Letter from Justin Davenport
Resurrection, I can’t thank you enough for you care and generosity toward my family and me. We have had nothing but love and kindness poured out upon us over the years while discerning our call. I recall Bible studies, dinner table conversations, and one-on-one interactions that pushed me to look for the way of Jesus in every aspect of life, and it was because of you that I can confidently say we are following His lead with no reservations. Thank you for taking me and my family in, and lifting our heads out of exhaustion and burnout.
We believe God has been inviting us into ministry for years, but have been unclear what that would look like and where that would take place. After discerning, and getting a clearer sense of call, direction, and education, we as a family are walking in step with Jesus in the work He is doing on the island of Maui. We have been invited by the rector of Kingsfield Anglican Mission to help plant and shape the life of the church as we seek to reveal the beauty, truth, and goodness of king Jesus to the people of Maui.
Most people would visit Maui to live in paradise for a week but often miss the deep pain and tension that lies just under the surface of Hawaii/U.S. relations. In research and many conversations with Fr. Jason (rector of KAM) and Fr. Mark (rector of All Saints Honolulu) I’ve had the opportunity to peek into the window of division that plagues the islands of Hawaii and my heart longs to see restoration of all things to king Jesus.
I don’t claim to have some “magic formula” to fix all the tension in Hawaii; but I firmly believe the sacraments that have shaped and formed me — and have been given to us by Jesus— are the only way to truly begin the healing work that comes through faithful presence to the hurting and oppressed.
We have big dreams for Maui. God has cast a vision in front of us for the formation of an Abbey that will act as a place of formation for future priests and deacons on the islands. Not only do we plan to train in the way of scripture and the traditions of the church, but we will also serve the local community through the work of our hands; tilling the ground, sowing the seed, watering the soil, and harvesting the fruits of our labor for others.
In conversation with Fr. Jason, time and time again he sees how God is already at work in the hearts of the Hawaiians to live by the ancient practices of the church, yet unaware of the roots those practices have in the church. This only encourages and excites us to see what God is doing in Hawaii and how we can participate with Him in the practice of faithful presence.
We’ve also worked on the vision for my role in the church and have decided on a role i have been well acquainted with at Rez, and that is a liturgy director focus. I will be overseeing all of our main services, and will also be developing the music culture of the church. While forming and inviting people into a life of presence I will also be focused on obtaining my Master of Divinity from Nashotah House. As you may imagine I will have a lot in front of me to be working through and ask you to pray for us. While all of this is going Martha will continue to run her business and homeschool the kids, which will obviously be a beautiful opportunity in Hawaii.
None of this is easy. It is a long road that we may not see come to full fruition in our lifetime, but we know God is always present and at work, and so we go forward knowing that He cares about the people of Maui and wants to reveal how He is already working to those that are ready to pay attention and participate. My family and I are committed to being attentive to His work in Maui and will be planting our roots deep into the soil indefinitely. We want to invite you to do the same. Though moving for you may not be the option you can be a part of, you are still invited to participate with God’s work in being a source of His love to the people of Hawaii.
The most important way you can do that is by committing to praying for us and the people of Hawaii. Without your prayers we can’t move forward. God listens to His people and invites us to pray to become aware of His work. In prayer, God may be calling some of you to reach further in to Hawaii by giving of your finances. Your on-going support through financial gifts will help get us to the Islands and support our family as we work to settle in and be a faithful presence to those around us. Wether a one time contribution or an ongoing gift of $100+ a month, you are supporting the work our family is doing on the island. We are prayerful this will make a lasting impact for all of Hawaii.
We know that giving isn’t purely transactional, and we want to acknowledge together that monetary support is a forming of our hearts, as Fr. Shawn often reminds us. It postures us to live in God’s abundance, and we intend on sharing this posture with our new community as well.
Thank you for your continual support through every part of this journey. You are our home church and will always be our place of rest and refreshment.
If you would like to make a financial contribution, click here (select "The Davenports - Mission to Maui").
If you would like to keep up with God’s work through us in Maui, click here.
God’s peace,
Justin Davenport