First Followers are Very Important

Leading is not easy. 


Seeing an unmet need and finding a creative solution, 
thinking outside the box,
feeling alone and at times thinking
"Am I crazy?",
stepping out in faith...
these are all things that leaders do.

But you can not really be a leader fully until you have your first followers.....
First followers are very important.

I remember first followers in Kampala, Uganda. 

Group from KCoC at grand opening of MCoC

I remember first followers in Kigali, Rwanda. 

4th Anniversary of CCR

I am so thankful for these first followers. The faith and courage it took for them to risk it all for God's kingdom is so awe-inspiring. We could not have accomplished anything with out those first followers and they made it easier for others to follow and in turn they lead. 

May God bless all those who are first followers.

Being a missionary in Chicago we need first followers in many areas:

Supporters:  We have lost all of our Church partners as we have transition to our new mission field of Chicago. This has been hard and disappointing. We have had a few individual supports stay with us . For those that have remained we are so grateful. 

We have had two new churches join as first followers. So thankful that these churches stepped out in faith to join God is this crazy idea of reaching the lost through serving the East African Diaspora and empowering them to plant a new church in Chicago. 

We have also had a few individuals that have join as first followers and are partnering with us. We are thankful to you for your sacrificial gifts.

We have others who have given one-time gifts that have kept us going in this early stage where there are more ideas and dreams than tangible fruit. For these folks, we say God bless your willing spirit and generosity.

Is God calling you as a Church to be one of the first followers? 

Is God calling you as an individual to be one of the first followers in partnering monthly?

Is God calling you as an individual to be one of the first followers in giving a one-time gift?    

Co-workers: This task that God is asking us to lead in is to big to do on our own. We need others with various skills to join us here in Chicago. 
      To be present in this neighborhood. 
      To build relationships.
      To put their hands to the plow and help to plant Nations Chapel Chicago.
Those gifted in worship,administration, cross cultural skills, youth ministry, campus ministry and initiating new things.

Are you one of the first to follow and join us in Chicago?

Beginning core:  We have gone out and met many of the East African Diasporas these first 2 years. We have had several large gatherings of fellowship and other types of events. We have already begun gathering a few followers in our home. 

GLS leaders meeting in our home

Dave playing tug -of -war at a Uganda community gathering in Chicago

Please join us in praying that God gives courage to these first followers here in Chicago.

Please pray and ask how you can be one of the first followers --as a supporter, as a co-worker or as one of the beginning core? 

First followers are very important.

Send your financial contributions to IGNITE

Dear Friends and Partners, 

Thanks so much for your support and prayers for our family and ministry here in Chicago. We just wanted to remind you to send your financial contributions to IGNITE instead of ROC. Many of you have already made this change but for those that have not if you can do it soon this will be most helpful. We could not continue our missionary work of church planting here in Chicago with out you generous gifts. If you have any questions or have not been receiving our prayer e-mails please let us know. You can call us at 630-649-4350.

We are also still short of our monthly support goals. If you know of a church or small group or individuals that may be interested in supporting us here in Chicago please let us know and we can send a proposal to you to give to them. Thanks for advocating for us and God’s work here in Chicago with East African Diaspora reaching Chicagoans other multicultural folks for Christ.

Small group meeting in our home

Again here is the information to send your checks :

Please write in memo: Jenkins- Multi-cultural Church

Ignite Church Planting
P.O. Box 189
Schererville, IN 46375  

 

Or you can change your direct deposit to a requiring PayPal:

 Online contributions can be made at http://www.ignitechurchplanting.com/donate.html
By clicking the "Donate" button you will be taken to a secure site on PayPal where you can give your donation.  Please use the 'Purpose' field at the top of the form to designate your gift: Jenkins - Multi-cultural Church 

Thanks and blessings, 

Jana and Dave

Being Present

In the beginning of any new ministry sometimes just being present is what is needed. I have been thinking about this frequently in these early days of our work here in the city of Chicago.

Chicago Skyline 

Sometimes the tasks of getting the family settled....finding schools, sports and other extra activities...praying for good friends for them ....just learning where to shop for food, clothes etc...can be so consuming.

This past year I have been nannying for a friend. I have spent a lot of time sitting in comfy chair by the window cuddling and loving on this little infant.  I have often found myself staring out the window watching people pass by on the street.

