First Year in NYC

So I'm a bit behind on this post, as I am with most everything in my life, but last month marked our 1 year anniversary here in NYC.  I cannot let it pass without looking back on all that God has done and where He has brought us to.  One of my favorite stories in the Bible is in Joshua when the Israelite people cross the Jordan into the land the Lord had promised them.  God told them to take the twelve stones, one for each of the tribes, and set up a memorial there.  That way when their children, grandchildren, etc asked what they meant there would always be that opportunity to talk about what God had done for them.  So I've found 12 of my favorite pictures from this last year that best remind me of all God has done for us as we are just getting started on this journey of church planting.

First is of course the studio apartment we lived in the first 6 months we were in NYC.  NAMB has a wonderful facility there in Brooklyn for church planters/missionaries and they allowed us to live there at very minimal cost to us.  Jordan and I have often remarked we don't know how we would have gotten to NYC without this housing option.  We are grateful for NAMB.  Not knowing anyone or anything about the city, wanting to move to the Bronx, trying to figure out where God was calling us to be, it was all just so overwhelming.  This allowed us to have at least one huge burden lifted off our shoulders right away.  It was small, the windows were right behind the dumpsters so we never opened them, and it was sometimes just downright claustraphobic; but we had just moved across country and we had a roof over our head and a place to stay at night.  We were thankful for the opportunity to begin the task to which God had called us. 

Below we are on the roof of the MNYBA.  The Metropolitan New York Baptist Association has been such a blessing to our family.  We've been able to meet some wonderful, like-minded people and they have encouraged us greatly.  They have helped us get connected with other church planters, they have sent us church groups looking to serve in NYC, and they have advised and counseled on the whole church planting process.  God has really provided for our family through the local association and we are so grateful for their support.     

 

In August we had our first familiar faces come visit....Gidgie and Papa came to town and boy were we ready to see them!  Maria has really struggled quite a bit with missing her grandparents and being so far away from family.  God blessed both Jordan and I with great parents who are willing to give their time and money and efforts to come see us, help us, babysit for us, and really just jump at any opportunity they can to help us.  We could not be doing what we are doing without the love, support, and daily prayers of our family.

I am so grateful NAMB referred us to Mosaic Baptist Church in Brooklyn.  They connected Jordan with the pastor there to be his mentor and we attended every Sunday while we lived in Brooklyn.  This is Maria with the pastor's daughter who was really her first friend here in NYC.  I have also been greatly blessed by the pastor's wife and she was a huge help and support during our first few months here.  From taking Maria and I out and about in Brooklyn, to giving us TONS of baby clothes, to really helping Jordan learn about the ins and outs of church planting this family has been a huge blessing.  We are so thankful God placed them in our lives.  God is working through the Stallard family and He used them to make life just a bit easier as we learned to adjust to NYC. 

This was the first mission group we had come and help in our target neighborhood.  This Sunday school class from South Carolina volunteered a day of their time with us and it was fantastic.  We were not living there yet and we didn't really know what to do so they passed out these cheesy, generic flyers we had made.  They had first conversations and connections with people in the area about a new church.  Jordan and I have often remarked about how we really don't know if we're doing anything right at this whole church planting thing, but God continues to confirm we are where we need to be.  From this group walking the streets, passing out flyers about a new church coming at some point, we formed a great connection with a lady in the neighborhood.  She received the flyer in September, held onto it for 6 months, had some family issues come up and decided to call the pastor on this flyer to find out about the church.  She happened to call the week before we had our first service in March!  She attended, has been to other things in our home, and is just fantastic.  That just goes to show God can use anyone, at any time, and do anything He wants!

In October we had more family come to visit.  We were so thankful to have my parents and my sister's family in town around the time of Maria's 3rd birthday.  Not really knowing anyone extremely well at this point God used them to make the transition a bit easier.  I know it's a 3 year old's birthday that she won't remember but I wanted her to feel loved and special on her day, especially since we had just had a huge life change.  Having family in town around that time to help celebrate her was a tremendous blessing.  Again, the love and support and prayers of our family is truly priceless and God blessed both Jordan and I greatly when it comes to family. 

