We have been here a whole month, and it has not been that
bad. The weather has been absolutely
perfect. It gets chilly at night, and
then a nice 75 degrees in the day. We
have yet to turn on the air conditioning or the heat. The leaves have started changing colors, and it
is beautiful. We spend every waking
moment outdoors because we know that in a very short time we will be confined
inside for the winter. This has been a
wonderful season for us. God has been so
good. We do not have any additional members for our church yet. From the inside it appears to be moving
pretty slow. The Lord has allowed us
glimpses of progress in order to keep our heads up. We knew going into this that it would be a
very slow process, and we are being patient.
Our main goal everyday is to develop the friendships God has blessed us
with.
Yesterday the three of us sat down and made a list of all
the people we have made friendships with.
In one month there is close to 50 names, and the list is still growing. We pray over these names every single
day. Sometimes I struggle with guilt
because my list of names is considerably shorter than Richard and Dusty’s lists. They spend every day meeting
people. I generally stay back
and hold the rope for them. If you know me, this is not something I am good at. I have always been and desired to be on the
front lines. I am a Do-er not a supporter of do-ers! I have struggled with my role in the
church plant. I have prayed for
wisdom and clarity. God has been surprisingly quiet, or so I thought.
I have been trying to balance my role as a wife and a
member of the church plant. I want to be
a major part of the plant. My heart longs to do more, and be more involved. Sometimes I go with Richard and Dusty when they meet people. Every time I find
myself watching the clock and cutting our time short. There are things
at home that I have to take care of.
These things are not insignificant. We have people coming over for dinner in an
hour, I told a neighbor to stop by at a certain time to come pick up lunch, or
there is something at home that I needs to be done before dinner. I always find myself needing to be at home. Disgruntled and discouraged, most days I let them go without
me. There just has to be more for me than
this?
God can be speaking so loudly, but I just do not
have ears to hear or eyes to see. It was not until Richard and I met with a
local woman, who had a similar struggle to mine, did I hear God's voice. We were not in the same situation, but our hearts were the
same. We both longed to be used
radically by God, but could not see the work he had laid out in front of us. In our homes. With our neighbors. In our
communities. I began to see that my biblical place was next to Richard as his
wife. My ministry is to him
first and foremost. I am not called to
be the associate pastor. The call on Richard’s life is completely different
than the immediate call on my life. Yes, we are co-laborers. Yes, we do
ministry together. I know it is not
popular or well accepted, but my role is to manage the home. Each wife has a different set of circumstances. Their "managing the home" may look completely
different than my "managing the home." Managing the home does not give me an
excuse to not share the gospel. It is
not a free pass to live a sinful or disobedient life. What does my role in my home, with my neighbors,
and in my community end up looking like? I am pretty sure it will take forever
to answer that, and once I get it figured out it will change.
To gain a better understanding of my role, I have been reflecting on my day-to-day/week-to-week activities. I am a
very organized person. One thing that
has helped me save time and money is to make a monthly menu. I plan out all of our meals. I try not to get
bent out of shape when we do not eat a planned meal. Flexibility, right? I usually make a trip to
the grocery store once a month. I buy
everything we need with the exception of fruits and vegetables. Richard knows better than to go into the
kitchen for a snack. He will inevitably
eat a meal that has been planned for later in the month, and he will be in
trouble. He is banned from the kitchen.
(Mainly because I am a control freak and the kitchen is my area. I’m
working on it!)
About two weeks ago, Richard had an old magazine and was
thumbing through it. There was an ad featuring a woman in her kitchen with
all her appliances. I do not remember what it was advertising. He said that
the ad was made during a time where modern appliances were being introduced. He made a particular point about how the refrigerator
was normally associated with extremely wealthy homes. During the time of the ad the refrigerator
was becoming more and more popular. They began to make their way in every
kitchen in America. Before this time, people had to go to the grocery store/market
every day to buy fresh food. They relied on the market for everyday needs
because they could not buy foods in bulk. Particularly foods that needed to be
refrigerated. Meals were planned a day at a time. As a result, they knew the butcher, the
baker, the person who sold them their fruits/vegetables, the milk man,
etc. They literally saw them every
single day. They were a community that lived
life with each other. They relied on
each other.
I began to think about that, and saw some truth to it. What better way to know my community than to
be a part of it every day. I decided
that instead of going to the grocery store once a month I would go once a day. Going
to the store everyday will increase the spending in our grocery and gas budget.
