It's almost June. I'm loving the pre-summer weather we are having here in San Luis Obispo-- lots of warmth, lots of wind, bouquets of garden fragrances spiraling around our heads everywhere we go.
Work has been enjoyable and the occasional evening stroll into downtown has provided some wonderful date nights for Clint and I.
Having been 6 months in our new church, we are no longer the newbies and incredible doors of ministry opportunity are starting to open up for us. Clint has been offered an opportunity to preach during some of our Wednesday night services (we'll put out the word when the summer schedule has been made) and has been training on the sound team and will go solo his first time this coming Sunday. I will be teaching/facilitating a 9 week Bible study on the Song of Solomon starting in a few weeks and will possibly be counseling some believers dealing with struggles I've had in the past. Our church is also in the foundational stage of starting up a bilingual service, which team Clint and I are a part of. It has been a really exciting and refreshing time for us.
And because of how wonderful everything has been, some days we question whether or not God could be changing our course. The funds for Dominican Republic, coming in strong the first couple of months, have nearly come to a halt. Many of our loved ones are facing economic difficulties and, overall, people are scared to commit to a monthly amount because times are unsure. It is difficult to hear these realities and still trust God. We know He is sovereign and the other day while in prayer over this matter, He firmly reassured us: "I am not pulling the plug on this" and that "more will be coming in." This is God speaking, so why is it so hard to believe? Why do we want to hold on so tightly to the 'truth' of our current circumstances and not cling to the 'Truth' that God is above all?
It is the tension that every believer lives with on a daily basis, whether we feel the strain of it or not. I think it's why Jesus exhorted Peter to 'turn and strengthen' his brothers after being sifted by Satan and having his faith restored. We need to be strengthened in our faith almost daily.
So, Clint and I are poised to go, responding in obedience to what we believe we have heard. God instructed us over a year ago to 'start paring down'. I have stalled on this, ignoring even Clint's loving reminders that we need to be getting rid of everything we don't need. Our living room has become a place of organized chaos with boxes of stuff piled and ready to go to different spots (storage, Goodwill, mom's house, church). We have signed up for our pre-field training in Colorado--starting late October--by faith, with plans to head to Virginia afterward, knowing now that it's very likely we'll be living there for a while (until all our funding comes in). We are holding out, in faith, that our funds will all miraculously come in by January so we can leave for the DR then, but we know we might have to get jobs in Virginia, find a new church home and hang out until we are fully funded.
It is difficult to see this all as a possibility, especially since we are so comfy here and loving what God has been blessing us with, spiritually. But, obedience isn't always comfortable. In fact, it almost always includes sacrifice. We are bid, despite our emotions, logic, social and economic statuses, to simply, follow Him.
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