1 Year Later

So...if it wasn't for me having to work the past couple days, I would have written this two days ago. Sept. 1st was exactly one year from the time that we had an amazing group of friends help us load up and send us off on the next leg in the adventure that we call life. From North Myrtle Beach to Arkansas we went, passing through every states Capital on the way and a year later I get to reflect. At this point last year, I was probably sitting at our friend Brent's place trying to figure out what was next. Sara spent nearly a month working nearly 60 hrs a week until I got the job over at the Buckle. Since that time I've moved on from an great job there, to an equally great, but completely different job over at Arvest Bank in Siloam Springs, which is now where we are living. We have a nearly 3 month old little boy that's pretty much the coolest little guy I've ever met...NO...SERIOUSLY!!! I'm in my third week of classes at John Brown University pursuing a Masters degree in Marriage and Family Therapy and Community Counseling, I'm loving every minute of it, and I'd take more than two classes a semester if I could balance it all at the moment without driving Sara Crazy! Going back to school has been a shock but also a joy. It's been 3 years since I sat in a classroom, and working the After School Program at Coddington Elementary in Wilmington doesn't count! I realized that I'm going into these classes with a much different attitude than I did when I was finishing up my Undergrad at the UofA. Then, I was just ready to get it done and over-with, now I can't wait for my next class. I look forward to the reading, and the only drawback is that I'm having to balance so many things that I can't truly focus on what I'm passionate about with everything I am. Oh by the way, I'm also assisting in leading worship at our church...another time block that I HAVE to focus on somewhere! Did I mention I have a wife and a son...whew...sometimes I feel like I'm on a tight rope, and I'm only allowed to stand on my little toe, now THATS balance. But honestly, its not that bad. I love where we are, its just been hard trying to figure out how to live here again with the experiences we've had over the past 3 yrs now. Life is completely different in NWA than it was in the ILM! We miss Wilmington, NMB, and the amazing people that we were blessed to share that short time of our lives with, and I don't think our investment into the east coast is done, just have no idea how, when or what God has planned for us. But I can tell you this, we are in NWA for a guaranteed 3 more years, WHY, because that's how long its going to take me to finish school. Now a lot can change in 3 years, just look at our past 3...and I'll leave that up to you to go back and read past posts...it'd take me another year just to put all the pieces together so that you could get a clear understanding of what God has allowed us to experience since we got married! So, as we look forward to what God is doing here, and how different, frustrating, rewarding, challenging and confusing it is, I wanted to look back and tell everyone that we've met in the past 3 years that we love you all! Our hearts are with you in Wilmington, our hearts are with you in NMB, and now are hearts are invested into NWA, but don't think that we have forgotten what you all did for us! With a FULL heart, we pray for you all. God bless those that have blessed us in the past 3 years. Let your power be seen by others as we have seen it, and never stop using these friends we consider family to do the things that you have called them to! God, I pray for strength to be stretched, wisdom to lead, and understanding so that they can guide the people that you have put them in leadership over so that they can guide them to you and your love. We love you all and look forward to the next opportunity we have to visit...which looks like sometime THIS SPRING!!! Can't wait to see what God is up to and to share the same!

Conference Invite/ LIFE?!?!

So, Sara and I have now been invited to join the staff and others from the church to go to ARC: All Access. It is a conference up in Clayton, NC that the Association of Related Churches is putting on that is focused on church planting, leadership, and church growth! It's going to ROCK, not to mention a great opportunity to meet other strong church leaders, hear their thoughts on ministry, and spend some time with the amazing staff at Lifepoint Church!
I'm supper pumped about tomorrow, because it will be the first week of normal services(however you may define normal) at the church after Easter. We had over 1200 people show up for 3 different services, and as I said, like 20 people make a life change to follow Christ! With the numbers in the air, that would be nearly 500 visitors, many 1st time visitors, and crucial family members of some of the attenders, pray for the church, because instead of having just 700, we may be pushing those numbers again and only having 2 services! Thank God for the volunteers at the church, I've never seen a group of people desire to serve harder than these people! Lifepoint has given them an opportunity to meet with, understand, and develop a relationship with God, and now they are taking that amazing relationship, and doing whatever it takes to reach those around them! It is awesome to hear people asking us to pray for their family members to come to church...WE'VE BEEN HERE 5 WEEKS... and even asking us to pray that they would see major change in these peoples lives!
The opportunities that have opened for us are amazing, and that is one of the things that has been able to keep our spirits up! With not very much luck when it comes to jobs, its hard to understand what God is doing when we are trying to figure out where the money is coming from, but we know it'll be provided! Just an encouragement, when it seems like everything is just crap...think about how awesome it is to have family and friends around us that care...that's what's keeping us up, and a God that is doing something so much greater than a stinkin job...I pray that we'll be used in any way possible! As the staff tends to say, we look forward to doing whatever it takes, doing Anything short of sin to reach people! What I'm learning is that God doesn't need a job to supply us with what we need, but that doesn't mean I'm completely reliant on that!!! I CAN'T WAIT TO HAVE A FULL TIME JOB!!! I'll regret saying that someday!
So I'm ranting/rambling a bit, but things a quite interesting around here. I'll try to update more often, as often as I can, as requested! Thanks for the support and prayers, love you all