My comfy prayer chair

This is also the same chair I sit in to have my quiet times in the morning. As the days and months have passed there are familiar faces that I see.  Two women, a middle age one and an elderly women walk together every morning. I imagine it is a mother and daughter. They speak to each other in an eastern European language. Even though I can not understand what they are saying it seems in a tone of friendly gossip or news sharing. As they past I prayer for them....God bless these women, bring good to them, draw them closer to you.

We live next door to some kind of half way house for women who have been in prison who are either pregnant or have given birth. Occasionally, they are out side and I can hear them yelling at their children. This is when I pray the most for these little ones and their mothers. Maybe this was the only examples of parenting they have experienced. How can I show God's heart to these women and children?

We also have immigrate children that love to run and play through the neighborhood. Mostly their sounds are joyful but there are rare moments when I can hear them arguing. Are they happy to be somewhere where they feel safe to run and play? Is America all they had hoped for? Is is hard for them to see their parents stressed trying to make it in this new land?

God, how can we help these families? How can we show them your love?

There are also a lot of Jewish families in our neighborhood. We have a Orthodox Boy's School just behind our apartment. There is a lot of laughter and joy that comes from the play ground. I find myself thinking about Jesus as a boy --did he learn some of the same things these boys are learning? I pray for these boys to find a relationship with the true Messiah. How can God use us in this Jewish community? Where are the open doors in such a tight knit community?

When I take my little boy that I watch for walks I have seen so many faces of people who are angry, sad, confuse and lonely.  How can God use me to bring his love to my neighbors? I do not feel called to stand on my street corner and preach but I do feel called to be present.  To be light in this darkness. To be ready like a soldier waiting to be called up when the commander needs me. God help me live intentionally. Knowing whose I am and help me be present in this community where you have placed me.

My neighborhood 

.

This Church Planting Thing

It never get's easy starting a new church plant.  You would think after 21 years of it --it would be a breeze. Although there are familiar patterns, each plant seems to come with it's own unique challenges.

It is amusing how one can forget all the waiting and hard work that comes in the early years of a plant. I guess it is similar to a mother in childbirth...it is funny how you can forget all the pains of labor, and the sleepless nights when your child is older and you embark on another pregnancy.

I think it is like that with a church plant...once it is up and running and taking off-- you just enjoy being a part of this new Church family and it feels like it was always around. Yes, there are daily maintenance and the ups and downs of church growth but the intense beginning stage is a distant memory ---that is until you start again!

I remember last year when the job that we came back to the U.S. began to fizzle out and Dave was approached by several Church Planting organization and was reading and learning about how unchurched Chicago is......I began to see the writing on the wall...God is going to ask us to church plant again....I was resistant to it at first. We have done this several times..shouldn't we be teaching others how to do it? I remember going to one of the church planting assessments ( This has become a pretty cool gig where couples are tested, analyzed, and picked and prodded on to see if they have what it takes to be church planters) and was in a group with other hopeful church planting wives ---everyone seemed so eager and excited to began this journey. I felt I was like the party pooper...sharing some of the challenges that one can face in the beginning.

Slowly, I began to warm up to this idea. One of your initial stages in church planting is catching a vision. I like this stage...I love seeing all the possibilities and potential that this new church plant can be. This is an exciting stage! Listening to the community and seeing how a church can serve and grow is awesome. Sharing this vision with others and having it refined and confirmed is thrilling!

Then comes the waiting! Waiting is really hard! Waiting for next steps...waiting for others to buy in...waiting for needed funds to proceed...waiting for co-workers to join...waiting for relationships to grow and deepen....waiting...lots of hurry up to wait...

I read a recent quote from Pastor T.D. Jakes "Timing is so important! If you are going to be successful in dance, you must be able to respond to rhythm and timing. It’s the same in the Spirit. People who don’t understand God’s timing can become spiritually spastic, trying to make the right things happen at the wrong time. They don’t get His rhythm – and everyone can tell they are out of step. They birth things prematurely, threatening the very lives of their God-given dreams. " I want to dance with God and in His timing.

There is one thing that I have learned from our church planting past is resisting the pressure of busyness....I love the East African word for white person--Muzungu--which literally means one who runs around in circles ---us westerners can get caught up into being busy...making our to-do list....I am not against productivity but often we are just doing busy work and we do not take the time to be still so we can get in to God's rhythm. We have been in Chicago about 9 months now. I feel that we have got a lot done so far but I also feel that we have been selective in our activities so that we are not just filling our time with busyness. This has allowed us time to listen and trust that God has this! I love this quote from Elisabeth Elliot, "Restlessness and impatience change nothing except our peace and joy. Peace does not dwell in outward things, but in the heart prepared to wait trustfully and quietly on Him who has all things safely in His hands.”

