Peace in Goodbye

Love this song!  "It feels like chaos, but somehow there's peace."  Somehow God continues to provide the peace and understanding that I am on my way to "something heavenly."

Leaving is HARD!  While I have read about how hard it is to "leave" I really didn't understand it until this last week.

I am watching my kids go through difficult goodbyes and missing friends already.  I am watching as Luke and I go through the same difficult goodbyes, but try to stay strong for the kids.  It is really hard to leave such great people in Washington!  I wish we could take many of you with us!   We said goodbye to our Terrace Heights Baptist Church family and soon will have to say goodbye to our families.

If you are praying for our family, please pray for us specifically this week as all of this becomes real. We are excited for what awaits us but are also feeling the loss as we leave.  Please pray for peace for myself, Luke and Ashtyn & Brock.  We are blessed to be on this journey!  Thank you for listening!

"May the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace as you trust in Him, so that you may overflow with hope by the power of the Holy Spirit." Romans 15:13 NIV

Homeless in December

This last month has brought many changes to our home.  We accepted an offer on our house about 2 weeks ago, and I am finally beginning to see that this is REALLY happening and we really will be living in Tucson by January 2015.

I am amazed by God's timing in everything as we have walked obediently to follow the call to Tucson.  When we first put our house on the market at the beginning of September, I told Luke I didn't want it to sell until closer to Christmas.  I wanted to be able to spend Christmas with family before we moved.  I remember telling him the ideal time to move would be over Christmas break. Careful what you wish for, because God has a way of answering in His perfect way.

The Friday we found out we were "approved" by Launch and could start the training and process of church planting as soon as we were able to be in Tucson, was the same day that the couple who is buying our house came to look.  Within the week we had accepted the offer.  

A couple days before we got the offer, I remember talking with Ashtyn as I was praying with her before she went to bed.  She asked me why I always end my prayers "in Jesus name."  I took out my bible and showed her John 14 where Jesus is speaking and says "Whatever you ask in My name, I will do it, so that the Father will be glorified in the Son.  If you ask Me anything in My name, I will do it."  It was that night that I specifically prayed that God would bring us a buyer, in Jesus name.  

We will be moving out of the house the weekend of December 6th.  God has allowed us a place to stay most of December in Yakima.  Thank God for friends who love to travel and are willing to open up their home to our family while they are away.  The kids are excited to be able to finish 2014 at Moxee Elementary.  It is also fun to see our calendars filling up to spend time with friends and family before we move.  We will get to spend Christmas week in western Washington with our families.  

So, while we are "homeless" in December, God is taking such great care of us and providing whatever we need at just the right time.  I am so excited to continue on this journey with Him as He shows me His ways are much better than my own.  His timing is perfect and we should never doubt.

"11 Believe me when I say that I am in the Father and the Father is in me; or at least believe on the evidence of the works themselves. 12 Very truly I tell you, whoever believes in me will do the works I have been doing, and they will do even greater things than these, because I am going to the Father. 13 And I will do whatever you ask in my name, so that the Father may be glorified in the Son. 14 You may ask me for anything in my name, and I will do it." John 14:13-14 (NIV)

    

God's Perfect Plan

The last 2 days spent at the Phoenix Launch retreat have been hard, but so helpful!  I can't remember the last time we sat down and talked all about ourselves as individuals, as a couple, as a family, and our time in ministry so far.  While I have no answers of what recommendation Launch will give us, I am confident that God continues to teach me something at each step of the process.

As I thought on all that we talked about, I realized this was a much needed time of reflection. Reflection on how Luke and I were created each as individuals and how God brought us together.  We reflected on big details and little details in our lives and our short 14 years together.  I had to laugh when the first question they asked was how long we have been married, because we looked "young."  We got to talk about our years at Terrace Heights Baptist Church and the invaluable ministry experience we have because of their willingness to bring on the "young" pastor. We reflected on the more recent events in 2014 that have confirmed the call that God has placed on our lives to pursue church planting in Tucson. Even thinking about how great it was that Luke loves to bird watch....because if he didn't love birds, I'm not sure we would have ever found Tucson in 2009.  There were many reminders that God has a perfect plan and purpose in each and everything He has created in each of us and each situation He brings us to.

One of the things that was said during a session was about living with purpose and passion all the years God gives us.  It went something like "He died at 35, but was buried at 85."  Sad to think of how many people stop living out their lives with purpose and passion at a young age, spending years just existing and not living.

I am grateful I had the opportunity to stop and think about where we are in life.  I know God has a perfect plan and purpose for our family, for Luke, for me, for our kids, and for everyone He created. I want to remember and remind others not to doubt God's perfect plan, even when it goes against everything we thought would happen in our lives.  As we continue to trust God, He will reveal His plan and bring each of us to the place we are meant to be.

Ephesians 2:10 New International Version (NIV)
    "For we are God's handiwork, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do."

Love & The Outcome - He Is With Us (Official Music Video)

As promised, another song.  Wish I could tell you my favorite part of this one, but I love it ALL!  Enjoy!

Trusting God

For the last few months, this song has been my favorite.  I love the meaning it has in my life and all that God is guiding us to!  I'd encourage you to listen and read the lyrics.  Amazing how God continually speaks through songs and His Word straight to our hearts.

I particularly love the part "Take me deeper than my feet could ever wander." I would not have "wandered" to this place without God's leading. If someone told me 6 months ago that we would be moving anywhere I would not have believed them.  Which leads to my favorite part "Spirit lead me where my trust is without borders."  That is truly my prayer, that I would continue to trust God without borders.  That I would fully trust His timing and His call on our lives.

