Something New

     People told us that two of the hardest things about adjusting to life in the big city are the size of living spaces (i.e. moving from our 4 bedroom, 2 bathroom home with a yard, to our 2 bedroom, 1 bathroom apartment) and the long winters.  And this winter both these things have definitely proven to be true.  I've been meaning to write a blog sooner than this but since we've been home from Christmas it's just been sickness after sickness, snow after snow, and just plain old winter time blues.  We've had stomach bugs, ear infections, the flu, and just when we think nice weather has arrived we wake up the next morning to snow!  It's been a LONG 3 months y'all.  To be even more honest the church planting aspect has been slow and at times disheartening also.
     BUT as I read in my devotional time a few days ago Isaiah 43:19 says "I am about to do something new; even now it is coming.  Do you not see it?"  God is so faithful and when I stop and think about it I'm overcome with gratitude.  Spring always comes.  It's probably my favorite season. God always keeps his promises and the old and ugly and dead things give way to new life and it's just beautiful.  There are several things happening in our family life and church life that are new and exciting and we just want to give all the glory to God.
     First of all we have SUN AND UPPER 70's in the forecast for next week!  My poor kids are going to be exhausted at the end of every day because we will be outside as long as possible. We did have a few nicer days the past couple of weeks so here are a couple photos at our local park.  I love the smiles, I love the messy hair, I love how a thing as simple as swinging brings such joy.

     Secondly, our friends and soon to be church planting team members Gabe & Lexi Dence will be moving here NEXT WEEK!!!  I cannot even put into words how excited we are to have another team member, another family, to work alongside us all the time.  We have made some incredible friendships with local people here in Pelham Parkway who give of their time, energy and resources for the ministry God has called us to and we could not do what we are doing without them.  But Gabe, Lexi, and their baby are picking up and moving from Tennessee clearly because God has called them, but also because they believe in the vision that God has given us for Everlasting Church here in the Bronx. They want to reach our neighborhood with the gospel, and they want to labor with us.  Not only that, but also at the end of May we will have 2 young women from Gabe and Lexi's church in Tennessee moving here to help over the next 12 months.  What an encouragement and blessing these people are.  Also, our friend from Alabama, Tyler, feels God is calling him back to NYC so he is planning on coming back this summer; and in addition we will have a summer intern, Ben, joining us from one of our partner churches in Oklahoma!  God is "about to do something new" y'all, we are so excited and so encouraged!

     Lastly, the point of this blog post was really about last Saturday.  We had a new family over for lunch.  Our church did a movie night at the end of March to just try and reach out to our community.  We showed Toy Story and had some prizes and give-aways.  It was awesome!  I believe God really did start doing something new.  So we were able to connect with a couple of the families there and one of them came over for lunch.  They've got young kids and are in the same season of life as us.  It was so fun and refreshing and just a good time getting to know them.  Hoping and praying we can see more of them as the weather continues to improve.  After lunch we ran out the door because we had a birthday party for one of Maria's friends from school to go to.  This family invited us in to their home, had tons of food and cake and ice cream, Maria (and Moses too) ran around and played until we had to leave for bedtime!  As we were leaving Maria said she wished she could just live at their house forever, haha!  Jordan and I have gotten to know the parents over the course of this school year and they are just good, solid people.  We enjoy being around them, for our kids to play with theirs, and are praying the relationship continues as we go to different schools in the fall for kindergarten.  So, it wasn't really a spectacular day, or anything too out of the ordinary.  But it was full, it was busy, it was chaotic, and at the end of the day it made me realize how far God has brought us.  Just a little over a year ago we moved to the Bronx and didn't know anyone...I've had MANY doubtful days, feelings of inadequacy, and really just questioning if I can do this whole church planting thing.  There have been many times where I felt that I just didn't fit in with the local atmosphere.  However, this past weekend was a turning point! This weekend God filled me with a strong sense of belonging and normalcy.  Slowly but surely this is feeling like our neighborhood, and these are our people.  I don't even know how to describe it very well so I'll just say that God is definitely "about to do something new".  I believe it's already started.  So thank you Lord for busy and full weekends, and each person you have placed in our lives for this season.  And thank you for reading this, praying for us, and supporting us.  We've said it before and we'll say it again, we have the best supporters and partners and none of this would be possible without y'all.

-Becky