#blessed

Earlier this week, my wife wrote a great blog about the humble blessing of being the recipients of so much kindness from others. (Seriously, it's short, sweet and worth reading!) I think Traci and I have always considered ourselves ridiculously blessed when we think about the friendships God has given us, but lately, that blessing has been almost too much to handle. In Psalm 23, David wrote, “...my cup overflows” in talking about God’s goodness to him. Traci and I can surely relate to the way God has showered us with His kindness, through His people, the last two months.

I have learned a bit about myself during this seasons of blessing. First of all, I’m learning to be a better receiver, but I’ve still got a ways to go. Over the years, God has allowed Traci and I to be on the giving end of His grace and goodness, and we have experienced the joy of the scriptural truth, “It is better to give, than to receive.” During this season of receiving, we have had the joy of allowing others to be the conduit of His grace and goodness. It is humbling, but it is special to see how God meets needs in ways we could never have imagined. Without a doubt, these stories will one day make it into a book, as will the lessons I’m learning!

Not only am I learning to be a better receiver, I’m also learning to embrace God’s plan regardless of how crazy it seems from my limited perspective. As Traci and I have followed the Lord through this wild season of change, His blessings in our lives have followed us along the way! When I first lost my job back in January, we toyed with the idea of just licking our wounds, washing our hands of the problems and packing our things to head back to Oregon. Yesterday, while taking a stress-relieving walk together, Traci and I talked about everything we would have missed out on, had we just packed up and headed west. Truly, following God despite the crazy limited perspective we have, has proven to be spiritually, emotionally, financially and relationally richer than any path we could have made for ourselves.

Finally, I’m learning how rich I am in regards to the way God showers us with His grace and goodness through His children. More than once I’ve shed tears over the gifts that have sustained us through this season of uncertainty. More than once I’ve sat dumbfounded at how an exact need was met, a meal was provided, a gas tank was filled, a debt was paid, a box of goodies arrived in the mail, a helping hand was offered or a special provision showed up just in time. Each time one of those things happened, there was another human on the giving end.

Could God miraculously drop a pot of gold into the back of our van? Yes! (And Lord, just so you know, we’re open to that idea, too!) Instead, He most often chooses to use others to be the conduit of His work. Sometimes anonymously, sometimes with a special card and note, sometimes with a smile, sometimes with a back story that only God could write and sometimes with a hug and a “God told me to do this for you.” Truly, based on the people in our lives -- from Oregon, Michigan, West Virginia, California and everywhere in-between and beyond! -- we are richly blessed. THANK YOU for your prayers, your love, your emails, your gifts, your texts, your monthly support and most of all, your friendship.

As we move into the next phase of our journey, we are confident that God is leading the way, and that we will continue to experience the richest blessing of all -- meaningful relationships with people who will share this journey with us!

Go ahead and take the plunge, the best friendships you ever have, will be forged on the water where Jesus is building His Kingdom!

If you want to learn more about the next phase of our journey, check out this 10 minute video explaining how we’re taking Overboard Ministries, overboard! If you would like to join the Overboard family thru prayer or thru monthly financial support, click the links! (For monthly support, click the link, choose one of the three options, and then select "Joseph Castaneda" from the drop-down menu. Remember, all gifts are fully tax-deductible!)

Looking back one last time...

Today we officially cleared out of the house that has been our home for the past two years. In fact, it was exactly two years ago today we drove off in our fully loaded minivan, and began a 2,500 mile trek from Salem, Oregon to Lake Ann, MI (which included a very circuitous route). What a wild journey we’ve been on during this time! The next phase of our journey is shaping up to be another great adventure, as God has given us the next few steps to take. (Thursday’s blog will roll out the details of the next part of our future, be sure to check back at 10:01 EST, 7:01 PST, thursday morning). Today, however, I wanted to reflect on four of the great things that have happened while we’ve been here, reminders of how clearly the Lord worked in our lives to bring us here.

