbon dancing will help communicate the gospel, then i will rejoice and be thankful for the opportunity.


Candice is an awesome girl, and i couldn't have asked for a better girlfriend. Yet, for some reason unbeknownst to me, i did not desire her in a romantic way. I really enjoyed spending time with her, talking with her, and getting to know her. I consider her one of my best friends. Though i consider that to be one of the most important aspects of a dating relationship, i don't think it is the only aspect. I was confident when i started dating her that those emotions would develop. Though my respect for her grew, my romantic feelings did not follow suit. After more than seven months of dating, i decided that i should not keep allowing her feelings for me to grow while mine did not. I hate making decisions based on emotions, but it would be unwise to ignore them. This was truly one of the most difficult decisions i have ever had to make.
Though i think that we should have stayed "just friends" until romantic feelings developed, i am still thankful for our relationship. God used my "less than ideal" choice to grow us, teach us, and use us in ministry. God is awesome, and when two people are pursuing Him above all else, God will use even their mistakes to bring Himself glory.