A little catch up....

First of all...this whole post is to inform those who care (if that's any..hehe) , and for our remembrance! And...it might be a little long!!:)

To say the past couple of months have brought on a huge amount of change would be the understatement of the year! The phrase, "You never know what a day may bring" has been our life phrase for the past 2 months. God has orchestrated it all. For HIS glory. We are thankful to have seen HIS hand in it all. Through it all. Shepherding us into HIS perfect will.

So..a little background info. Matt has always loved his job. Really considered it a place where he would start...and finish. Over the past 2 years, we have purged our budget, got rid of ALL debt, and made it to where we could live on pretty much nothing. Matt was set to retire early. We had everything in line for our future. We have saved like CRAZY! Sometimes a little too crazy..hehe! All this, for our sweet little plan to build our dream home and live a comfortable life. Live the small town life. In our home. With our children. Entertaining and ministering to needs. Growing a small group. Pouring our lives into others for the kingdom. Going on mission for the Nations. All of which are great things. All of which was NOT God's plan. AT. ALL.

Long story short. God has called our family into full time ministry. It's something we can look back on and see God's preparation for this moment. He has taught us and prepared us all along the way and we can see that the things we were doing for "our" plan were not at all for "our" plan but for His. We thought we were saving money for a huge down payment on our dream house. We thought I had learned how to spend very little money a month on food and other things so we could save money for our house. We thought getting rid of our debt and living a free life financially was for us to benefit from. We have learned that ALL those things...were done in preparation for God to "Call us out" and for us to "Follow Him." God has prepared us spiritually. Growing in the Lord is a life long journey, but he has equipped Matt in specific areas of ministry and that has taken place over the past 2 years. God's hand has been working and leading us. We have seen God work quickly. Much faster than we had imagined. But, the timing of the call is just as important as the call itself.

Matt will start seminary in January. He will finish up his career with his current employer the first of January. We were not sure how and when Matt would exit the industry of which he is in. But God, once again, worked it all out. He has turned several bad situations in to times of testimony and times of great fellowship. He has gone before us EACH and EVERY step of the way. He has confirmed over and over again his call for us.

God uses 3 things to speak to us and show us his will. 1. His word. 2. Circumstances.

3. Others. He has used every single one of those things time and time again to confirm our call.

As for now, we are waiting. Waiting patiently on the Lord. This is not my best attribute. I am not always good with being patient. :) We are waiting to see what God has in store for our family while Matt is in school, and for the future. That part of the picture is still unclear. Very Foggy. And because it's foggy we are to be still and wait. When it is time for us to know, we will. "When God gives you instructions, trust that He has given you what you need for now. He will give more when the time is right." Priscilla Shirer

In my quiet time with the Lord God has spoken to me and has given me what I needed it just when I needed it. God has been faithful and here are some examples of His greatness!

As I am praying for and seeking direction for our future God answered with this...

"I have many more things to say to you, but you cannot bear them now." John 16:12

"He who enters by the door is a Shepard of the sheep. To him the doorkeeper opens. and the sheep hear his voice, and he calls his own sheep by name and leads them out. When he puts forth all his own, he goes ahead of them, and they sheep follow him because they know his voice. " John 10:2-4

God is leading us out. It's is exciting. It is scary (at times). But it is good. He is the Shepard and He is leading. We aren't. We can't. If we aren't listening, how will we know what his voice sounds like? Life is full of chaos. It is loud. It is busy. We have been forced to slow down. To empty out the noise, and to sit still and listen for Him.

I encourage you to do the same. God may not be calling you out of your job into full time ministry (and he may be), but God is calling you to something. As a Child of God, we are not here on this earth to sit idle. We are here to work till He calls us home. If you are so busy, and life is too loud, you will miss the biggest blessings of your life because you simply will not hear him.

Please keep our family in your prayers. This is an exciting time for us. It is a time where we are having to live by faith. Not just talk about it!