THE JOURNEY - PART 1

From then to now and all the in between...

Welcome to Serpents & Doves. This has been a long standing vision/ministry/brand that the Lord had laid on my heart years ago. This has been the journey so far...

“Behold, I send you out as sheep in the midst of wolves. Therefore be wise as serpents and harmless as doves." MT10.16 (Matthew 10:16)

The Background

I have a very simple background in design (#design, #graphicdesign, #appareldesign). Nothing fancy, no big titles or degrees. I worked as a freelance designer in the action sports industry (#actionsportsindustry) prior to being hired by Hurley. My time at Hurley began with printable/t-shirt designs. This position began part-time and quickly turned in to a full time in-house freelance position. I was then offered a full-time permanent position as a cut-n-sew designer for their headwear category. All I can say is that I learned a lot in regards to design, manufacturing, sourcing, merchandising and more during my tenure at Hurley. And, for what I learned there, I am very grateful.

Changes

However, on October 1st of 2008, God really got a hold of my life in a wonderful way. This change became not only a blessing for me but also for my wife as well (subject for another post/video)! See, I had been a Believer/Christian (#Christian, #Jesus, #Salvation) most of my life, but, I had never truly surrendered my life to Him until that day. I suddenly found myself not wanting the things I thought I did. What I thought important in the eyes of the world didn't hold the same appeal. Things changed from one day to the next. I knew that my time at Hurley was limited and that the Lord would eventually pull me out and place me a great design ministry position, making the same amount of money, without a lapse in employment...boy, was I ever so wrong! Let's just say I went from Egypt to the wilderness really quick. So, in comes 2008, housing crisis, layoffs, and in May of 2009, I found myself unemployed, my wife was pregnant, car payment, financial responsibilities, and no prospective employers knocking at my door for work.

Wilderness

One thing is to read about the Israelites in the wilderness and quite another to go through it yourself, and, on top of it all, your family has to experience it as well! I cannot even begin to describe what the last eight years have been like. But, I will try to give you a small glimpse. I had to go on unemployment in that no matter how many resumes I put out, not one call back. I was sure that the Lord would open a door for employment prior to the unemployment running out...right? Not so quick. Unemployment did run out, and I found myself with no work, and, no paycheck. My wife and I depleted our savings, 401(k) accounts, and tapped into every penny we had to try and stay afloat. We found ourselves without a penny.

For the sake of time, I will tell you that the Lord provided for us every step of the way and showed my wife and I the difference between 'wants' and 'needs'.

to be continued...