* During our time at LAC, God has given us so many great relationships! Sometimes Traci and I have had to remind ourselves we’ve only been here two years, yet with relationships that are so deep, it seems like it has been many more. Bruce, Lyndsey, Tom, Tammi, Brandon, Rachel, Craig, Kori, Mandi, Dave, Brenda, Terry, Jenn, Taylor, Bryan, Ginger, Terase, Justin, Jaqi, Ramon, Jo, Dan, Brent, Sue, Larry, Deann, Steve and Jan just to name a few! Honestly, this list of dear friends could be the entire blog, and I’m sure I’d still leave a few names out! THANK YOU to all of you for embracing the Castaneda’s into your lives -- we have been so enriched because of it!

* We’ve had a unique view of God’s work from a ministry position that gave us a broader audience with which to connect. We’ve seen the lives of students changed as they’ve embraced the truth of God’s Word. Several couples have thanked us for the work Traci and I have been privileged to do through our marriage seminars. Truly one of our greatest joys has been ministering to those in ministry, a task we joyfully look forward to in the next phase of Overboard Ministries!

* I’ve personally enjoyed broadening my work experience by delving into the world of marketing and promotion. January 1st, two weeks before I was let go, it was exciting to see summer pre-registration numbers at a level they had not been at for over five years! Learning how to market to church leaders and individuals, how to work with a talented intern to build a brand new web site and how to harness the power of social media will, I’m confident, be tools that we will used in the near future. The new work experiences have been great.

* Our children have had the joy of being around some incredibly godly young people. Many of the year-around interns have become close “friends” with my kids, and the summer staff has been awesome about making AJ, BJ and CJ feel loved and blessed to be at LAC. One of the great losses for us in this experience, is the loss of the personal connection that unfolds while living on site during the summer camping season, yet it has been something our family will look back on with great fondness.

There are many more blessings we could count, but I could fill dozens of blog posts trying to name them all. Instead, it’s just good to remember that what has happened over the past two months doesn’t define or negate what God has done the past two years.

It’s hard to believe that our time at Lake Ann Camp is over. We’ve learned so much during the past two years of experiences, we’ve grown so much during these past two months of disappointment, and we’re eager to see what God will do thru this next phase of our lives and ministry. As we move forward, we want to remember the faithfulness of God in the past, and know that He will continue to work in us and thru us, to do His work.

The God who called us Overboard on March 15th, 2013, is the same God calling us Overboard on March 15th, 2015. We are, as always, in the care of His good hands!

Go ahead and take the plunge, life is always better on the water!

5 day challenge

I enjoy surprises. Even people who “hate surprises” generally like it when someone has thoughtfully purchased a gift, provided a change of scenery or left a love note or encouraging card on a desk at work. Over the years I’ve noticed how easy it is to bless someone with a thoughtful and intentional surprise that can truly change the course their day. I thought today would be a great time to start 5-day challenge of intentional surprises. Will you join me? Whether you pick the same person to bless for five straight days, or you look for a chance to bless five different people, set a plan in your mind to bless people with kindness!

Jesus was great at surprising people, and I’m pretty sure He enjoyed doing it. In fact, the very first miracle Jesus did was a big surprise. He was at a wedding when the master of ceremonies hit a rather uncomfortable moment. In Jesus’ day, wedding feasts lasted for days, and usually a good host would bring out the best wine at first, and after people had probably indulged a bit too much, he would bring out the cheap box wine to finish things off.

Well, either more people showed up than expected, the wedding planner was a cheapskate or there was more consumption going on than anticipated but at the end of a few days, the wine was gone. This was more than a social faux pax, this was serious cultural shame and reflected badly on the new couple!

In steps Jesus with a big surprise. When it looked like everyone was going to have to start celebrating with plain ol’ water, Jesus helped prevent cultural shame, saved face for the bride and groom and made a happy ending to a potential disaster. In fact, when He turned the water to wine the guest of honor said that normally the worst wine was saved for last, but at this party, the best wine was brought out the end. Jesus didn’t just provide wine, He provided the best wine! (John 2)

When we live the Overboard Life, we are growing in our walk with God, learning to focus more on Him, and less on ourselves. We are learning to live out Philippians 2, striving hard to meet the needs of others, not just our own needs. Taking time to intentionally focus on surprising people each day, is a great way to think about what others need, and how we might be a conduit to provide help and blessing.