My experience has taught me that working with God in his timing things fall into place but when I am impatient and try to do things on my own, I just get frustrated and worn out....and in the end accomplish nothing.

There is an art to waiting. It really goes against our nature and our culture. I find that we are a very instant society. We want immediate results or it is just not worth doing.  Working with people takes patience and you have to  learn to delay gratification . The relationships you are building are not just clogs in a wheel or potential pew sitters in the church that you are planting but they are real friendship. Seekers are the first to since a lack of authenticity. Jesus was friends with his disciples because he is about relationship and not because he needed them to do something for him. Those of us who are involved in church planting must remember this because there can be some pressure to see everyone as contacts....people are wanting authentic relationships and we maybe the first interaction people have with Jesus ....people have been used so much they do not need yet another individual or system to use them again.

There can also be a lot of disappointment during the early years of church planting. Often times it is not the first folks that are drawn in that commit to the new church plant but it can be the 2nd or 3rd or 4th person that buys in. In other words--the friend of the friend of the friend's relative that may join! It can be disappointing as you invest in several relationships that may float away.  The one thing that helps with this is knowing that you never know what seeds take root and when others may come into their lives in the future and draw them deeper in to a relationship with Jesus. Also God is ultimately the one calling them into relationship with Him--you are just his vessel.

Some of the disappointment can come from unrealized dreams of this new church plant. You have to  know your end goal but have a lot of flexibility which can often be several different creative ways to get there. Don't be married to any particular road or you will be not only be disappointed but have a hard time switching gears when God is trying to move you. I can remember when we first went to Rwanda we had thought the education road for our kids was going to an existing private school. After a few days our kids realized it was not a good fit for them...it took us parents a little longer...At this time there were several other missionaries, NGO's, and Diaspora moving to Rwanda who were also struggling with their kids' education. Several of us started meeting at our home and prayed, talked and dreamed of other options. Soon we started KICS ( Kigali International Community School- https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jdGmtiLgPJc) I am so thankful that we and others were not married to our educational plans for our kids and were flexible to be used by God to start this school that has been a blessing to so many.

Some of the unique challenges that I see here in Chicago is even though we are initially working with the same people group that we have served all these years--they are dynamic--they are changing as they weave this new culture mixed with their childhood culture and we seem to be fighting with more of the secular nature of the U.S. I miss the spiritual heart and hunger that I grew to love so much in East Africa. Where one could feel free to talk openly about spiritual things. The other challenge I see is the polarization of the right and the left and all the labels people are so quick to throw on each other.  Both of these challenges need courage to push through the walls that people have built so that authentic community can be established.

Even though this church planting thing can be hard with all the waiting, disappointments, and unique challenges, it is such a rewarding journey and I am reminded by Paul in Galatians 6:9 "And let us not grow weary of doing good, for in due season we will reap, if we do not give up."

Re-entry Has Not Been Easy

“If I find in myself desires which nothing in this world can satisfy, the only logical explanation is that I was made for another world.” 
― C.S. Lewis, Mere Christianity


It has been almost 2 years since we moved back to the U.S.
    
         Re-entry has not been easy.

There has been a lot about being here that I have enjoyed. Being closer to my college age kids and having a front row seat in their lives. Having special time with my extended family....and enjoying the feeling of accessibility to them....if we have a long weekend we can pick up and drive a while or fly briefly and be with family. It feels less detached as I felt when we lived abroad.

The ease of life here has been nice. Drinking from the tap, plugging things in without a thought to voltage or whether power is on or off, hot running water for bath, a sundry of cleaning supplies, convenient cooking,  and fast internet to name a few.

Being able to find so many gently used things for free or inexpensively easily and in abundance has been awesome!

  TARGET, malls, little specialty shops, and an abundant of thrift shops---I have really enjoyed. Sometimes I like just going to Target just to look without a long list of supplies that I have to get for the next 2+ years...it is nice knowing it will be there tomorrow!

Movies, in theaters and at home, plays, concerts, magazines , T.V and catching up on old T.V. series on Netflix and Hulu on the internet!

