The Rhoadrunner

BIG Changes

          

I never really experienced the beauty of autumn until I moved away from Oregon.  Going from Minnesota and to Colorado I finally understood the beauty of God’s creation in transition.  The turning of the leaves is one of the most beautiful things to behold.  People drive to the Mountains to see it happen in all its glory?  Why?

People in general are so resistant to change.  Why then do we travel hours to see it happen in nature?  Why are we so anxious for winter to come and then for spring to thaw the cold air?  We know that change is inevitable.  Change is necessary and needed.  Winter is why we enjoy spring so much.  There must be death before new life.  The changing of the season embodies the Gospel message.  We must die to self and be reborn through the work of Christ on the cross.  It’s a process and it’s rarely easy.  One thing is clear though as I look at the leaves turning on my Big Maple tree in my front yard- change is always a thing of beauty.

For the past 2 year Curtis and I have been praying for God’s leading and direction in our ministry.  This past year God impressed on us that it would be our last at Homestead Bible Camp.  We finished our last summer strong giving the kids we work with everything we had.  We stepped out in faith knowing God was changing our scope of ministry- but waiting on Him to tell us what and when.  God has led us to Crossroad Community Church in Shelbyville, Indiana.  Curtis will be the Student and Youth Ministry Leader.  He will oversee the k-12 ministries of the church with an emphasis on the Jr High and High School ministries.  He will be in charge of training and discipling volunteers for the children’s ministries as well.

As we have been praying about these changes and what it would mean for our ministries we feel very strongly about keeping outreach outside the church a priority as well.  We can’t very well teach and train young people to reach out to their world of influence if we’re not also modeling it.  So Rachel will be joining a new ministry organization called Be One Together as a missionary.  Be One Together mission statement “Is to engage all cultures by making God's Word real through collaboration in outreach, discipleship, and mobilization.”  Their emphasis is working multi-ethnically and we believe with the changing tide of our nation we need to be part of an organization that is pursuing being Christ’s love to the nations represented within our nation’s borders.  We will be waiting on God to show us what that will look like when we arrive in Indiana in December and get established in the church and the community.

Change is exciting and scary.  We have had a range of emotions as we wait on God.  We know it won’t be easy.  But it will be beautiful. Psalm 139 assures us that God knew all these changes way before us and that wherever we are- “even there shall thy hand lead me, and thy right hand shall hold me.”  Psalm 139:10

Will you pray for us as we continue to follow God’s leading?  Pray for our family in the midst of these changes.  Pray that we will bring about the beauty of the glory of God in our lives and in our ministry as God continues to change us.