God is Faithful: A Church Update

If you have been reading my blog since the beginning (February), you know that we had a hard time with church in League City.  We attended a small community church for about a year, and then some bad things happened and the church split up and we left.  After that, we visited what seemed like every church in the city and didn't ever feel right in any of them.  It was very discouraging.  Hands and Feet kept us in fellowship with believers (we love you guys!), and that was a blessing to us, but we were disheartened about the whole church situation.

When James accepted the job here in Maryland, I had a talk with God.  Several, actually.  And every time it went something like this: "Lord, I know that you want us to go here.  I am excited, but also nervous because we know nobody and it is so far away from our families.  Please, please, PLEASE provide a church family for us!  I can't do this no church thing anymore."

I've been memorizing 1 John 5:14-15.  It says:

 "This is the confidence which we have before Him, that, if we ask anything according to His will, He hears us. And if we know that He hears us in whatever we ask, we know that we have the requests which we have asked from Him."

The American church may not always get things right, but I know that it is in His will that believers fellowship together, encourage each other, and hold each other to the Word of God.  So I could pray that prayer with confidence that eventually it would be answered.  The only problem is that God's timetable is not the same as mine and I know from experience that often God's answer is "wait."

I don't know all the answers about why we went through what we did in Texas, but I do know that part of it is because without hardship we can't really appreciate His blessings, and in the hard times we have to rely on God only.  Well I am appreciating His blessings right now because it seems that He has seen fit to bless us with a church home!

The second Sunday after we moved in, we visited a small community church that meets in a school.  (Side note: what is it with us and start-up churches?  It's like we're moths and they are the light, we're drawn to them!)  We sat down and immediately someone came over to talk to us.  After the service, we were invited to go have lunch with several young married couples.  Everyone was so welcoming and friendly, it was such a blessing!  Do you know that in League City, out of the 5 billion churches we visited, NOT ONE ever asked us to have lunch with them? 

We liked this church so much that we haven't even visited anywhere else.  We enjoy the worship and the service, but what has made it stand out are the people.  There are a few couples that even live in our apartment complex.  We went to a game night and tonight we're having a movie night.  I am blown away by how these people have just embraced us and taken us in.  It is wonderful!  True Christian hospitality.  I am not going to say with certainty that this is "our church" because we've only been there 4 times, but we both don't want to go anywhere else.  And that is a great feeling!

Praise the Lord for His blessings, His faithfulness never fails! 

Great is Thy faithfulness, great is Thy faithfulness,

Morning by morning new mercies I see.

All I have needed, Thy hand has provided.

Great is Thy faithfulness, Lord unto thee!