I saw my brother share his end of the year update on Facebook and thought it would be good for me as well to quickly reflect on this year and share some of the highs and lows I have experienced in 2016.
The Good
Without question, the most significant event in our lives this year was the birth of our baby girl. Abby has been a joy and a delight and I cannot begin to describe how blessed and grateful I am/we are for this precious gift. Thank you Jesus!
I continue to be involved in Fishers of Men and while I have reduced the number of hours at the discipleship house (since Abby’s birth), this has by no means diminished by desire to be involved in the ministry, especially in the lives of the men who come to Fishers of Men to turn their life around. I know (and my wife Amanda reminds me on the days I wonder) that God has called me to serve there and will continue to do so until He says otherwise. Even though I am at the house only for a few hours two days a week, it is the most mentally, emotionally and spiritually challenging time for me every week but also the most rewarding.
At the start of 2016, one of my goals was to end the year with two new clients. While I fell short on that number, I am very grateful that I was able to add one new client in 2016 and look forward to adding more clients in 2017. I know there are some who question my commitment to my business (because of the amount of time I spend serving God) but the truth is, I am dedicated and passionate about Mustard Seed IT and want to see it grow and mature. My business exists to serve my clients, provide for my family and glorify God. If you are looking for a trustworthy and reliable IT company, please get in touch with me.
I am truly grateful for the opportunity I’ve had in 2016 to continue being a tutor at the Queensland University of Technology. As a tutor for the Business of Information Technology (IAB202), I’ve had the privilege of teaching and mentoring students and preparing them for the real world. I am equally humbled by the positive feedback I received each semester. Here’s hoping I will be offered the same opportunity in 2017.
The Hard
2016 has not been without challenges and the biggest one I would have to say is how my wife and I were challenged in our marriage and our relationship with each other, mostly stemming from financial challenges we have faced and other changes/challenges God has brought about in other areas of our life.
Mustard Seed IT is still young and doesn’t have too many clients, which doesn’t translate to a lot of revenue, which basically means financial struggles and we did face it a lot this year. Not many people (including Christians) get the fact that when you focus on serving God, there’s a lot of sacrifice involved. God knows I have done my best to focus on my business without ignoring Him or my family. I am not only involved with Fishers of Men but also make time to meet with those who are going through various challenges because I believe God has called me to be His hands and feet. All of this costs time and everyone knows time is money. Despite everything, I still have faith that God will honour us because we are choosing to honour Him first.
This year, God also challenged us to acknowledge things that we had known for a long time were not right at our church and take action, which not only led to us leaving the church we got married at and has been a part of our lives for nearly five years but also answering God’s call to start our own home fellowship. We chose to obey rather than worry or stay in our comfort zone. While this has not been easy (increased attacks from the enemy by sowing seeds of doubt and fear of spiritual isolation, further straining our relationship/marriage), we are nevertheless excited at what God’s going to do in and through us in 2017.
Despite everything, I am pleased and grateful to say that my wife and I are going into 2017 with faith, hope and love underpinning our relationship and marriage. Over a breakfast date yesterday, we were able to have a heart to heart about a lot of things and took the opportunity to discuss what we will do differently in 2017 and what we hope God will accomplish in and through us in all aspects of our life.
Thank Sri 🙂