News About the New Church and A Strange Twist in Our Personal Lives
We know several of you have been asking what is going on with us and the new church that God allowed us to plant in Smyrna TN.
First let me tell you about the church!
We are happy to say that New Vision Smyrna is healthy and will celebrate its one year anniversary by moving into a brand new community activity building just being completed by the Boys and Girls Club of Middle Tennessee. The new home for the church will be centrally located right beside the city baseball fields and Smyrna Middle School. It will give us more worship space, more classroom space, and the ability to have Wed night programing and permanent signage!
To think that two years ago when God first laid the vision on our heart for a new church, there was no money, there were no people, and neither the movie theater that we now meet in or this brand new community center that we will be moving into in October were even built. What we discovered is that if we trust God and take that step of faith, He knows what is coming and is more that able to take care of us and to do what He says He will do.
Which brings us to a brand new twist in our personal lives.
After an incredible Easter service at the new church last April (almost 300 in attendance) and really seeing what God had accomplished in 2 years, we came to a very strange conclusion. God used us to get people excited about starting a new church, He allowed us to watch Him literally do miracles as it came to fruition, but now that it was launched and healthy, He had a different plan for us.
We know that sounds crazy but this thought had been brewing for a few months and in April God made it very clear that we were supposed to step aside and let New Vision bring in a new campus pastor for the new church. There are several reasons why we felt this was the right thing to do, but the main one was that Blake felt like this is what God was saying. We announced this to the church and in July we officially stopped being supported by New Vision and handed the leadership of the campus to an interim pastor.
What now?
Well that's a great question? All we know is that God has a plan and we are patiently waiting till God reveals that plan. Rebecca is still working for Women of Faith Ministries and homeschooling Sydnie, Sara and Shae. During this time of unemployment, Blake is working as a children's entertainer at local daycares and schools and has started to be invited by some local churches to do special programs for kids and teenagers. (We are wondering if God is going to open up a ministry to families where Blake would come in and do weekend events at churches.) He is also in conversations with several churches about possible staff positions.
We're not sure where the next step on our journey is going to take us. What we know is that if God could take a dream of a new church and use our small talents and experiences to make it happen, then we are confident that same God is faithful to move us into the next part of our journey. We are excited to discover where God is leading next!