I have also enjoyed all the different churches we have visited--old and new, large and small, anglo, ethnic and multi-cultural--my favorite! I felt like I have feasted with all the lectures, seminars, retreats and classes I have attended.

There has also been a special bond that our family has developed as we are experiencing this adjustment together. We understand each other,share common memories, and exposure to new things. Our family has grown even closer through this season. For that I am thankful!

Now for the hard stuff..... I have read a lot on re-entry, and have sat at the feet of others that have gone before me through this... but I guess it is like going to the dentist...no amount of reading and preparing that you do takes away from the pain of going through the procedure. Being prepared did help some in terms of giving myself and  my family the language and postmarks of what we are experiencing.

What makes this hard? I have shared in some earlier posts about the loneliness http://jana-joyinthejourney.blogspot.com/2014/01/loneliness.html
 and making home a choice http://jana-joyinthejourney.blogspot.com/2013/10/home-is-choice.html?

It is hard to fully express what makes this hard...a few things are;

I have changed in the last 20 years as I have lived abroad.

The U.S. has changed in the last 20 years.

Struggling to be understood.

Struggling to understand or process this new place.

Resisting putting all my memories and real experiences in a box or picture album on a shelf.

Looking for where my unique experience and skills can be used.

An overwhelming 'home' sickness that is at times paralyzing.

Loneliness!

Sometimes I feel like I have so much inside of things I have seen
 and experienced of God's handiwork and there seems no outlet to share and I feel like I may erupt..... learning how to ponder these things in my heart.....

Another thing hard about this season is that it is not just me.
It is like adjusting to jet lag.
When you are traveling alone jet lag is hard but you can adjust in a few days but when you are traveling with your family who is adjusting to jet leg in different ways
                   jet lag drags on longer for Mom!

It would be nice if like flying you could adjust your breathing mask before helping others but this is not possible when you are a parent or spouse.
You can not tell your kids "just wait till mom gets all adjusted and then I will be there for you..."

But as I have helped my children thrive it has helped me as well and we have processed many things together...

It has not always been pretty...sometimes it is super hard to see your child you love so much hurting...and everything they are expressing is so similar to how you feel and you so wish they were not having to go through this and you know that is not their choice but a calling you have on your life. It is in times like this that I have to trust that God has this and just as he has walked with us in our past He is walking with us now!

Early on in our return an older missionary shared with us not to lose our missionary calling. We have held on to this encouragement and God has showed us more.....I wrote more on this in an earlier post http://jana-joyinthejourney.blogspot.com/2013/10/i-have-heard-levitical-call.html.
I think one thing that has helped us and hurt us is that we are somewhere new.

Most of things you read about re-entry talk about going back to a familiar place--some where that has been a place of significance either before you went abroad or some where you visited a lot during your time away....a place where you have family and friends . This can be helpful as you have a base of support but this can also be hard as you may feel that you must fit back into a place where both you and those around you have changed....the puzzle has changed and you, one piece of the puzzle has been re-cut. Sometimes I wish that our family had moved to a familiar place but both of our parents have moved during our time away and even our support bases had also gone through some significant shifts.  There are familiar individuals and shadows of old places but no real familiar place for our family.

We  kind of  had a clue that this would be the case for us and since our oldest daughter was going to school in Wheaton, Illinois; and there was a good soft landing for missionaries( Missionary Furlough Homes) we decided that it might be a good start for us.

After spending the majority of our ministry serving the Diaspora of East Africa we feel a lot of affiliation with them and as we transition from Wheaton into Chicago last fall this was one of the draws.  " I am all of the places that I have left my heart" Marina Sofia ---I so relate to this statement and I am determined to be who God has molded me to be and serve others from this place. Cities have been a part of the common denominator for us in all the places we have lived and Chicago has not disappointed. So instead of re-entry being adjusting back into something known we have seen "Re-entry is the opportunity to relaunch yourself into your next great thing"  Cate Brubaker,PhD

Relaunch.....I like the sound of that word better than trying to forget my experiences in order to fit the norm..... Next great thing.....I have joined God in some awesome stuff in Africa and there a temptation to think.....
was that the climax of my live....
No, I am still serving the same God and He is taking us to the next great thing and I can not wait!

Getting a new dog,morning with our Rwanda friends, loving our children well.

