What God Did With My 20’s

I just turned 30 on June 9. Kristin made it a great week with cool surprises and helping me celebrate with some of my closest family and friends. God was undeservedly and exceptionally favorable toward me in my 20’s and I thought I would just document that here to His glory.

Interestingly, as I reflected I realized that literally days before my 20’s began I was on the at Shelby Farm outside of Memphis, Tennessee for One Day 2000 Conference put on by the Passion Movement (picture above). There were 40,000 other college students at this prayer gathering. This day was a spiritually monumental and watershed day for myself and some of my closest college friends. So “OneDay” was the launching pad into my 20’s. In this post I just want to reflect on my 20’s…

OneDay 2000- May 20, 2000
June 9, 2000- My 20^th Birthday

Age 20
-Was privileged to served as a missionary in Melbourne Australia
-Served as student President of Campus Crusade for Christ at Florida State
-Served my Spring Break ministering in post 9/11 NYC.

Age 21
-Did 40 day fast (yikes!)
-Graduated FSU with BA in Communication & Religion Minor
-Began seminary (suicide summer Greek)
-Met & began dating Kristin

Age 22
-Member of Harvest Bible Chapel (God began calling me to Pastoral Ministry in Local Church)
-Summer Pastoral Internship at 4-Oaks Church (Tallahassee)

Age 23
-Got engaged!
-Started a Window Washing Business to pay for seminary

Age 24
-Got Married to an amazing, beautiful, and Godly woman- Kristin
-Pastoral Internship at Crystal Lake EFCA
-Got Yellow Lab- Jackson

Age 25
-Led and hosted an Adult Small Group Bible Study for our church  (Harvest)
-Graduated Seminary at Trinity Evangelical Divinity Schoolfield

Age 26
-Was privileged to participate in Fellowship Associates Church Planting Residency
-Ordained and Commissioned to Church Planting by Elders of Fellowship Bible Church (Little Rock)
-Saw God affirm our vision and raise over $300,000 for Fellowship Raleigh & call people to move to Raleigh with us

Age 27
-Moved to Raleigh, NC to plant a church
-Led Core Group for Fellowship Raleigh (church to be)
-Encouraging planting partnership with 4-Oaks Church

Age 28
-Launched Fellowship Raleigh at Broughton- downtown Raleigh High School
-Daughter Abigail Mei Schoolfield born on March 8, 2009
-God taught me major lessons on leadership this year and still is

Age 29
-Celebrated 5 year anniversary with Kristin
-Growing in leadership and preaching God’s Word to His people
-Seeing God steadily grow Fellowship Raleigh
-Good friends in life and ministry

If you even read this post, let me say that it’s all about Jesus miraculous power and the glory goes to Him. I can say that because I know where my life was at 17& 18. There are two verses that stand out to me as appropriate for concluding this post on my 20’s.

2 Samuel 7:18- “Who am I O LORD God and what is my house, that you have brought me thus far?”
Philippians 3:13-14- “One thing I do: Forgetting what lies behind and straining forward to what lies ahead, I press on toward the goal for the prize of the upward call of God in Christ Jesus.”

The 20’s were great but may the 30’s be far more focused, passionate, disciplined, and productive.