This past weekend my family went to Raleigh to enjoy a wedding of a woman I think the world of. This has many implications. Let's start with the fact that it was in Raleigh...
For those of you that don't know, about seven years ago (holy cow has it been that long?) I decided to give up my cushy job, sell my house, sell one of my cars (yes, I was single and owned two cars - that's another story), and move to Raleigh to answer the call of campus ministry on my life. The reality was, I had no idea what I was doing. I knew that my college experience was not one I wished for anyone to relive and one I wished someone had stepped up and called me to the carpet on. I'm not saying I would have listened, but that doesn't mean I don't still wish they had taken a chance. I believe I was called to move to Raleigh, work with CCF, and be open to being used however God would call me. What that turned out to be in a practical sense was just meeting with girls (and some guys) in a discipleship relationship. Sometimes it was one on one, sometimes it was in groups, always it was in love (even when they didn't think it was :) Raleigh holds so many things dear to my heart. The ministry, those girls (and guys), and the friends I created I will never lose. So many times I wish I could just go back to Raleigh and be there and live that life.
Sometimes I look at where we are now and see that my job has changed (for good and bad), my friendships in Virginia Beach have grown and and sadly, some have withered, and sometimes Raleigh just seems like everything would be easier...better. I realize that moving back to Raleigh now would not be the same as when I lived there before. And yet I still feel like that is where we will end up. And thankfully, my husband feels the same and we already have a great community there. But regardless of when and where and how and why, what I will never lose from Raleigh is knowing that I was right smack dab in the middle of God's will. And I know that's true because I can see the result of that time there.
This weekend I saw a beautiful, amazing woman (it's hard not to call her a girl) get married. I have seen her walk through many struggles and wrestle with some tough questions in her life. And to see her now, flourishing in life, in her job, in her love of a great man, I know she is right smack dab in the middle of God's will. And her brother who left NC State to go to bible college because he knew he was called to work with kids and show them God's love. He has an amazing wife and he (who was once out of his mind homesick in Haiti) lives far away from his family in New York state and is, I'm sure, touching every person he meets. We had breakfast with a man who I had the amazing honor of baptizing. I have seen him walk through some heartache and some ups and downs and to see his passion for his work and his church is such a blessing to me. We met with another woman who is so passionate about her church and women's ministry and it makes me cry with excitement to have seen some of the places she has come from and to now see the crazy desire she has to work with women who have dealt and will deal with some of the same things as she has/does. And at the wedding to see another wonderful woman who branched out across the nation to step out on her own and learn and grow in an internship far away from everything she's ever known. To see her passion for people is overwhelming!
And these are just the people I saw this weekend! There's the woman who is following her heart and the Lord by serving her church and working at a zoo in NYC and using her amazing gift of teaching to share her passions and love to the world. Can you imagine the number of people she touches in one day at a NYC zoo? And the woman who has worked with her youth group back home and as a job working with the elderly to bring joy to their everyday lives by creating activities and socials for them. And the woman who serves with Americorps and works with inner city kids in after school programs to show these kids who may have no other relationships they can trust that they are loved. And the woman who went away from her comfort zone to pursue a counseling degree to work with families and children who have trauma and other mental health concerns. And I could go on and on and on with the stories of their jobs and their husbands and their babies as they serve each other and their communities around them! There are so many more!!!
I am so proud of them. I am so proud of who they have become. And I am beyond blessed to know them. While I have heard some say that I had a hand in that, let me tell you, that's not the case. At least I can't take the credit for it. Yes, I made myself available to be used where I was supposed to. And yes, I love that I am a part of their lives. But the reality is, this is all God's work. They are just letting Him make them who they're supposed to be! And I'm just happy to know them. It makes me think of 1 Corinthians 15:10 "But by the grace of God I am what I am, and his grace to me was not without effect. No, I worked harder than all of them —yet not I, but the grace of God that was with me."
Thank you ladies (and gentlemen), for letting me be a part of your lives. Can't wait to see the ripples of people God touches because you have made yourselves available to be right smack dab in the middle of His will.