Saturday after much research and dreaming and a little begging we decided that we wanted to get a dog for our family. We have always had dogs. In our years in Uganda and Rwanda we had 11 dogs...some were poisoned by thieves, some died of sickness, some we inherited by people moving away. We never had more than 3 dogs at a time and usually had only 2. We also sold german shepherd puppies as the part of the world we lived in did not have an over abundant of good pet dogs. This also helped to supplement our missionary income.

I must confess I am not a dog lover but the rest of my family is and it brings me joy to see how much joy dogs have brought our family. I have such good memories of our dogs with each of our kids at all different ages. When Sophia, our first child, was a baby we had a great big German shepherd, named Shadow and he would let Sophia lay on him as he gently cuddled with her. Caleb and Ethan loved our dog Hannibal, another large long haired german shepherd and would run around outside for hours! ( A mother's dream when having young children...giving me much needed breaks) I have a very clear picture of my daughter Ruth licking her lolly pop and then 'sharing' it with one of our dogs...."no do not put that back in your mouth!" Timothy wanted a small white dog and prayed about it and the very next week we saw one being advertised in the same notice that we had advertised the launching of our new church plant CCR ( Christ Church Rwanda). We got it for him and he named her after his favorite Power Ranger girl --Kira. Such joy!

I think in my mind a part of settling down and not being on a 'furlough' is getting a dog. We have always had outside dogs. Dave would often say to the kids " Outside dogs and inside kids but this can be changed" So now that we are living in an apartment , we knew if we got a dog --it would be an inside dog.( We are keeping the kids inside too!)

Dave and Ruth visited the Chicago shelter for dogs and found a dog that we would like to bring home. Dave filled out the extensive paper work and they asked for the whole family to come and be around the dog as they would approve wether we would be a good family for her. Saturday was the big day. Everyone was excited. The shelter did not open till noon but we decided to go to the pet store to get some supplies and get all ready for our new dog.  It started out as a great family day.....the sun was shining and it was one of our first warmer days here in Chicago after the coldest winter on record.

We got to the shelter and they had lost Dave's paper work. As Dave filled it all out again the rest of us went to meet the dog and spend time bonding with her. We were all so excited. When we came back to Dave ...I started to realize there was a problem......

I have purposely not used the term we were going to 'adopt' a dog. As an adoptive parent I have never really liked this term used for taking care of pets. I might loose a lot of readers here...I love our pets but they are not my children. I know that they are a part of God's creation and I love this verse,"The righteous care for the needs of their animals, but the kindest acts of the wicked are cruel." Proverbs 12:10

There where 3 concerns about us being a good fit for a shelter dog...
        1. We had left our last 2 dogs with friends in Rwanda and did not bring them to the                    U.S.
        2. We have breed dogs in the past.
        3.  One of the 7 reasons that Dave checked for why we were interested in a dog was                for a mouser.

Dave tried to explain context as to why we have breed dogs. In the region we lived there was not very many dogs. In Rwanda during the Genocide where over a million people were brutally killed in 100 short days. That is "On average about six men, women and children were killed every minute of every hour of every day for three months."
http://www.news.com.au/world/africa/the-genocide-in-rwanda-20-years-on/story-fnh81gzi-1226876682010

One of the horrific scenes that occurred was that dogs were eating the flesh of the victims. The U.N soldiers were not able to shoot those that were perpetrating the Genocide but shot all the dogs to prevent them from scavenged the bodies of dead. ( There is a very good film called 'Shooting Dogs' about these events but when this film was released in the U.S it was retitled 'Beyond the Gates') As a result of these events, when we moved to Rwanda there was still a very small dog population. 

As Dave was trying to explain these events, I found my emotions raising...this month of April is such a hard month. I did not loose family in 1994 but have many friends that are in my community that have lost family and I have forever been effected by these tragic events. I was wrestling with the trivia of this experience of wether or not we would be accepted to provide a home for this dog and thinking about all those who lost their love ones in 1994. I was so distracted by my own thoughts that I could hardly follow the conversation. 

The women was saying something about being racist...What? RACIST? That caught my attention. Dave said, " what I am saying is please do not compare my children to dogs!" 

"Well you brought your children back from Africa why not your dogs?" she said as she rolled her eyes at my kids. I looked at my kids and hoped they did not catch fully what was happening. " Where did racism come in? I am just saying I do not want my children being compared to dogs", Dave reiterated.  

" Well your request is denied." She said. Dave and I both said almost in unison" Thats ok, we see we are not a good fit for your shelter, Thanks!"

