Celebrating 2019!

2019 has been nothing short of incredible for us at Seek Well!  As we look back on this past year, we can’t help but feel gratitude for all that God has done in and through the lives of those He’s brought into our movement. We asked our team to look back on this past year and share their favorite moments from 2019. Our hope is that this would encourage you to reflect on your past year, and that God would show you how he has spoken to you too. 

Tim: My favorite moment of 2019, was a conversation I had with God in Estes Park this past July. As we were climbing the Rocky Mountains, I remembered something Jesus spoke to me a few months prior, “Tim, you need to go to the dangerous places others don’t want to”. In that moment, it became clear, as He was having me live out a metaphor. 

I began to realize that there are two types of dangerous places. First, the places in our hearts that we refuse to go to because they feel too dangerous. These places consist of the unresolved things in our hearts that we have yet to give over to God. When we refuse to surrender them, they feel so risky and we guard them tight. And second, the physically dangerous places, the seemingly risky things that God asks us to do… the things that make no sense to most people.

As I hiked with Josh and Jacob, I realized something life changing: These places feel dangerous without Jesus. But with Jesus, it’s the safest thing you can possibly do! He promises us that He is with us and has our best interest at heart at all times. Why wouldn’t we trust Him?!

Bill: God gave us the gift of a son this year and my personal journey with Jesus had a large impact during that season. The discipline of silence, solitude and listening has sustained me through some difficult times on this journey towards being a parent. Without Seek Well and the guys in my group (and our team), I don’t know if I would have been able to fully enjoy this season of life. Jesus has done so much in me this year that I can’t wait to share it with my son!

Estes Park was also a marked moment for many reasons. But, the one that sticks out the most was when we were challenged to hike with a rock (about the size of a grapefruit) in our hands up the side of a mountain. We did this because we wanted to feel what it’s like to walk heavy and burdened instead of walking free and light; the way Jesus wants it. God spoke to me in that moment about what is heavy in my life, and how it impacts my walk with Him.  

Kelli: At our most recent Encourage, I felt like Jesus was prompting me to change the location of our hike. Because Haven is not yet finished, our group was staying at an Airbnb. Our hike was going to take place about 45 minutes north of where we were staying.

While driving out for the weekend, I felt like God was telling me to bring the group to Haven so we could hike there instead of where originally planned. I didn’t want our time to be about the house, but I knew that I needed to honor what God was telling me to do. 

About 10 minutes from Haven, it started hailing and raining sideways! The whether suddenly turned crazy. Had we went to hike at the other location we would not have been able to get out and would have wasted an hour and a half just driving around. However, because Haven was half way built, it offered us protection from the elements. 

I believe God wanted me to cast His vision over this place and invite this group of women into the process. I was able to share that Haven would be a safe place, a refuge for so many on the journey of chasing after Jesus.

We covered the floors in verses and prayed as we walked through the unfinished structure. We prayed over every person that would one day step into Haven. After we finished, we walked outside to a beautiful sunshine and we were able to hike the entire property! It felt special to invite these women into the process, not just the completed property. They were able to see the unfinished and dusty. It was a beautiful picture of right where we are: in the process of discovering who God created us to be, and who we are in Him.

Josh: As I look back on 2019 and think about all of the marked moments, I can’t help but pinch myself because we GET TO do this! We GET TO help people Seek Well; to slow it down, be still and silent, and listen to the voice of the One who created us. There were mountain-top experiences (literally...I was fortunate to help lead a group of ten men on the adventure of a lifetime in the Rocky’s) as well as valleys, but in the end what stands out as the pinnacle for me, was to be able to watch my wife Rachel begin to take the journey through Encourage. For five years she has enthusiastically encouraged me to take part in Refresh and has experienced it second-hand. Now, she’s taking the same journey as I have and we GET TO do this together! Our mornings look a lot different now; we’re up before our kids, jobs, or the world needs us to be. We make pour-over coffee and then sit on our big couch together and spend time with Jesus in the stillness and silence. It has changed us. 

Justin: I don’t know that I can pick out one specific memory, but for me 2019 will be remembered as the year when we saw so many men & women (old friends and new) get to experience what we at Seek Well have been privileged to experience for a few years now.

God still speaks! And when he speaks so directly and so personally, it changes a person. At the same time, when you do experience that moment it’s so easy to assume, “OK, maybe I’m just day-dreaming...maybe I didn’t hear what I thought I heard...and maybe I did hear God, but I’m probably the only one who ever struggled to hear him in the first place.” But, then someone else has a similar moment, and then someone else and someone else, and all of a sudden it’s not just you and a couple friends; it’s a movement of God, speaking to his people on a personal level. 

2019 created a moment for us to realize...I’m not crazy! We’re not crazy! There’s comfort in that moment. There’s power in that moment. And, it was humbling to share that moment with dozens of friends this year.

We want to say THANK YOU to every single person who has joined this movement this year:

• 71 of you attended a One Day event this year 
• 40 of you have said yes to the adventure and taken the journey through Refresh and Encourage. 
• 10 men stepped outside of their comfort zones and into the dangerous places that Jesus calls us to through our Estes Park experience
• We saw a 630% growth in our social media platforms this year because of what Jesus is doing in YOU! Thank you for being part of sharing the story!
• We were able to officially break ground on Haven, our property just outside of Jackson where so many will soon be able to come through Refresh and Encourage!

As we close out 2019 and look forward with anticipation, there are a couple of things that we want you to know. First, from December 25th through January 5th we will be still and silent. We’re going to press pause on our website, email, and social media. It's not that we don't love you. Simply, we need to take time to be with family and friends, and truly focus on what matters the most. We want to invite you to do the same. Take this time to slow down.

Second, our team has been hard at work on something that we think you will love. We are hoping that it has a huge impact as you seek Jesus. We can’t wait to share more about it during the first part of 2020!

Third, on January 6th, we’ll be opening up a short, one-week registration window for Refresh and Encourage Group 4. If you’ve been on the fence about joining for this next year then this is your chance to apply!

Have a great holiday and we’ll see you in 2020!

-The Seek Well Team