FINALLY, I can share this!! I've been bursting at the seams. :)
Three years ago this weekend, we officially made the move to Grace Baptist Lavaca. It was a hard, hard decision to leave our beloved Oak Cliff, but God was so clearly leading that we had to obey. And while leaving Oak Cliff was hard, becoming part of Grace wasn't, as we already loved Bro. Gary and Becky and what was then our little mission church.
God has done a LOT in the intervening 3 years. We had no idea what He had in store for us, and there have certainly been a lot of unexpected twists and turns along the way. Our Grace family has gone through a LOT of hard stuff together in those three years. But...we've shared some huge joys as well, including constituting as an official church, four baptisms (the first of which was our Ammah Grace!), and new families joining us.
Today, our Grace Baptist family starts a new chapter in our church history. We are no longer Grace Lavaca; we are now Grace Barling. I love that in God's perfect timing this new chapter begins three years to the weekend from our initial move to Grace Lavaca. :)
The story behind the move is a long one, but again, it has been so evident that it is God's hand, and there are a multitude of reasons why it is a good and wonderful thing. (And while it wasn't a reason for the move, a fabulous by-product of the move is that the new location is MUCH closer to our home...15 minutes as opposed to 40+. I can't TELL you what a wonderful thing that is, although some of us are going to miss the picturesque drive and the cows looking in the window in Lavaca. :))
God is doing exciting things at Grace Lavaca. Someday perhaps I'll tell the whole story of today's move and the obvious and intense attacks of the enemy it involved. For now, I'll just say, the attacks of the enemy were great, but we serve a God who is far greater, and His grace was sufficient!
So thankful for so many things today...for all those who have worked so hard today and in days and weeks prior to make this move happen, for my kids (and their friend Joshua) who have put in some serious hard labor this week with good attitudes, for our friends Kathy and Kaitlyn, who may have saved our lives today by bringing a bunch of exhausted, hot, starving people pizza for lunch, for protection for our Bay, who fell and hit her head last night and had to sit and watch today (and those who know Bay know that was pure torture for her!), for answered prayer for our pastor, who was unable to get out of bed for a good part of the morning, but who was able to come later (and work hard!), for people who have prayed fervent prayers for all of us in all of this, and most of all, that God's power is made perfect in our weakness, always!
And thankful for the anticipation of our first worship service tomorrow at Grace Baptist Barling!
Is God doing something exciting in your life right now? Or perhaps leading you to something a little scary? I'd love to hear in the comments!
More of the Story:
As Promised ~ The Story Behind Our New Adventure
I Press On Toward the Goal (A Not-By-Chance Encounter)
Saying Good-Bye
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