No going to be for me until I get to update you on how Amazingly God provided for us today!
Wow. Oh wow. Some of you need to ‘fess up…those of you who prayed for us today about finding a church, seriously, we’d love to know!! Thank you for carrying us with your prayers. Thank you thank you thank you!! Your prayers were heard and answered in a way that couldn’t have been more incredible if it had been scripted out.
We had the big church debate last night. Even until 11pm, we were still trying to decide whether to go to a church we’d already been to for a little bit of familiarity, or try a new one. We had finally decided to try a new one north of where we live by the time we went to bed.
This morning though, there was an email from one of Matt’s aunts suggesting a few churches they knew around here. One was having a picnic today, and she suggested it as a way to meet people. Interestingly, the first time we went to Dalhousie Community Church in Calgary, it was the morning of a potluck lunch. We stayed for lunch and kept on staying for the next three years. The first week we went to Grace Baptist in Airdrie, they had a fellowship lunch, and that became our church home. I think even at Salida First Baptist there was a fellowship meal pretty early on. So, even at 22 minutes away, a Sunday picnic was definitely worth a try!
So we tried Ebenezer Bible Fellowship, a totally different church today than planned, and wow!
**When we arrived and asked a greeter where to take the kids her response was “I’ll just take you there myself and help you guys get settled”.
**Most people we passed as we walked through the (large) building either smiled or said hello…we were noticed! (Not mobbed, but welcomed!)
**We walked into a Sunday school class just as the teacher was debunking the myth that there is some spiritual difference between someone serving in international ministry or within their own community (for the record, there ain’t none!), and enjoyed a challenging and interesting lesson on being vs doing (not at all appropriate for us right now eh?).
**We picked up a bulletin from an usher before the service who actually said, “is there anything else I can help you guys with this morning?” before showing us in.
**The pastor walked through the sanctuary and greeted people (our family included) before the service began.
**People sitting beside and behind us in the service actually smiled at us and chatted about more than the weather (the guy sitting behind us was originally from Alberta!!)
**We handed in our visitor card and someone came right then to chat, and see if we had more questions or had found what we were looking for.
**The worship was great, the sermon challenging (again very timely), and the setting comfortable
It was crazy that everything I had been so discouraged about the night before was so different at this church! It was like walking into Salida First Baptist, or Dalhousie, or Grace Baptist and seeing different faces, but feeling just as welcome by folks who could easily soon become friends.
Then we came for the picnic…
**People, I mean LOTS of people kept coming to introduce themselves, saying “we haven’t met you guys before, we’re glad you’re here…”. This isn’t a tiny little church where we totally stuck out like a sore thumb even, this is a church that has a 33 page directory (I know because there was one woman who went to get me one to help us find our way a bit better).
**The person we had given our visitor card to went out of her way to help connect me with homeschool moms, with other women, and to invite me to a woman’s night next week.
**The pastor came over and spent time talking to both Matt where he was and then to me as well, to hear a bit of our story and to offer some encouragement.
**We can’t answer the question “where are you from?” very easily, but folks asked and were so gracious as we tried to stumble around an answer (we aren’t always very fast to say we’re missionaries…sometimes it feels a little awkward, especially when we’re displaced missionaries!)
**Oh, and the best…I got a hug! Two really, because I had to hug her again. Someone who said; “I understand, it was hard when we moved here too and I’d love to hear your story”. Really? Really? (All my girlfriends reading this can see my heart doing a little dance of joy!)
All I could say to Matt was “God is SO good, we’re here, and there were a lot of people praying for us today!!” This isn’t the first time prayers have been answered in such tangible and perfect ways. That we’ve had people intercede for us and we’ve been carried through a difficult situation. Someday, ask me the longer version story of how I met Matt and I can share how God answers prayers (even of just one person)!
Or, it could just be coincidence that we happened not to go where we had planned to go but go elsewhere instead. And it certainly could be coincidence that at the moment we walked into a Sunday school class he was talking about restoration through intimacy with Christ as the only way to be able to truly serve and sustain genuine ministry. Why not chalk it up to coincidence that the sermon was about God knowing everything and no event or no time in our lives is a surprise to Him (Psalm 139). And, it definitely could be coincidence that there was a fellowship meal today.
Yeah right.
So thank you! We were blown away today! We found a place where we could totally fit today, and where people have made sure we have already started to fit. Praise the Lord, because I couldn’t do another Sunday of hunting and not finding anything!
