A lot has happened in the past week and a half. The weekend of June 5 Matt and I drove to Corpus Christi to share more about our team's progress with the members of the church I grew up in. As usual, we were surrounded by encouraging words and faces. Matt always does a great job sharing our powerpoint presentation...and as usual we were still tweaking it the night before!
The weekend was filled with great family and friend time. My sister, brother in law, and two nephews went down to Corpus that weekend too, and we got to hang out with them for a day. I also got to see two very good high school friends of mine, one just had a baby a few months ago and one is due to deliver a baby in about a month and a half. It's amazing to see the paths our lives have taken! I am grateful for them, and that we are still friends despite the miles that separate us.
On Sunday after church Matt got to experience Port Aransas. We ate lunch by the water and had some fantastic gelato at a super cute, trendy coffee shop. We got to talk with my parents about them visiting us when we are in Australia, it was a very encouraging conversation.
Things changed on Thursday. We met with Gregory and our mentor, and Gregory announced that he was quitting the team. It was a very hard conversation for all of us to have, but we pray that he finds peace and clarity as he continues on the path he takes from here. After Gregory left on Thursday night I was praying for God to give me something to go on; a little bit of wisdom or guidance from his word would have been helpful! I've been reading through the Bible and am currently in the book of Genesis. I read these words from Genesis 19 Thursday night:
"When he hesitated, the men grasped his hand and the hands of his wife and of his two daughters and led them safely out of the city, for the LORD was merciful to them. As soon as they had brought them out, one of them said, 'Flee for your lives! Don't look back, and don't stop anywhere in the plain! Flee to the mountains or you will be swept away'....By the time Lot reached Zoar, the sun had risen over the land. Then the LORD rained down burning sulfur on Sodom and Gomorrah—from the LORD out of the heavens. Thus he overthrew those cities and the entire plain, including all those living in the cities—and also the vegetation in the land. But Lot's wife looked back, and she became a pillar of salt."
How encouraging! I felt like God was saying these words to me. Matt and I have been shown our journey and our destination, and he does not want us to look back. There's nothing wrong with remembering great memories of family and friends from where you came from...just look at the first part of my entry! However, when God calls you to do something, he does not want you to look back in doubt. The challenge is knowing the difference between being confident in what God has called you to do and being stubborn when he's not really telling you anything at all. We remain confident that this is what he has called us to do.
2 comments:
Tish - I have found (and continue to find as recently as today) that God provides exactly what you need exactly when you need it. Our timing rarely seems to line up with God's timing (at least for me), but His timing is always better!!
As long as you know that you are following His will, everything will work out for you, just not always exactly like you had planned. We'll continue praying for you guys!!
Tish & Matt - I am very encouraged by your post. It would seem to be very difficult to find encouragement from a passage that ends with a mother being turned into a pillar of salt, but when the Holy Spirit speaks into our hearts it really brings the Word of God alive for each of us individually. I love it! Keep stepping forward, it is only when we step out in faithful obedience that God's power can work in and through our lives. We'll keep on rejoicing and praying with you.
blessings,
The McLaughlins
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