We were blessed to be able to travel back to Oklahoma and Texas around Thanksgiving.  I cannot say enough about those of you who have partnered with us through prayer and also financially.  The Lord is using you to further the kingdom of God here in the Bronx.  Thank you from the bottom of our hearts.  We had a very special couple, who support us monthly, give us an airline voucher that covered the cost of our trip back home.  That in and of itself was a huge blessing.  We didn't know if we would be able to travel back home at all last year.  Also, while we were in Oklahoma and Texas God opened up doors to connect with several of our now supporting church partners.  It was a very much needed trip for the 3 of us and God used it to encourage us, strengthen us, and prepare us to come back to NYC ready to see Him move and work.   

God proved himself so faithful once again when our son decided to come 7 weeks early.  Nothing about the end of 2016/beginning of 2017 happened according to how I expected it to.  Life just felt chaotic, uncontrollable, and so stressful.  But looking back on it now there are countless ways God blessed us during this time.  The main one being we had a healthy, beautiful baby boy.  He had to stay in the NICU 2 weeks but strictly for growth purposes.  Jordan, again with the help of our family and some friends from Mosaic, was able to get us moved in to our new Bronx apartment.  We had terrible insurance last year and actually the hospital we were at did not accept our insurance at all.  But because my water broke 7 weeks early we went through the emergency room and due to using the emergency room had insurance benefits kick in.  I could talk all day about how God took care of us during this time but this blog is already getting ridiculously long.

Our son also decided to come the week we were closing on our apartment in the Bronx.  Below is the incredible realtor, Nirmala Caraballo, who helped us find our place. Talk to her first if you are thinking about moving to NYC! She's been a great blessing to us and has definitely become a friend.  We had actually found our apartment in July and finally in December we were able to schedule the closing.  Then my water breaks and I'm stuck in the hospital.  This awesome lady below drove from the Bronx to my hospital room in Brooklyn with my papers to sign so that Jordan could go on to the closing by himself and finish things up.  She also had a relative working at the hospital who she brought to my room so that I could have at least someone to talk with, answer questions and address concerns who knew the hospital.  She has stopped in to check on us, attended a church meeting, brought us gifts, and has introduced us to other new people in the neighborhood.  Her help has been invaluable and God really knew what He was doing allowing our paths to cross.  

Our wonderful Gidgie gave us a whole month of her time.  She got on a plane the day my water broke unexpectedly and came.  Bought a one way ticket and didn't even mention when she would go back.  Knowing that Maria was well taken care of while I'm stuck in the hospital and Jordan is making countless trips between Brooklyn and the Bronx was invaluable.  And then of course after I was discharged I still spent everyday for the next two weeks at the hospital while Moses was in the NICU.  What a huge burden was lifted off our shoulders knowing that Maria was safe, loved, and cared for during this time.  

Everlasting Church had it's first gathering of people in March.  We had 20+ people that first gathering!  I feel so humbled and inadequate to be here in the Bronx as a church planter's wife.  This whole thing is totally outside my comfort zone but man, our first gathering we had was such a sweet encouragement from the Lord.  Just to fellowship with other Christians and be encouraged that others are excited to have a church in the neighborhood has helped confirm we are where we need to be.  God is doing something special here, to HIM be all the glory and praise.  We are just thankful He has allowed us to play a small part in His vision for Pelham Parkway.

Our family got away for a few days to celebrate our 10 years of marriage.  From Oklahoma to Texas to Brooklyn and then the Bronx, 2 kids later, and I love this man even more than I did 10 years ago.  I have no doubt that church planting is what God has planned for him to do and it's just a blessing to be able to support him and be a part of that calling.  We have many examples of Godly marriages in our family and we pray that we can continue that legacy with our family.