Can I ask you to share some of your prayer requests with us? I want to be there to stand in the gap for you just as so many have lifted us up into the arms of the Lord where we’ve been carried through some difficult things. I admit I don’t pray enough for others, I get pretty wrapped up in our immediate crises that I don’t always lift others up as I want to. Today really impacted me that I need to. God hears our prayers. God answers our prayers. Not always the way we want or in the time we want, but perfectly.
My heart is definitely more joyful to write that we had such a different (and positive) experience this morning. We were noticed and welcomed. People wanted to hear our story, or at least recognize us not as “new people”, but as Matt and Kristy Messick. That just feels good to our weary hearts! So why isn’t that the norm in churches??
So at the end of the day I can say bring on next Sunday!
((whispering… yes, I prayed. 🙂 I prayed last night, and I prayed even while I was in church this morning.))
Our God is faithful. I don’t pretend to know why He is writing this particular chapter in the Messick story, but I am certain that He is faithful to keep you until the day He completes it. 🙂
Tonight I praise the Lord that today you all were encouraged and loved well.
Our most immediate prayer request- we start a big road trip on Wednesday, culminating in dropping Keilah off at college in Nebraska. (she got home from 8 weeks in Honduras last night…) Pray that our big ol’ van can survive the trip, that our clan brings grace and cheerfulness and a good Word wherever we go, that we mourn leaving Keilah behind well.
love you guys!
k
What wonderful news that you found a spot to praise and grow and feel at home with others at church. Wish there was one around us, who knows maybe there will be . xxoo Mom
I only read of your delima this morning and then got to read of your wonderful discovery yesterday. I am so glad you were led to a welcoming Place. God is truly aware if what we need. Try to Remembef you are in the heart of German ancestry. These Germans are not always very outgoing and it can be hard to break into their shell but once you do, they are loving, caring people. Sounds like you found a Church as warm and loving as Swatara Hill has been to me. I’ve gone to the same church all my life and still feel like a stranger when I am there.
I also wanted to comment on your loss. My heart goes out to you all. I do want to tell you what Aunt Arlene Gingrich told me about miscarriage.
“We do not know what may have been ahead for the dear one you lost. Perhaps there would have been great pain and hardship in his life. God knows what is best for each of us”. I just want to add that you can be at peace knowing the precious little one is safe in Gods arms waiting until we all are gathered together to spend eternity praising our Lord.
Much love to you all.
Well I behind as usual. Just wrote you and then saw this new blog update. God is good and
He sometimes surprises us with his love.
Will keep praying for you.
And you can pray for us as move this fall and again start the church search anew. I hope it doesn’t take a year like last time. It is our biggest prayer about moving.
Sorry about typing on iPhone. Not too coordinated.
Yay! Yay! Yay! God is good!!
This is such a heart-warming story! I’m so glad to be part of this church in the past 5 years! I love to welcome people. In fact, my husband and I are two of it’s newest members! I’m sorry we didn’t get to meet you folks on Sunday. After church, I was busy welcoming a new couple! (I like being one of the last to leave on Sundays to visit with friends and meet new people!). This couple also commented about the warmth of being greeted that they had experienced, and how important it was to them. They noticed a difference immediately in the people, and the in transparency of Pastor Tim, who shared from a position of “brokenness,” or humility, as this gentleman said, it is “rare” to find, and exactly what he was looking for in a pastor! They too, had been church shopping that morning and were looking forward to bringing his mother this coming Sunday! It was such a wonderful day for our extended family that keeps growing, to share a meal together, and welcome our new Pastor Tim, his wife Julie, and their lovely family of four children. You’d never know that it’s only been 3 Sundays since the Lord has graced us with them! They fit like a hand in glove, and the glove fits – perfectly! We are truly blessed to have the leadership we have had, who have stood solidly in the face of uncertainty, committed to preach the Word of God faithfully through times of transition and changes over the past 4-5 years. I’m looking forward to meeting you and your family! Don’t forget to sign up for the Welcome Dessert on the sign up wall near the information table! 🙂 ❤ Hope to see you there! ❤
Hi Kristy, You described exactly the way I felt about Ebenezer when I first walked in the door ten years ago! The web address “aplaceforyou.org” is so true! I didn’t get to meet you and Matt on Sunday, but I was praying for any visitors to feel welcomed and cared for. So I guess I prayed for you without knowing you by name. 🙂
If you’re near Wegman’s, you’re not far from me – so if there is any way I can help you settle in or find your way around, please contact me. I’d love to help you. I think you will have my email after I comment, but if you don’t, please call Robbin at the church and ask her for my number. I’m praising God today for His care and mercy, and your lovely blog post.
Joanne