I Am RELEVANT
Today I talked to Cameron Strang, RELEVANT CEO, on the phone. As most of you know, RELEVANT and I had a bit of a falling out earlier this school year. I’m proud to say that’s all over. I forgive RELEVANT and I think RELEVANT forgives me.
I’ve blogged about this journey for about a year. Last May the “fields died” and I decided not to pursue a job with RELEVANT. I’ve done a lot of research and talked to a lot of people since then. I’ve drawn conclusions – conclusions I’m still not happy with.
I don’t think Cameron is the bad guy. I don’t think RELEVANT is a horrible magazine. I think, though, that I was putting too much hope in a magazine created by human hands. Run by imperfect people.
I started reading RELEVANT when I was fifteen; I started “taking God seriously” when I was twelve. I was a baby Christian. RELEVANT was my connection with God. The same way it’s hard realizing your pastor is imperfect, it’s hard realizing your magazine and the people running it are too.
I don’t know what to make of the research I did last fall. I don’t know if it’s true. I trust the people I talked to, but I want to trust Cameron too. He’s passionate about what he’s created – the same way I’m passionate about my writing (and this blog!).
I know this has taught me to trust God. He has good intentions; he challenges me for a reason. God didn’t “kill” RELEVANT just to torture me. He didn’t use me to expose the dirt of this company or anything like that. He used RELEVANT to teach me trust. He asked me, like Peter, if I love Him more than all of these, more than RELEVANT. When I finally said yes, when I finally believed what I said and moved on with my life (yay PLC!), God brought the fields back to life.
I forgive you, RELEVANT.
Ezekiel.
April 29, 2010