186,000 Miles Per Second!
Yes, that is the speed of light. Right now it seems more like the pace of our life! The weeks seem to be flying by so quickly. It feels like a few weeks ago that we were in Virgina for my sister’s wedding, but in reality that was in August, and we are now at Thanksgiving! With online classes, spending 2 days a week at Spectrum HS working as their school counselor, looking for internship placements, and Maggie working on weekends it seems like we barely have time to breathe. Thankfully, we have run full steam into a long weekend of sorts with Thanksgiving being on a Thursday. We will spend Thanksgiving with my older brother and his wife (Tim and Dana) north of the cities. It will be good to have nothing scheduled or on the “to do list” (other than take care of the 2 kids and watch as much football as the wives will allow 
)
Over the past few weeks I have been trying to think of a way to offer some of the skills I have been learning and practicing through my school counseling classes. I have been posting and updating some basic information on the Spectrum High School Counseling Services to share with the students at SHS and any parents that are interesting in the college and career planning process. If any of you have any questions or would like more information please let me know and I”ll try to get you an answer as soon as possible. I have learned a lot during the last 2-3 months of classes and time actually working with students at SHS but I am not an expert by any means, so please be patient if I’m not able to answer you question right away. Thankfully, I know people who do know it all so I’ll be picking their brain when I need help.
Since I am going to be redirecting the focus of my website to more college and career prep information some of you may not find it exciting to get updates about this topic in your mailbox. If you would like to unsubscribe to the website please let me know and I’ll remove you from the email list. No offense will be taken or implied I am a big fan of reducing needless information in my mailbox so I understand. Please do check back peridically because I still plan on updating you all on current family situations and events under a new Family page on the top of the website. It’s not up there now but I’ll get to it soon.
Thanks for your patience and time as you read through this! I’ll talk with you all soon.
Rethinking the “Full-time Ministry” box
Over the past few months I have been thinking about the phrase “full-time ministry”. I have always thought I would be involved in full-time ministry in some way and my past jobs have reflected that belief. Over the past two years at Treehouse and at our church (www.northwestbiblechurch.org) I have learned about youth, God, myself, how to grow and mature with co-workers, and what full-time ministry really looks like.
My previous picture of full-time ministry involved a number of different things. 1. Having a career/job with a Christian organization, 2. raising your salary or part of it, 3. not getting paid much for what you do and the time you put in , and 4. your ministry being centered at a specific location (ie.. church, school, TreeHouse, etc…). Finding a job that fits into the small box I mentally created is REALLY hard and usually involves #3 being a prohibitive factor in taking any jobs that would come along.
As I have been rethinking the ministry box I have begun to see ministry in a more holistic way instead of narrowing it down to fit into old “normal” paradigm. I have come across an article that explains how I am beginning to view the term “full-time ministry”. To read the article CLICK HERE. It is a little long but a quick read. The story at the end about the young pastor is something I can relate well to because as I have been transitioning from TreeHouse to Spectrum High School I have had similar feelings. Thankfully I am beginning to see things a little differently. I hope it also gives you something to think about. I want to challenge you to reconsider how you view your job/career and why God has placed you there. Is it about earning money or bringing Him glory?
Summer Fun :)
I wanted you to see how fun Titus and Ruby have been this summer. The short video is from our yard where Ruby and Titus like to play and swim. Ti is more daring than Ruby when it comes to the water activities as you’ll see in the video. Ruby would NEVER do what he does here
Enjoy!
Redirection and transition
Have you ever felt so blessed you were at a loss for words? That is how I am feeling right now. I am sitting in my living room with my laptop trying to put into words what the past 2 years have meant to me and my family. I have been thinking and praying about how to write this letter for 5 months and have come to the conclusion that sharing where my heart is and how God is leading is the best way to communicate what is happening in the Schmoyer Household.
I will be transitioning out of TreeHouse this August. My last day will be Friday, August 15th. The reason I have come to this decision is because I feel like my first responsibility is to God, then Maggie, followed by my kids. My career and vocation fall into fourth place. I feel God is calling me to transition in to the field of school counseling so I can have a more structured schedule with more opportunities to invest in the lives of my wife and kids.
The past two years have been amazing years of growth, blessing, stretching, learning, encouragement, and clarity. I believe that God has placed me at TreeHouse for the past 2 years so I would have a desire to work with teens who want someone to listen to them. I have polled many kids at TreeHouse about their school counselor and the #1 characteristic they wish was changed was that “they would listen”. I am striving to be someone who listens and genuinely cares about my students.
I have been offered a job as a part-time guidance counselor at Spectrum High School in Elk River, MN and will start working there in August. This is the first year they have had a guidance counselor so I will be breaking new ground at the school. I am also coaching the schools first ever season of girls volleyball. I am excited to see how God is going to use me at Spectrum as the school grows and expands.
Please pray for Maggie and I as we try to figure out how to balance our lives as a family and a couple over the next year. I need to go back to school to take the required classes for my school counseling licensure and it is going to take time and lots of money. The last 2 years of support raising have proven to us that God is in total control of our finances and will continue to provide for us. Keep praying for us to trust Him.
I want to tell you all how humbled and honored I have been to represent you at TreeHouse. Without each one of you supporting me in my ministry I would not have experienced the blessings and spiritual growth I enjoyed ay TreeHouse. I believe in the ministry of TreeHouse and I hope you have seen how amazing and transforming TreeHouse is in the lives of so many youth.
I want to encourage you to continue supporting TreeHouse. Hopefully when life settles down I can volunteer at TreeHouse because I believe God is using TreeHouse is a HUGE way to reach hurting teens. It gives them a chance to hear the gospel message and see it personally lived out. If you decide you want to continue to give to TreeHouse please let me know and I will let you know how to direct your gifts. Thank you all for your prayer and financial support. PLEASE do not stop praying for us! If you have any questions or want to talk about our decision please feel free to leave a comment and I’ll send you my email address or phone number. Thanks.
For more Boundary Waters Pictures Click Here
