Happy New Year!

I hope that you are as excited about this year as much as I am! My beloved husband, Darron and I married just seven, short months ago. And in the midst of wedding planning we discussed from time to time that change was on the horizon. Not just the change of my name, my living arrangements, and the adaptation of learning how to become "one" with my spouse, but other significant changes as it related to our spiritual growth, place of worship, and our giving and wealth-building streams.

As God would have it, a brochure came to our home in the month of June inviting us to hear the riveting testimony of Bill Wiess's riveting message to the Body of Christ. I have to admit, as the testimony was about a 23-minute visitation to Hell, I wasn't interested; however, my husband was engrossed. He spent hours studying his testimony and looking up scriptural references that confirmed the speaker's encounter. Wanting to be supportive of Darron's interest, I attended the service held in Kingwood completely unaware that we would meet our future pastors at that event.

The testimony was stirring to say the least and although I did not meet the head pastor, I met his wife and found her personality delightful and her easy laugh contagious. They are Afrikkans from South Africa. She joked with us about how she was more African American than were we. Darron's quick and witty reply was, "You are right! I have never been to Africa. I am an American." And we laughed and laughed and laughed.

While perusing through their church flyer I was impressed by their boldness regarding the role of the Holy Spirit in the church body today. It really caught my attention.
Some time afterwards Darron received a call from him. He was so touched that he called me to tell me about their conversaion. On and on, my husband expounded upon how timely the pastor's call was. Before we knew it, we were exchanging phone calls and enjoying his wise counsel and his genuine extension of friendship. He never once tried to sweep us away from our current church and for this we were very grateful.

Soon it became quite apparent that this just might be the place God was leading us. Yet at the same time we were regularly visiting Believers Church in Katy, Texas. Which one, Lord?
You know for years I had been a faithful member of Lakewood Church. I had grown up there and never thought I would ever leave. I was even on staff for five years there. The person I am today is largely because of the greatness of that church and its leadership through the years. Even my husband's life was changed at Lakewood some nine years ago. Had he not met Jesus at Lakewood, he wouldn't even be alive today. And then I would have never met my Beloved. So we have a lot of fond, fond memories from that place.

However, nothing is forever as the late Pastor John Osteen used to say. The hardest decision was resigning from Compass and New Begginnings Classes as teachers and facilitators. We both love to teach! And it was a thrill ministering together in that capacity.

So as of December 22, 2008 we are now members of Christian Family Church, Int'l with Pastor Pieter and Tessa van Dyk. We are full of expectancy regarding where the Lord is about to take us. The best way that I can describe our unbridled joy is that we sense that we are on the launching pad. And as the Bishop T.D. Jakes would say, "Get ready, get ready, get ready!"