Hitting A Milestone

We hit another milestone today. As I was driving down the Florida Turnpike, returning from one of nine sectional councils that are taking place in the Pen-FL district, I was passing the time by making follow-up calls to churches we have previously visited. One of these calls went to a church plant on the west coast of Florida. As with many church plants, this one has experienced some ups and downs that, given its size and newness, made for some challenging days over the past eight months.

As those eight months passed, the pastor and I have talked on several occasions. We have shared the struggles that each of us has faced. And we have agreed to lift each other up in prayer. Today's call was a two-sized praise report. Pastor asked about our progress. I was able to share how God had already opened the doors to allow me to travel to Peru to assist in the training of our national ministry team in that country. I also shared how God was opening the doors for us to transition from itineration into full-time ministry with Book of Hope. How that transition was going to make two trips to Eastern Europe possible over the next few months. But how we were going to have to step out in faith concerning our budget in order to see those trips come about.

Pastor was sincerely excited for me. I then asked how things were going at the church and he began to share his own praise report. He shared how God was prospering their work and opening doors to minister to more children in their community. He shared how blessed he felt to have many people praying for his ministry.

Pastor then dropped the big news. He shared that the as the blessings have been rising, he has been focused on reestablishing his missions commitments. Then he said that he would be adding us as new missionaries starting with next month's missions check to AGWM.

I cannot begin to express in writing how excited I was. You see, this commitment from a new church was the commitment that put us over the $4,000 mark. I work from goals and this has been a significant goal for us. Does that mean it is time to relax? No way! However, it does show that church size and church age are not everything to be looked at. In many parts of the district, it is our small churches and our new churches who are stepping up and stepping out in faith with us. That does not mean the big and established churches have not been there for us. They have and they make up the bulk of our budget. Nevertheless, tremendous blessings can flow out from anywhere. We simply have to trust God, do the work He has given us, and know that He will provide for all our needs, even from some untraditional places.