I will just have to trust God to protect us financially. I have gone to the grocery store every day
for two weeks. Honestly, it is a hassle.
I see something that I will need for tomorrow, but I put it back on the shelf. I need a reason to come tomorrow. There are so many other things I could be doing with the time I spend at the grocery store every day. Yet I still come every day and generally
at the same time. Yesterday time seemed
to get away from me. Before I knew it,
it was 6:00pm and I still had not gone to the store. I was tired, and really just wanted to pick
something up at the nearest restaurant.
I went to the store anyway knowing that dinner was going to be
late. I walked in, and began my normal
routine through the aisles. I was deeply
engrossed in the selection of enchilada sauces when somebody tapped me on the
shoulder. It was one of the employees
that recognized me. “I just about gave
up on you today! Thought we were not
going to see you at all.” We talked for
a few minutes and I continued on my way.
I made my way to the meat department and found another familiar face. We
pretty much had the same conversation. I realized in that moment that I knew these people
and more importantly they knew me. I had
made it a point to see the same person every day. The same butcher, baker, and cashier
every single day. Sometimes I wait in
line a little longer so I can have the same person. I checked out with my cashier, Michelle and
the bagger handed me my bags and said, “See you tomorrow Amber” They know my
name. Wait a minute. THEY KNOW MY NAME!
The drive home I began thinking about the different people I
have met. Another place I go every
Saturday is the Sioux City Farmer’s Market.
There are so many vendors that it can get be hard to get to know any of
them. So I have selected four vendors
that I buy from. I will go to each
vendor and talk with them, but my focus has been on four tables. Jim is who I
buy peppers and Kale from. Kenny is tomatoes. Norman is apples. Lucas is my
bread guy. I have gotten so familiar with them that when they are running low
on food they will set my share to the side and wait for me. I have been praying
over this area, and how to better use my time there. It is a huge event in the community. They have music, food, contests, and games. This week we will be getting there early and
eating breakfast there. It does not take long for somebody to pick up on our
accents and start talking to us. We plan to make an entire morning out of it.
We shall see what happens.
I have begun to see everything I do in a different
light. My everyday/weekly activities
have started to have significance. Every Sunday I get up a little early and we
have a fairly decent breakfast. We eat a
very light breakfast during the week so Sunday morning is always a treat for
us. We look forward to it every week. Then we sit in our living room and have
church. Complete with the Lord’s
Supper. I thought it would be strange at
first but I absolutely love it. The
combination of great fellowship, Worship, learning about God, discussing the
sermon, prayer, and the Lord’s Supper has impacted all three of us. I can’t help but think that this is the way
church was meant to be. We are not
rushed, time restricted, stressed, and we can show up in our pjs if we wanted
to. Our cat is right there with us curled up in my lap. That’s my kind of
church! J I am not saying this boastfully by any means, but I feel that the breakfast and the time I put into our home has made a huge
difference. By the end of every Sunday Service we are revived, refreshed, and thankful. I am not naïve in thinking that it will
always be this way. Our biggest prayer
is that our church would not stay at three members and we would outgrow our
living room. I have no doubt that in the
future we will look back at this season with longing. This time is precious. We have rejoiced in it.
God is changing my disgruntled heart. He is teaching me the value in a wife that
manages the home. There are still moments when I feel like I should be doing
more but God will give me a soft reminder that I am exactly where I need to be.
I am grateful.
“I lift my eyes to the hills, from where does my help come? My help comes from the LORD, who made heaven and earth.” Psalm 121:1-2
In Christ,
Amber
What a wonderful post!! I love that you are finding joy in the everyday normal. Obviously, people have noticed you and look forward to having you in their line checking out, buying meat, buying peppers, tomatoes and bread. You have taken the yesterday that everyone seems to long for and brought it into the the present. God is blessing you and blessing others...and this post has blessed me. Even though you are not just up the interstate anymore, I know where you are and so enjoy knowing about your days ...all answered prayers for me:)
ReplyDeleteWe are on our 7th year of church planting. I remember when we first moved to Johnson city three years ago....the first time someone remembered my name it was so AWESOME! God is so good. Keep being faithful. Keep reaching out there! Keep being a great wife to Richard. I like reading your posts and will be praying for you all!
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