For those of you that don't know, about seven years ago (holy cow has it been that long?) I decided to give up my cushy job, sell my house, sell one of my cars (yes, I was single and owned two cars - that's another story), and move to Raleigh to answer the call of campus ministry on my life. The reality was, I had no idea what I was doing. I knew that my college experience was not one I wished for anyone to relive and one I wished someone had stepped up and called me to the carpet on. I'm not saying I would have listened, but that doesn't mean I don't still wish they had taken a chance. I believe I was called to move to Raleigh, work with CCF, and be open to being used however God would call me. What that turned out to be in a practical sense was just meeting with girls (and some guys) in a discipleship relationship. Sometimes it was one on one, sometimes it was in groups, always it was in love (even when they didn't think it was :) Raleigh holds so many things dear to my heart. The ministry, those girls (and guys), and the friends I created I will never lose. So many times I wish I could just go back to Raleigh and be there and live that life.
Sometimes I look at where we are now and see that my job has changed (for good and bad), my friendships in Virginia Beach have grown and and sadly, some have withered, and sometimes Raleigh just seems like everything would be easier...better. I realize that moving back to Raleigh now would not be the same as when I lived there before. And yet I still feel like that is where we will end up. And thankfully, my husband feels the same and we already have a great community there. But regardless of when and where and how and why, what I will never lose from Raleigh is knowing that I was right smack dab in the middle of God's will. And I know that's true because I can see the result of that time there.
This weekend I saw a beautiful, amazing woman (it's hard not to call her a girl) get married. I have seen her walk through many struggles and wrestle with some tough questions in her life. And to see her now, flourishing in life, in her job, in her love of a great man, I know she is right smack dab in the middle of God's will. And her brother who left NC State to go to bible college because he knew he was called to work with kids and show them God's love. He has an amazing wife and he (who was once out of his mind homesick in Haiti) lives far away from his family in New York state and is, I'm sure, touching every person he meets. We had breakfast with a man who I had the amazing honor of baptizing. I have seen him walk through some heartache and some ups and downs and to see his passion for his work and his church is such a blessing to me. We met with another woman who is so passionate about her church and women's ministry and it makes me cry with excitement to have seen some of the places she has come from and to now see the crazy desire she has to work with women who have dealt and will deal with some of the same things as she has/does. And at the wedding to see another wonderful woman who branched out across the nation to step out on her own and learn and grow in an internship far away from everything she's ever known. To see her passion for people is overwhelming!
And these are just the people I saw this weekend! There's the woman who is following her heart and the Lord by serving her church and working at a zoo in NYC and using her amazing gift of teaching to share her passions and love to the world. Can you imagine the number of people she touches in one day at a NYC zoo? And the woman who has worked with her youth group back home and as a job working with the elderly to bring joy to their everyday lives by creating activities and socials for them. And the woman who serves with Americorps and works with inner city kids in after school programs to show these kids who may have no other relationships they can trust that they are loved. And the woman who went away from her comfort zone to pursue a counseling degree to work with families and children who have trauma and other mental health concerns. And I could go on and on and on with the stories of their jobs and their husbands and their babies as they serve each other and their communities around them! There are so many more!!!
I am so proud of them. I am so proud of who they have become. And I am beyond blessed to know them. While I have heard some say that I had a hand in that, let me tell you, that's not the case. At least I can't take the credit for it. Yes, I made myself available to be used where I was supposed to. And yes, I love that I am a part of their lives. But the reality is, this is all God's work. They are just letting Him make them who they're supposed to be! And I'm just happy to know them. It makes me think of 1 Corinthians 15:10 "But by the grace of God I am what I am, and his grace to me was not without effect. No, I worked harder than all of them —yet not I, but the grace of God that was with me."
Thank you ladies (and gentlemen), for letting me be a part of your lives. Can't wait to see the ripples of people God touches because you have made yourselves available to be right smack dab in the middle of His will.
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