Exciting Times!

Whew, where to begin.

Church - let's start there. After a year of intense search and prayer, our church has found a new pastor and we are SO excited about it! Last night, he was presented to the congregation in a praise and worship service and it was phenomenal. He is such an amazing speaker and a skilled Bible teacher. He knows the Word and delivers it exceptionally well, especially for the simple-minded folk {like us}. We are thrilled that our church has found him and his family and brought them to Taylors. It just so happens that he has a 6-year-old boy. Yep, a little nervous. There's a good chance our boys could be in the same class. If you've followed me and my blog, you'll know why this scares me. No need to elaborate.

**Tidbit on last night's service - d1 and d2 attended and were really well-behaved. I had reservations given the time of night we were going to be there but paired with good snacks, activities {ok, so maybe the ice cream bribe was the main driver - and sitting them as far from each other as possible probably didn't hurt}, they did great. d2, though. What a hoot. At one point, he asked D1 {in a loud whisper} if the new creature {preacher} was there yet. Then later on, while we were singing, d1 nudges me and points at d2 and asks what he's doing. I look over to see d2 with his eyes squinting and hand lifted high in the air {with a bit of a Miss America cupped form}. He saw others around him praising God so why shouldn't he? That's my boy!

Community projects - D1 and I {along with some of our SS class members} have been teaming up with local organizations, going out into our community and feeding the homeless. We've done a couple of 'drive-by' feedings as well as one large organized Saturday feeding. What a humbling experience. Though I can't speak for those we've served, I can tell you what it's done for me and my family. To be the hands and feet of Jesus is truly a blessing. The Bible tells us to give to the poor. Proverbs 28:27 says "Those who give to the poor will lack nothing, but those who close their eyes to them receive many curses." Personally, this was not something I ever would have envisioned myself doing, even just a few short years ago. I had a bitter heart towards 'those' people, for personal reasons. I used to condemn the homeless by saying that it was because of their choices that they were homeless. Yep, probably so but who am I to judge? WHO AM I? They need Jesus, more than ever. We all do because we are all sinners who stumble and fall short of the glory of God. If we as Christians don't reach out, who in the world will?

With some of these projects we do involve the boys and they have processed a good bit of what and why we're doing this. They ask lots of questions and frequently include the homeless in their prayers, asking God to watch over them, to protect them, to bring them food and a house. <3 It warms my heart to see how these projects are changing my family and I'm equally as excited to hear that our new 'creature' is so mission-minded, especially on a local level. Hopefully we can work together on a major movement right here in G'ville! All we have to say is YES, God!