Tripping Over Typeset

Nineteen years ago this month, Dave and I went on an adventure.  Some people thought we were crazy.  And at times, so did I.

We had left our place of ministry 6 months earlier knowing God had closed that door.  We placed our things in storage, moved in with family and Dave worked temp jobs to pay the bills.

For 6 months we processed, prayed and searched for God’s leading.  Through a whole lot of circumstances… too long for this blog post… God led us to leave the Midwest and move to New York.  We had no job and knew no one.  We had never been out east, yet we knew in our hearts that’s where God wanted us to be.

We took God at face value.  He said, “Go” so we went.

Those were the days before Google or internet search capabilities so we rented an apartment over the phone… sight unseen.

Our friends thought us crazy, some family thought us foolish and parents worried silently and prayed fervently.

With road map in hand and no GPS or MapQuest invented, we loaded up our rented U-Haul and pulled our car behind.

The truck’s cab was packed with Dave in the driver’s seat, Samantha strapped in the passenger’s seat and my 4-month pregnant self, perched on a milk crate, packed in-between bucket seats with a pillow for a cushion and no back rest behind.

It was a journey full of adventure.

Nineteen years…

I look back on that time and am amazed at what we did.

We had a little bit of savings.  And by a little bit, I mean… a little bit.

We knew no one and had no job.

Yet… we had the promise and assurance in our hearts that this was the way and we were to walk in it.

Through His great faithfulness, He met us in our simple act of faith.

• He met us on arrival – A pastor, his son and associate pastor met us at our new apartment, unloaded our truck into our 2^nd floor apartment, brought us starter groceries and invited us to dinner the following night.
• He brought us support – At a church down the street, we met families that took us in and shared life with us… the crazy couple from out west.
• He opened closed doors – Inside of 3 months, we interviewed at a church. They hired us and we loved, served and pastored there for 5 years.

I’m still amazed even as I type these words at His grace and how we made it through that step of faith.  We lived it and survived… We even thrived.

But I mean… who does that?

Who packs up all they own and heads to a place they’ve never been before?

Who leaves what they know to serve in a place unknown?

Who???

Those who are willing to make some big leaps and follow His lead.

It’s crazy making but sometimes that’s how God does it.

Sometimes He asks us to take bold steps and big leaps without the knowledge of knowing where we’re going to land.

It’s been 19 years and I see His hand in it all.

We love where we live. We love what we do and this place feels like home.

God’s plans aren’t always easy but they are always good. 

His asking can stretch our faith in directions away from what we know and what’s familiar. Yet we can trust that when we follow His lead, He will make it better than what we can imagine.

I don’t know the specifics of what you are facing today but I know these things:

• Living out simple faith is not always simple.
• Some steps of faith require big leaps.
• And the difficult yet simple truth is this… trusting Him will get you through.

Following His lead brings us a life of adventure.

So what were we thinking?  We were thinking God is big and He’ll prove true!

Take a leap, step out and jump into adventure.  Take a risk for Him and watch Him meet you where you land!

Have a great day, friends!

On a side note: (With kids of our own now heading out on adventures, I admire our parents even more for their words of encouragement and faith in standing by us through that time.)  You all are amazing!

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Linking up: #HeartEncouragement