So will you join me? Five days of blessing others with surprises? I think we’ll all realize that as we look for ways to be a servant and blessing to others, there is no shortage of opportunities -- we just need to be willing and available.

Go ahead and take the plunge, life is always better on the water!

Lessons from the road

Since we left Oregon 12 days ago, I’ve been reflecting on the lessons I’ve learned from the experience of leaving one ministry and starting another. I have three thoughts for you, and I’d love to hear what you think. In the comments, share with us the lessons you’ve learned through the transitions you’ve experienced in life.

1. Don’t wait to say “thank you”: As we were preparing to leave Salem, I had a lot of “thank you’s” I needed to express. I crammed in as many as I could before our departure, I’ve sent a few more since we left and I know there are many that never were expressed. It made me wonder: Why did I wait until my departure to say these things? Why was it so obvious to me to express my appreciation, thanks and love as I left town, but not so obvious while I was in town? I want to be more thankful and more expressive of that thanks in the future. Waiting until another transition robs people of the joy they deserve and assumes I know the future! Goodbyes are a great time to reinforce what you’ve already been sharing. I was so blessed as we left Salem, because so much of what people shared with us, they had shared with us before -- it made their parting sentiments even more valuable. I want to be like that in my life. 
2. Get rid of stuff often: Now that we’ve experienced that process of reducing our lives to just 40 square feet of trailer space, I can’t wait to find ways to not fill up our house again! It’s not that stuff is evil -- it’s just that stuff can get so distracting. Big or small, stuff can really distract us from Overboard Living. Deciding to sell our house, while not buying a new one here in Michigan, was a really hard decision -- but the freedom has been amazing! We have donated more stuff to Goodwill, our church, our friends and to total strangers in the past three months, than we had in the16 years prior. It is awesome to give stuff to people who will benefit from it, and to know that you won’t ultimately miss it. It’s also amazing how little we actually need. I thought I’d miss some things that I haven’t thought twice about since we got rid of them (yes, I’m talking about my beloved G.I. Joe action figures!).
3. People remember the small stuff: My friend Jeromy shared something at church, during a testimony time held on our last day. He mentioned a time when he was really struggling as a husband, and hadn’t been apart of church much. During that season, Traci and I had been meeting weekly with his wife and on one particular Sunday, he decided to start giving church another try. When he walked in the door, he commented how uncomfortable he was, and when he saw Traci, he was sure she’d snub him (due to his faulty perceptions about what our meetings with his wife were about). Instead, Traci walked across the foyer and gave him a hug, expressing her thankfulness that he was at church that day. Five years later -- Jeromy still remembers that simple act. Over the past several months, we’ve been bombarded with people’s memories of hugs, letters, emails, texts, meals, tears and silence (when we just sat and said nothing while they unloaded or cried or sat numb from some loss). When we give ourselves to share life with others, the small details make all the difference. It reminds me of Paul's words in Colossians 3:17: "And whatever you do, whether in word in or deed, do it all in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father, through Him." That "everything" includes the small stuff!

What have you learned through your transitions? I’ve learned a lot through this last transition, and as a result I know want to:

1. Say “Thank you” and “I love you” more often.
2. Purge my garage more frequently.
3. Take the time to do the small stuff -- it really matters!

Go ahead and take plunge -- life is better on the water!

My cup overflows

In Psalm 23, David says, “My cup overflows” in reference to his position under the blessing of God’s hand. There’s a popular song playing on Christian radio that talks about trying to take in the full scope of God’s blessing is like trying to hold the sea in a coffee cup. Both the Old Psalmist and his contemporary counterpart are expressing the same truth: God’s goodness and blessing in our lives cannot be contained.