These next two weeks bring many unknowns.  Luke and I are headed to Arizona where we will be "assessed" or interviewed.  I'm really not sure what all to expect, but I am trusting God is in this and will be with us as we spend 2 intense days with those that will ultimately make the decision if we are called and prepared for planting a church.  We would appreciate all of your prayers and support during this time!  Specifically pray that we would trust God and have no fear or anxiety over the assessment process we are entering.  Also continue to pray that God would bring a buyer for our home at just the right time.

"But blessed is the one who trusts in the Lord, whose confidence is in Him.  They will be like a tree planted by the water that sends out its roots by the stream.  It does not fear when heat comes; its leaves are always green.  It has no worries in a year of drought and never fails to bear fruit." Jeremiah 17:7-8 New International Version (NIV)

There are a few more songs that have meant more to me than just an everyday song during this time. I hope to share some of these over the next week.  Thanks for reading!

When do you leave?

This is the most common question we are asked.  I find myself answering by saying "sometime between November and March" because this is what I hope to be true.  

The honest answer is, we have no idea.....strange I know, but I am choosing to put this into God's hands and let Him reveal the perfect time.  

As I've been journaling about our call to Tucson, the TIME theme continues.

Waiting...Timing...When... 

Usually I attempt to control time, or at least want to believe I have control of time, but God is showing me this is far from the truth in every area of my life. 

None of us really know what will happen tomorrow.  We all are waiting patiently on God and His plan to unfold in our lives.  As we wait, we can grow in fruit of the Spirit as we develop patience, self-control, and joy in all circumstances.  Or we can try to control our lives, living in a place where we are unable to fully release our lives to God's purposes.  If we continue to believe we can control the timing of our lives, we are not free to fully experience the growth He wants us to experience.

This is where I am today.  I am waiting.  I want to know when.  I want to know God's perfect timing. But God has not made this known to met yet.

Over the summer, I read through Acts.  The following passage spoke to me the first time I read it and speaks to me every time I come back to it.  It is amazing to think about the meaning of "in Him we live and move and exist."  He knows the WHEN and WHERE He will use me and you.  We are to seek God.  We are His children.  Our time is His, not ours.  

"And He made from one man every nation of mankind to live on all the face 

of the earth, having determined their appointed times and the boundaries 

of their habitation, that they would seek God, if perhaps they might grope 

for Him and find Him, though He is not far from each one of us; for in Him we 

live and move and exist...."  Acts 17:26-28 (NASB)

I pray for myself and any one else who finds themselves in this place of waiting on God that we will step back and patiently wait.  That we can allow God's pace to guide us as He leads the way.  That we will seek the Holy Spirit daily to lead us as we grow in our faith.

Over the last 6 months it has become very clear to Luke and I that God is ready to move us from one desert to another.  

After 12 years in Yakima, we will be moving to Tucson to plant a church.  We don't have a lot of answers (but a lot of questions) on exactly what this means for us or what the exact timeline will be, but we feel peace that God is in this and knows what is best for our family.  

Early on in the process God put Galatians 1:10 on my heart this has stayed with me over the past few months as we prayed and tried to decide if this is really what God would have us do.

"For am I now seeking the favor of men, or of God?  Or am I striving to please men? If I were still trying to please men, I would not be a servant of Christ."   Galatians 1:10 NASB

I believe that obedience to God and whatever He calls you to do is important.  I teach this to my children and encourage other women in my life to follow wherever He leads, but in May of this year I was faced with this question myself.  Would I obey God and go wherever He leads?  Am I really a servant of Christ ready to please God through an act of obedience and let Him really have control?

As I was searching my own heart and trying to determine what this really meant for our family, God led me to read a lot about calling and I gained a better understanding of what it means to be called.  God called Luke to ministry in 2004.  God called Luke to be a lead pastor in 2008.  Would God really call us to Tucson to plant a church? Is God really calling me to be a part of this?  Is God calling us to do this now or later?  

"A call is a profound impression from God that establishes parameters for your life and can be altered only by a subsequent, superseding impression from God."
Call as defined by Jeff Iorg in "Is God Calling Me"

"A strong inner impulse toward a particular course of action especially when accompanied by conviction of divine influence."  Calling as defined by Merriam-Websters dictionary.

These are great definitions that make perfect sense in our situation.  A call is when God provides direction on what you should do with your life and the only decision that will bring peace is obedience.  The decision may not make sense to family and friends, but it is truly the only decision we can see ourselves making.  There is definitely an "impression of God" or a "conviction of divine influence" that is active in our lives with many things over the last 6 months pointing us to Tucson.  I can not explain enough the peace of God that we have in moving forward with our move to Tucson.

Taking this step of obedience is out of my comfort zone.  I like to plan, I like to know the future, I like to be in control.  This is truly a time in my life where I see that daily I am giving up control to God and following wherever He leads.  It is a daily decision to trust in God and His ways not my own. 

"Let me hear Your lovingkindness in the morning;.For I trust in You; Teach me the way I should walk: For to You I lift up my soul."  Psalm 143:8 NASB

As for timing, God clearly has put it on our hearts to do this now.  As I found myself making excuses, God would change my heart. I have grown so much in my faith already in just making the decision that we are not waiting for all the answers before we say yes.  We are saying yes, we will go, wherever God calls.  Our house is for sale and as soon as the house sells or God provides a different way, we are packing up to make the move to Tucson. 

I look forward to sharing and partnering with many of you as we take this step of obedience and our biggest leap of faith yet!