Effingham Newsletter: May

So We Went

This month marks my first year at Effingham Presbyterian. It was a little over a year ago that Laura and I met a few of the church's leaders for a casual lunch at Cracker Barrel. Our family had spent six years at a church plant in Lake Wylie, SC. Sundays were spent tuning guitars, cleaning up the school gym where we met, and making sure our blue jeans were clean enough for church. Quite honestly, Effingham was a whole world away.

Laura and I talked about the possibilities of an unexpected move (as we also considered earnest money on property in Lake Wylie). We loved our church and our town, but somehow, we both knew that Effingham would be our next destination. I remember reading my devotion in Genesis 12 one day, where God basically tells Abram, (later called Abraham), "Leave your home, your friends, and your family... and I will bless you." The bible summarizes Abraham's response in three words, "So Abram went" (Genesis 12:4). Those three words summarize the best response for anyone when God nudges us. Just go! It's His plan! It's not important whether or not we understand it, can explain it, or can make sense of it. When God is ready to move, He will move!

As I mentioned, we were considering building a new home back in Lake Wylie. We had put our house on the market with that intention and it sat for months with no progress. Our realtor came and took his FOR SALE sign home, and we went to bed that night with mixed emotions. The very next morning someone made an offer on the house. We packed up an endless line of boxes and waited for closing day. In the meantime, another family posted giant SOLD sign on the beautiful wooded lot we had been dreaming about. God was on the move, but we still didn't know where we'd be in ninety days. Closing day arrived, and we had one of the first appointments of the morning. As I picked up my keys and grabbed my wallet to get an early start, the phone rang. Before I even picked it up, I knew who it was.

I had a professor who would say something along the lines of "If you need an answer by tomorrow, God will call at midnight." As I talked with the Pulpit Committee chair that morning on my way out the door, I couldn't help but smile. I'm a planner, but God is a planner, too. I'm getting used to the idea that His plans are usually better. Okay, always better. When our family was in a significant transition, we knew that the Lord would lead us at the right time. Indeed everything went as scheduled... though it was His schedule. As Abram long ago, so we went.