It’s been a while since I have written a blog. When the life lessons I am learning include a story that is not mine to tell, I cease telling my stories. As a result, I have been “missing in action” from My Life in Ink. But…I’m baaack!
…and beautiful people we have learned to love like family. These have been some of our best years.
About a year ago, we learned that our pastor would be retiring. Since Tim is a staff member, we knew that meant change for us. It’s how our church polity is written and we have been around long enough to know that it is often for good reason.
I am wired to feel angst every time there is change. It’s a gift my mother gave me. My friend, Chawn, has moved to India twice and embraced the opportunity both times. I’ve often wished I had more of that in me. I don’t.
As the year progressed, we had opportunity to consider moves to Texas, Tennessee, Arizona and staying here after all. Each one of those had things that enticed us. Some had things that scared us silly. All were prayed over.
What took us most by surprise was a call in July asking Tim if he would interview at a church in Lakeland, FL. Because we had decided that we would walk through any door God opened, Tim said yes. A couple of weeks later, we met with a search committee comprised of five people. The connection and comfort I felt was immediate…a bit of a shock given my introverted nature. The interview went well and they invited us back to meet with their church board a week later.
If you know us at all, you know that our parents are heroes to us. Three of them have gone to heaven. Their prayers over us and love for us are so often missed. Tim and I lamented on several occasions that we wished our dads were around to give us guidance as we sought to hear God’s plan for our future. God was always so faithful to speak through these two Godly men.
My in-laws were lovers of Florida. They came here on vacations, owned a time-share on Sanibel Island and became residents within minutes of retiring. The sun, the beach, the golf course all spoke to John and Venita.
My parents, on the other hand, never felt the draw. They both like(d) the sun, but they also like(d) the beauty of a crisp fall and a snowy winter. (I have no idea how I came out of a winter-loving home.) The heat and humidity? Dreadful in their book and not worth any of the good trade-offs. I remember one vacation to Florida. Otherwise, we saw the beloved ocean from the Jersey shore, close to their eastern PA roots.
My mornings include a commute. It’s a daily opportunity to talk to my sweet mom. The day before our board interview, she was telling me that her vision had been blurry the day before and it was causing her trouble as she tried to read her Bible. She remembered that my dad had had a large-print Bible so she looked until it was found.
You never know what you might find inside a pastor’s Bible. Tim’s dad wrote all over his Bibles. They are fascinating treasures. My dad, on the other hand, wrote on papers that he left in his Bibles.
That morning my mom stumbled onto several message outlines in my dad’s unmistakable handwriting. They were from the early 1990’s. She decided that she would have devotions with dad that day and began reading through his notes.
My dad never watered down the gospel. He preached the truth of God’s word without apology. Sometimes, it didn’t make him very popular; but, he was always very loved. I believe that deep down we want and need to hear truth. I’m sure it did not surprise my mom to read that dad chose to share from Ephesians 2:15. “Be diligent to present yourself approved to God, a worker who does not need to be ashamed, rightly dividing the word of truth. NEB ‘rightly dividing’ translated ‘driving a straight furrow in your proclamation of truth.’ The Apostle is concerned that God’s word be subjected to sound exegesis, that its correct meaning be properly ascertained.” That was my dad. And that is also my husband; he isn’t afraid to preach unpopular truth. I love him for that.
What did surprise my mom was what her eyes fell on in the bottom left corner of the page from which she was reading.
Mom told me that she had never heard of this church before I told her about it four weeks earlier. There could only be one explanation of this coming from the pen of the man who didn’t even like Florida much; he had to have known the pastor at that time…only he didn’t. I checked with that pastor.
Some things can never be explained and those are often the best things. They are simply “God things.” We are headed to a church that has experienced fresh wounding. I don’t just claim the words of my dad’s pen, from heaven to earth, for Tim and me. I claim them for a precious congregation that we are about to love. I also don’t just claim the words of the Lord to Jeremiah for us; I claim them for a church in North Lakeland who needs the beautiful promise of hope and a future.
Tim’s sister and brother-in-law live in South Lakeland. Every now and then, when we meet them for dinner, we let Dave choose where we will eat. The first time he suggested the hole-in-the-wall BBQ, “Red Top Pit Stop,” we thought it sounded like a good idea. A new place. An adventure. It’s in North Lakeland. As Tim and I drove and drove and drove to get there, I said to him, “Who in the world lives clear up here!” Well….guess what…we’ll leave the light on for you!
Happy to hear of your latest adventure! New changes, especially from God, are so exciting! Happy for you both. We think of you often!
Just read your blog, JoAnne, and loved it! I know you will love on them and I know they will love you and Tim!! God bless you ALL in this new assignment!
Thanks Pam. You are in my thoughts and prayers as you navigate these first days back at home. Trusting for complete healing. I love your precious family!
Looking forward to the days when you both will be here. Our church is rejoicing over the fact that you are coming! May God bless you during the changes that will take place.
Lord bless you and Tim on this journey. We will keep you in our prayers.
Enjoyed this blog tonight as I was ready to close my computer. What a blessing!
Always special touch from your writings. Keep it going!
Thank you for sharing these amazing words! It is so encouraging, and we are so looking forward to your arrival!
read your blog and loved it. I am praying for you and Tim this a.m. on your new journey. Thank you for sharing.
What a blessing to read your thoughts on the transition you are entering, JoAnne. You are about to embark on a new “journey of love” that we have partly joined you on already, since our love still lives in the hearts of many of those people with whom you are about to welcome into your hearts. I believe you will find them easy to love. And their incredible openness and warmth will become tremendous gifts to your lives. Please know you and Tim will be in our prayers for wisdom, insight, and an extra-special anointing as the Lord does a brand new thing at LGN. You are in for an incredible challenge as you navigate this opportunity for a fresh outpouring of healing, but I know there is nothing you will not be able to conquer with His help. May you soon see the Hand of GOD as you have never experienced It before. And may Lake Gibson Church of the Nazarene be the Hands and Feet of Jesus in such incredible ways that North Lakeland will be transformed.
Amen and amen. We covet your prayers. As with any new assignment, we go with a mix of fear and trust. Our hopes are high!