When Jen and I were married three years ago we committed our marriage, our family, and our lives to the Lord. And we have found there is nothing greater in this world then serving Him and seeing His mighty works. We would never have believed that in three short years we would have two kids, move away from our close friends and family, and end up in Elizabethtown KY. But that is where we are and it is exciting to be apart of the work the Lord is doing here.
As I reflect back it is obvious that we could not have moved here without first taking smaller steps that the Lord was leading us in. I had every intention of living and dying in Yucaipa, CA, because our home Church was there, our family was in the area, and all our good friends were close by. We were living comfortably in a three bedroom house and had no reason to leave. But right before Kailyn was born it was pressed upon my heart to move to Murrieta and attend the Bible College there. This was a big step for us, in someways a harder decision them moving out here. But we moved out in faith, and as difficult as it was to leave the place we felt most safe, we knew it was the right thing to do. Even though we were only an hour drive away it was difficult to keep the closeness with our friends like we had before, and we could not attend our home church Wildwood regularly, and we saw are family less often. All this gave us a greater urgency to trust in the Lord and rely on Him. After a year in Murrieta we realized we could survive outside of Yucaipa and away from all the wonderful people there, and that God had a greater purpose for our lives then we had planned. During this time we began to feel called to move out of state, but didn't know where.
We first began praying about E-town when we heard that the DeWitts were starting Bible study there. We had been praying and talking for awhile about moving out to help, but it wasn't until we heard about Pastor Josh's plans for a church plant did we really get serious about it. After taking a trip to E-town we realized this was the place we needed to be. If I got a job it would be the confirmation we needed. Only a few hours before leaving did I feel God's leading to accept a job at Red Lobster. So we got on the plane full of excitement with only two weeks to move across country. Doors opened for us that could only be from the Lord, and everything came together showing us this was His will for our family. We moved out in faith, and Jen and I have been stretched and challenged unlike ever before, but it has only brought us to a place of complete dependence upon Christ, and we wouldn't want it any other way.
Last week our family experienced our first county fair. We had a great time and did as much as we could. All week long there were events and contests like the horse show, demolition derby, beauty contest, 4-H, craft show, line dancing, and cow pie bingo. We went on Monday and saw the demolition derby, watched a wrestling match, rode rides, had fresh lemonade, ate cotton candy and funnel cake.