So... how was your trip?

Whenever we head south for a partnership trip the most common question we receive is, "So, how's it going in Tacoma?" The question is asked with a genuine heart but I've never really known how to answer it. Finally, on this trip, I decided to answer honestly. I would say, "It depends on the day you ask me."

Well, now that our trip is coming to a close we've already started being asked, "So, how was your trip?" I think the best answer to this is that time will tell. We have made no secret about the fact that our prayer for this trip was pointed and specific. We desperately need people, couples and families to be precise, to move their lives to Tacoma and help us raise up new believers, pour our lives into them and teach them to make disciples.

Although only time will tell, I can honestly say the trip seems to have been great so far. First and foremost we got to experience the uniqueness of the body of Christ. We got to worship and share The Pathway's story with mega churches, a house church, a church in rural Oklahoma, a country church in south Texas... and more. It was amazing to see such a diversity of people all serving the same God through the grace of our Savior Jesus Christ.

Second-- we were encouraged and loved on in a way that quite frankly we needed. Our last meeting was with First Baptist Church in Charlotte, TX. We got to share stories of "life change" with about 15-20 people and at the end they gathered around Kelli and myself, laid their hands on us and prayed. Kelli was moved to tears and she said it best (as she always does) when she said, "We pray over people so often in Tacoma but no one ever prays over us... thank you."

Finally, we have already seen God begin to move in response to our prayers. The night before we left Tacoma the VanGo girls (mentioned a few blogs ago), came and told me they saw our need for more mature believers and they decided to stay and work with us for the next 6 months!!! While in Oklahoma we heard from an amazing godly woman who has served with us before that God has called her to move to Tacoma!!! We had another awesome woman of God who came and served on a mission team that she wants to serve with us all of next summer. I already have another email in my inbox from a college student wanting to intern with us and I just got the flight itinerary from a godly young man who will be graduating college in May and feels like God may be calling him to Tacoma. He will be flying to Tacoma in December to spend a little over a week with us trying to discern God's will! The point is that God is working, God is moving, but God is not finished yet!

I tell you what, by God's grace we have been able to pour ourselves out over the past year for the glory of God and the sake of the gospel and in a matter of 10 days God used the body of Christ to fill us back up.

So, how was our trip?

It was... worship. Thank you to all who played a part and all glory to God through Jesus!