We ushered the kids out and told them we did not qualify. We were all so disappointed about loosing the dog but we were also upset!

We all got in the car and began to try and help the kids and us process what had just happened. As the story came out more, we realized we did not share the same values as this shelter. Dogs are pets not children. We love them but they are not the same. My 17 year old son Ethan, expressed wisely do they really believe what they are saying? It does not seem they would keep these dogs in these cages and then euthanize them because they can not find 'qualifying ' families if they see them the same as humans.

We were all trying to figure out the racist statement... We asked the children if they heard what she said and they said yes. " What do you think about it?" "She did not seem to make since." one said, my youngest was so upset he did not want to talk about it. 

We affirmed our children and Dave said when we get home we are going to look on Craig's list and see if we can find a dog. I began to pray again, God I know you have this and you are in control...maybe there is another Dog for us.

When we reached home we were all a bit down but hopeful that Dave would find something. One of the first dogs that caught his attention was a dachshund / beagle mix. He sent a message and it was still available. After looking through the rest of the options we all decided this might be the one. After spending most of the day driving around, Dave and Ruth were the only ones that decided to drive the 1 hour plus to go and see this new dog. The owner had just gotten a 2nd job and felt she was not able to give the dog the attention he needed. 

The rest of us that stayed home waited eagerly for any news....the phone finally rang and Ruth was on the other end sharing that we got the dog! " He is so sweet and his name is Loki." Timothy was so excited! It was so fun to see the joy this brought the family. We waited not so patiently as Dave, Ruth and Loki returned. 

Well, it has been a few days only that Loki has been in our home but he has already brought many gifts....Ruth has a new companion and room mate( bed mate actually--Loki sleeps at the end of her bed all curled up --Ruth is all curled up at the top of her bed) added chores--so far the kids are more than willing to do them--Dave enjoys patting and snuggling with the dog in the evening---yesterday he took Imani ( the baby that I babysit) and Loki for a nice long walk.

For me the gift has been the gentle awareness that this is home for now...not a temporary pit stop but God is asking us to put down some roots...getting a dog is a start....

Loki--- Our new dog!

God's Grace Upon Grace

Last Friday as I was holding the sleeping baby boy that I watch, I was looking out our windows and noticed a large moving truck. We must have new neighbors, I thought. I continued to watch as they unpacked and carried their things in. One item in particular caught my attention ---- a beautiful roll top secretarial desk. My thoughts flashed back to our antique roll top desk that we had in Africa that we had sold as we moved to the U.S.

Our old desk we had in Africa

I had loved that desk and was sad that we were not able to bring it with us. It is funny how grief can pop up its ugly head... I use to think the stages of grief was passed through in a linear fashion but I am discovering all too often you can hop around or sometimes take two steps forward then three steps back. I began to talk to God about my grief and bring my heart to Him.....then I heard a noise and saw they had set the desk off to the side as the movers began moving other items. I was able to get a closer look at the beautiful desk. It had been painted a soft mint green color with an antique finish. For a brief moment I thought, 'oh this would look perfect in my living room'...the seed of envy and coveting was beginning to take root. 

A few years ago a friend, author and women speaker Mimi Wilson had shared a story about how she had envied a beautiful scarf a women had on and as she continued to nurture and feed this sin she felt that it had separated her from her normal intimacy with God. This story and lesson that I had pondered in my heart was used by the Spirit to gently and quickly convict me of my coveting. 

I found myself verbally saying that I was sorry for not being thankful for all the pretty things that God had already given me for my living room and I expressed genuine joy that my neighbors had such a beautiful desk. I immediately felt God's forgiveness. I was so thankful for His grace and thought that was that.......

But the next morning to my amazement my husband came in the house and said ,"Looks like one of our neighbors have thrown out an old roll top desk in the trash, Do you want it?'' I knew the answer to my question before I asked it," Is is green?" --- "Yes' he said ..... Yes, it is mine, a gift from God beyond His grace... " For from his fullness we have all received, grace upon grace" John 1:16

Our new rolled top desk

I am still overwhelmed by His goodness and grace as I look at this desk now sitting in my living room.... thanks also to the hard work of my husband and boys that carried it in. 

This desk will forever be a symbol of God's grace upon grace that He has poured into my life in the past, present and what is to come! May we all rest in His grace and lean into Him as we journey on.