Thursday, March 19, 2009

30til30: Day 23

I have 30 days until I turn 30, so I thought I'd try to choose 30 moments that have helped shape who I am and want to be. Coming up with the list has been challenging...and enlightening. These are in no particular order.

23: Derek Sanford.


I don't even know. I really don't. This is going to be a bulleted list of whatever comes to my mind, because there is just way too much:
  • One of my first memories with Derek was sitting in his office and singing, "Thyroid is a gland inside of me, that secretes into my brain" to the tune of "Thy Word." Yeah, I know. I should have walked away right then.
  • Derek is a faithful friend. I know he has my best interest at heart.
  • I've definitely peed my pants laughing with him.
  • His mind is incredible. The ideas and strategies that come out of him are pretty awesome.
  • He has led me through a lot of ministry transitions and has given me the chance to try a lot of different things.
  • He has also led me through a lot of life stuff. I remember one time he said, "Bad self-esteem cannot be a crutch for the rest of your life." That was a stake in the ground moment.
  • Derek has just...been there, you know? As a pastor, a boss, a friend and a brother.
  • I can't even count the number of times we've put our hands in the middle and decided to push forward together.
  • He is the best leader in the world. He could be the President if he wanted to. I'm not even kidding.
  • You know all those cool leadership and ministry ideas you read about? He probably thought of them two years earlier.
  • His ability to cast vision is incredible.
  • Derek loves Erie, and not because he's afraid to leave. He feels a strong calling to be a light in this community.
  • I love working on projects with him. Our minds work well together.
  • He is, without a doubt, the funniest person I have ever met.
  • I truly don't know where I would be if I hadn't walked into Grace in 1996 and met him.
  • I know that God has specific plans for us in ministry. I'm 100% sure of it. I'm loving this time, and I can't wait to see what the future holds.
How he has shaped me:
  • I am doing what I'm doing, feeling what I'm feeling, and passionate about ministry because Derek let God use him to change my life.

6 comments:

amy grace said...

seriously. derek IS AWESOME!

i think he should be president someday. could you imagine? and he could bring all of us with him to the white house...

that'd be a freakin sweet America.

Anonymous said...

Truly - you are so much of who you are because of D, and that is awesome. I think we've all been shaped by him in some ways, more than others.

We love to follow your leadership Derek! Keep pushing forward!!!

jendakerr said...

I can't read the rest of your post because I am still laughing and singing the "Thyroid" song...

Barb said...

He is a good guy!

Derek said...

whoa dude... this was incredibly and very moving to read. thank you. the future is bright - really, really bright!

...and my word verification- scrambled word that I need to type in to post this reply is "testio" - not sure what that means.

Anonymous said...

"Thyroid is a gland inside of me, that secretes into my brain"

I read this 28 minutes ago, and it hasn't stopped yet.