A couple of things to share with you . . .

I just read Gregory A. Boyd's book "Repenting of Religion." (see left column) Definitely a must read. The biggest takeaway for me was the idea that eating of the forbidden tree has put us in a place of "judge." Check it out. I will have some more to say about this soon.

Secondly, the word is out and you may already know that we are planning on leaving Westwinds this summer. This has been quite a year of change for the Westwinds family. My wife Tahni and I count it a privilege that God has seen fit to use us at Westwinds during this time. When we first came to Westwinds and changes in leadership started to unfold, we believed God was bringing us here not in spite of transition, but because of it. God was definitely in the details of our move to Jackson and called us here for this time.

We do not feel we made a mistake in coming to Jackson however, we do feel it is time for us to move on. We never anticipated only being here for a year, but our short stay does not diminish the fact that God has done some incredible things during that time. Our decision does not negate the fact that God is continuing to do wonderful things at Westwinds in and through His people. Someone recently told me that God has way more invested at Westwinds than any of the people do—I believe that is very true.

Our decision is based on a variety of things that stem from two basic conclusions: First, the position at Westwinds is not exactly what we thought it was going to be. Even with the best intentions and an open mind, it is hard to predict these things at times. Secondly, this has been a bit of a culture shock for us. I guess you can take the boy out of the culture, but you can’t take the culture out of the boy. Though longevity was something we were hoping for, it doesn’t seem to be a good match for our family overall.

Oh, one note about culture: Someone at Westwinds said to me the other day, "I don't blame you for wanting to get out of "hickville." PLEASE know that this is NOT the message we want to come across. Cultural differences and cultural comfort level do not equate with "hickville." We have invested most of our lives into ministry on the West Coast. We feel at home there. We speak the indigenous language. We know it. We miss it. We are trying to get back there. Jackson is a beautiful town with a lot going for it. There are wonderful people here. I have family here now. I love them.

We are currently searching for an opportunity on the left coast somewhere. If you know of something, let us know at john@westwinds.org. I will send out a resume and a promo pack right away.