Of course, that’s not just talking about the “good” times. But in all times -- God’s grace is ever present and always overwhelming. It just seems there are moments in life where we are better at seeing it.

Over the past several months, my wife and I have often sensed that we were receiving an out pouring of God’s goodness that was far too much for either of us to contain. My heart has been full to the brim, and gallons of God’s grace have fallen over as I have seen His greatness shine in ways I haven’t experienced in time’s past.

Here are just a few of those ways. Maybe as you read these, you will become more aware of God’s grace and goodness in your own life:

1. Relationships: As we have made the move from Oregon to Michigan, God has overwhelmed me with the blessing of relationships. On the one hand, I have had my heart filled by the kind words, gracious gifts and incredible outpouring of love from those we have shared life with these past 12 years. It is one of the more humbling events in life, to hear people give testimony of how God has used you in their life. Humbling because you know it had to have been God’s work through you, because you know the struggles you’ve navigated at the same time. We all know our own imperfections (too well!), yet despite them (and sometimes through them), God does His finest work. And not only have we had the blessing of past relationships, we’ve also had the joy and anticipation of future ones. The new team we are beginning to partner with here in Michigan has been welcoming, excited for our arrival and gone above and beyond the call of duty to help us make our new home. On both ends of this whole adventure, God has truly made our cups overflow!
2. Things: We know things will never fill us up, yet God shows His goodness, even in stuff. Again, we’ve seen this on both ends of our move. On the one hand, we have parted with so much of our stuff. We’ve sold or given away couches and beds and crockpots and tools and toys and shelves etc… and done so with minimal sadness. It’s hard to get rid of things, but it has been a joy to be freed from the burden stuff brings with it. On the other end, the camp has been so generous and gracious with us, providing resources for us to furnish our house. They put in amazingly soft carpet, and painted the whole interior according to my wife’s color choices. We showed up and they had all the necessities in place (plates, napkins, silverware, TP etc…) along with a table and refrigerator full of food. Our driveway was plowed and the house was warm -- a gracious welcoming that made us feel right at home. Once again, God has made our cups overflow!
3. Travel: En route to Michigan we experienced weather like you would expect in late June. Roads were dry, snow was minimal (literally, just a few flurries as we crossed the Continental Divide in Montana!) and we experienced blue skies for the majority of our road trip. While temperatures were chilly, the traveling conditions were absolutely perfect. Along the way, we were able to connect with Traci’s side of the family tree, and enjoy making some special memories. The car didn’t have a single hiccup, and we got better gas mileage than we’ve gotten in quite some time. At one hotel, the manager kept the pool open for an extra 30 minutes so my kids could swim, because he took pity on our 13-hour road trip and having arrived at pool-closing time. Even in the details of our travel, the Good Lord made our cups overflow!
4. Tears: Tears have been plentiful, on both sides of this trip. But through it all, we have drawn closer together as a family and have experienced an outpouring of love and support from so many of you! You will never know what your cards, emails, fb posts and texts have meant to us, but they have been used by God to bring tears of joy and to…make our cups overflow!

I could go on, but I think you get the point. I know that not all seasons of life are as exciting or joy filled. God gives us valleys and sorrows along the journey, too, that we might draw even closer to Him. Even in those seasons -- maybe especially -- the grace of God overflows in our lives. When we can’t sense God’s grace, it’s not usually because it’s absent, it’s because we’re looking for God to deliver it according to our terms, not trying to understand it according to His.

Right now, I’m enjoying mopping up the floor where God’s grace has run over. I’m very aware of His grace and it’s a great place to be. I hope I will continue in this space even as things return to “normal” and especially when the tougher times come. Thankfully, when I don’t see my cup overflowing I can know this one truth: God never changes. It’s not that my cup hasn’t been filled, it’s that I usually have my hand over the top!

Living the Overboard Life is always an adventure. But thankfully, it’s an adventure that gives us opportunity to see God’s grace in a new and deeper ways. What are you waiting for?

Go ahead and take the plunge…life is always better on the water!