no room in the inn
i continue to be amazed at what God is doing in lake ann and at advent. our congregation continues to grow, and we continue to see new faces and continue to face the problem of no room. we are heading to two services come next fall, but in the mean time learning to deal with the space issue. i swear that God is able to make our sanctuary (building occupancy of 79) bigger every week. last week, we had three baptisms- two young babies who were cousins and one of their fathers. we packed in 165 like sardines as you can see in the picture.
i am so thankful for what God is doing here, but at the same time am a bit anxious as we try to move forward. i fear, at times, that we are not going to be able to keep up with what we are doing...perhaps lose the mom
entum of where we are at, but more than anything i fear that new visitors will be put off by the lack of space. i pray that soon and very soon we will be able to find some land, and keep the fire marshall off our back! yet, i trust that god will continue to lead and guide us as we strive to follow his lead.one of those baptized needs some prayer so i am requesting the prayers of you who may read this. this little boy, to the left, is named cameron. he is 10 months old and has recently been diagnosed with a disease called LCH and is currently undergoing Chemo treatments once a week. the prognosis is looking better every day, and the treatment seems to be working. they go back in at the end of the month to have tests done to see if the chemo was successful. to follow his story and share encouragement you can go to his carepage. if the link does not work go to carepages.com and search for camspace thanks in advance for your prayers.
and finally just wanted to put this picture on there of payton...cause i think she is cute!
peace
jg
To go in reverse of your blog - It's hard to believe Payton is upright and, of course, incredibly cute when it seems not so long ago she was still being pushed in a stroller or carried. What a doll!
Thanks for the note about cameron. I will definitely keep him in my prayers and once I can remember my password for carepages I'll follow his story.
And now - first a quick thought: being in small spaces that are filled with people may put off people because it seems so crowded, but what if you had a huge church that was only 1/4 full? that might put others off because of the 'lack of ministry' that may be portrayed with all the excess space.
That said, I completely understand your worry. BUT keep the faith, dear JG - you and your congregation are doing incredibly work. Your ministry has expanded quickly - much quicker than you initially thought - which proves something: these people wanted and needed Advent. there was something missing there that now they have, and because of you and Anna and Advent and the awesome synod supporting and calling you to do this mission start, this will continue to flourish and grow.
Keep the faith hon! It's going to be great!
Miss you tons. Love to anna and gang.
Posted by
~moe~ |
11:39 PM
hey j, hope all is looking up. it is beyond our collective expectations that advent has been on the move as it has been, but i think that we can chalk that up to the holy spirit. i also think that it is a confirmation that you were indeed the right person for that call and there is definitely amazing things ahead.
as your family has grown and there were adjustments that needed to be made, and as the kids get older more changes to be made, so it is with advent and its pastor. as the congregation settles into a rountine there is the adjustment of more rigidity - but everyones sake i hope not too rigid. there is also the excitement and fear a building project brings and the challenge of that age old bad word: change.
i will continually keep you, a, the kids, and advent in my prayers.
Posted by
Leland |
9:57 AM