Where Has Ambrose Been?

Where Has Ambrose Been?

Last July 8, my family and I left for our first sabbatical in 18 years of full-time vocational ministry. BridgeWay was kind enough to extend this incredible gift to us as a way to help us re-charge our ministry batteries and re-fresh our souls. I can’t thank them enough! These past 8 weeks have been amazing. God has done some very cool stuff in our souls and we are coming back to ministry more excited than ever, but different than we’ve ever been. Let me share some of our time with you:

• July 8-13 I taught LABS for 1000 high school students at DCLA in Washington, DC. I taught with my son Josh and Becca Parker. They did an amazing job teaching their friends how to BE, LOVE and SERVE Jesus with their entire life.
• From there, we left for a whirlwind tour of the east coast and New England. Typical of the Ambrose Family, we ate our way through the whole thing…
• In Baltimore we had world famous crab cakes on the Inner Harbor.
• In Philly we had cheese steaks at Cosmi’s Deli on 8^th Street. A bit off the beaten path, but the best in town. We also enjoyed all the famous sites including The Liberty Bell and Independence Hall.
• From there, we were off to New York City where I got a traffic ticket for blocking an intersection and was pretty much in a foul mood from that point on. I did manage to enjoy Times Square and the Statue of Liberty while munching on some New York Style Pizza and Cheese Cake.
• After NYC, we headed up to New England stopping along Cape Cod to do some family genealogy for my wife along the way in Barnstable, Norwich and other cool towns.
• Boston was our next stop and one of our favorite cities. We ate our way through The Quincy Market, had some Clam Chowder and saw all the beautiful spots in this city. We plan on returning someday just Melody and I. It was a clean, friendly place and the whole family loved it!
• Our next stop was Plymouth Rock, which is very underwhelming. It’s a small rock in the water. That’s it.
• Then we left for Maine. We had some friends invite us to stay with them for a couple days and when their Pastor heard we were coming, he made arrangements for us to stay in a house right on the edge of the ocean. It was amazing! He also bought 10 lobsters ($3 each) and cooked them up for us one night. We ate like kings! God is good.
• While we were in Maine, we stopped at Quaddy Head Lighthouse which is the farthest eastern point in the USA and the spot where the sun comes up first each morning in America. We also took a quick trip into New Brunswick, Canada while we were there.
• After leaving Canada, we drove up one hour north of Bangor to see Melody’s Aunt Betty who lives in Enfield, ME in the middle of nowhere. She’s a kind lady and we enjoyed our short visit with her.
• Then we left for a long drive across Maine, New Hampshire and into Vermont. Some great friends from church grew up there and their parents still live just outside of Waitsfield. They allowed us to stay at their apartment in the middle of nowhere for a week. We did nothing…together. We prayed, read a lot, played games as a family and just rested up. It was exactly what we needed.
• After that very quiet week, we headed to Cleveland, Ohio for a family reunion at Mohican Campground with the Ambrose Family. Of course we stopped din Buffalo, NY at the Pearl Street Brewery for a bucket of wings. In fact, Josh managed to eat wings in every city we stopped at on our tour! He said the best ones were in DC at Fodo Restaurant believe it or not.
• After a few days with my family in a campground, it was time to get back to Fishers so the boys could start school on August 12.

Since then, I have spent a week of silence at Gethsemani in Trappist, KY just listening to God, reading my Bible and journaling. I asked God to refresh my heart and make me into a spiritual man of prayer and encouragement. He challenged me and excited me to return to ministry and share some of what He’s been doing in me and my family with our church family at BridgeWay.

Melody and I have also spent some time just talking and praying together (since the kids have gone back to school). We have taken some long walks, worked out at the YMCA and just enjoyed being with one another hanging our in our yard gardening or whatever.

God has drawn my heart closer to Him during this sabbatical. He has drawn my heart and Melody’s heart closer to one another through some great, long talks together. He has also refreshed our family and prepared us to re-enter vocational ministry with a completely different perspective! After all, what good would it be if I just returned to BridgeWay the same tired, stressed out person I was when I left right? I’m excited to return to ministry after learning a few new things from God…

1. This is not MY ministry, it’s His. I cannot care for it more than He does. I cannot manipulate people to want to change or pursue a relationship with God, that’s the Holy Spirit’s job.
2. I have a life outside of ministry. I am not my ministry. My identity is a child of the King of Kings. My relationship with Him is my first priority. My family is a huge priority in my life, my relationship with my wife and kids…my relationship with friends is what matters right after my relationship with God.
3. God has called me to be a man of prayer and encouragement to others. He has called me to teach and coach and lead other young leaders who are excited about their spiritual life. I’m super-excited about this!
4. Another thing God has been putting on my heart is how He wants me to teach some more practical classes on spirituality at BridgeWay. He wants me to travel with some people on spiritual retreats and encourage them along in their spiritual life. In order to do that, I must continue to spend time in prayer and Bible Study myself. I’ve had lots of that kind of time on my sabbatical and have heard Him whisper to me very clearly.

I “officially” start back on Tuesday, September 8, but my heart has already re-engaged and I couldn’t be more excited to share life with all of you who call BridgeWay your church home. Thanks for allowing me this time away. It has helped tremendously. It has helped me want to stay in ministry. It has helped me fall in love with Jesus again in a whole new way! I know there will still be difficult challenges I will have to fight through. Ministry is a spiritual deal and we have a real enemy who wants to discourage us and destroy us, but I have seen the vision of what god wants for my life and I am re-energized! Thanks again for your support. The staff and other volunteers at BridgeWay who “covered” for us while we were gone are amazing people and I hope to return the favor someday in whatever way I can.

Have a great Labor Day weekend. I’ll see you soon!

Dave Ambrose