Shalom Legacy – Rob Harvey Tribute – Blazing Trees

Shalom Legacy Letter

Rob Harvey Tribute

I have never lost a close friend before, until now.

I hired Rob Harvey in July 2018 to be our Blazing Trees Chief of Innovation, and he launched a project with us called Wild Frontier. Essentially, Rob and I spent endless hours discussing freedom in the Holy Spirit and the Great Commission. We both saw Jesus’ mission as a journey and adventure rather than an assignment or task we have been delinquent to complete.

Rob died last month and ascended to heaven to be with Jesus and all the saints. I believe he is alive and active, and he intercedes daily for all of us to fulfill the Great Commission.

Why Was Rob Special To You?

Who is able to describe someone who walks in the Holy Spirit? God says his ways are not our ways and his thoughts are beyond our own. (Isaiah 55:8) Jesus shepherds us to live by faith and not by sight, and Rob & I often discussed devotion to Jesus and living by faith. Every week, we explored the wisdom of heaven, current Great Commission efforts and strategies, and what is missing that we do not see. We pioneered creative ways to help God’s people experience the Holy Spirit’s presence and clearly hear his voice.

Rob was special to me, because we served many leaders around the world who were searching for help, desiring authentic friendship and no-strings-attached teamwork. Rob connected me with new leaders, and we prayed with them online together. We teamed up on many calls to listen to hurting people and minister love, grace, and peace to them.

What About Rob Stood Out To You?

We cannot measure the value of someone’s life, we can only reflect upon the stories of how God impacted our lives through their influence. I still believe Rob may have been an angel just checking in on all of us from time to time. I know he loves Jesus more than anyone or anything. I know he worships in Spirit and in Truth. I know he is trustworthy, loyal, kind, wise, and compassionate. He is the most generous man I know. I watched him prioritize his marriage and children; he always carved out special time for them. He is a sabbath man: going off the ministry grid on weekends to rest in our Shepherd’s pasture.

Our Abba Father used Rob to change my life forever. God brought him to me at just the right time when I had recently been outcast by many of my close ministry friends for rejecting discipleship strategies and, instead, launching into the wild frontier of the Holy Spirit. Rob listened to my story, and then affirmed, blessed, and adopted me as his younger Harvey brother. We have been close friends and companions ever since.

So much of who I am today as well as our Blazing Trees’ vision, values, and culture have been forged, shaped, nurtured, and refined through all those sacred times Rob & I spent hanging out with the Holy Spirit and exploring the kingdom of heaven. I pray every day that God will use me in the lives of the leaders around me the same way he uses Rob in my life. I am extraordinarily grateful for the depth of Rob’s ongoing influence with me.

What Is Rob’s Shalom Legacy?

The best way I know how to honor my brother Rob’s life and leadership, the legacy he leaves behind reflecting the way he lived, is to amplify the word “shalom.”

shalom > The Hebrew word for peace. Shalom means wholeness, completeness, and a sound mind: health, safety, and abundance. A permanent, unshakeable trust in God to faithfully provide for and protect me and my family. Convinced that Jesus Messiah is all I will ever need; he is the only one who can satisfy all my desires. Perfect rest in pure love.

The best story I have to illustrate Rob’s lifestyle is Mark 1:35-39. Very early the next morning, long before daylight, Jesus got up and left the house. He went out of town to a lonely place, where he prayed. But Simon and his companions went out searching for him, and when they found him, they said, “Everyone is looking for you.” But Jesus answered, “We must go on to the other villages around here. I have to preach in them also, because that is why I came.” So he traveled all over Galilee, preaching in the synagogues and driving out demons. (NIV)

I was blessed to observe Rob cherish a shalom lifestyle. He practiced the presence of the Holy Spirit. He spent time every morning with our Heavenly Father listening and receiving. He only went where he heard God say “go,” and he said “no” to many great opportunities that were not God’s will for him. Rob kept in step with the Holy Spirit.

Rob was just like Jesus. His confidence was in the love and salvation of Jesus. The powerflowing through Rob, that was so obvious to everyone who encountered his leadership,came from the Holy Spirit working deeply within his heart, mind, and soul. Shalom is not a tool or strategy; shalom is not a value or resource. Shalom is a gift and anointing, a choice, and a bedrock for all we do. After all, Jesus is the “Prince of Shalom,” so we can only find true peace while resting in him. Rob’s greatest skill was his sensational demonstration of shalom, and God gets all the glory.

May we all run to our Father every morning to rest in his shalom and listen to his voice as he reveals our next steps through all the wonderful seasons of our unknown future. Shalom, Selah, Gloria, Halleluyah, Hosanna, Maranatha!