12 days!

12 days to go until we move to Fishers, IN...the promised land!  It's only the promised land because God has promised it to us!  And we are ready to be there.  One slight bump in the road...God still hasn't sold our house!  We know he is going to...we just don't know when!  But we KNOW we are supposed to be in Fishers!  Tim is already there...working very hard!  And we KNOW that God doesn't want us to live apart any longer...SO we KNOW that He is going to do something absolutely amazing! 

So, for now...we do the next thing...which is packing!  And we will let God take care of the rest!

Who is this King of glory?
   The Lord strong and mighty,
   the Lord mighty in battle.   Psalm 24:8

I don't know where to start!  So much has happened since I last posted, that I thought it was time to catch everyone up!  First of all, Tim got a job!  He started Sept. 6 with Diamond Chain.  He is staying with our wonderful friends, Dave and Lori in Fishers, so he gets to make a 30 min. commute each morning!  The kids and I just got back from a 10 day visit.  We were able to join the Fishers Team for 2 small groups and 2 Saturday night services.  Second Chance Church is already growing, and we are so excited and humbled! 

Secondly, we have put a deposit down on an apartment in Fishers, so the kids and I will be moving October 29!  Our house hasn't sold yet, but we know that God is going to sell it!!  We have stepped out into the water, and now God is going to do a miracle!  It's really a strange place that we are in right now...I can't speak for Tim, but for me, I know our house is going to sell SOON!  I have no worry or concern about how we will pay a mortgage and rent...God has complete control of this situation!  My job is to organize and pack, and that I can do!  I'm leaving the rest to Him!

It is so awesome to see this adventure through the eyes of our kids!  Roger, especially, is noticing that God is moving in our lives!  They are going to miss their friends, but all 3 are ready for this adventure!

I've probably quoted this verse before, but it has been brought to our attention a lot lately:  Habakkuk 1:5 "Look at the nations and watch--and be utterly amazed.  For I am going to do something in your days that you would not believe, even if you were told."

Many answered prayers!

Tim has a job!  That in itself is a wonderful answer to prayer, but the one that happened yesterday might be even better.  We knew God was going to give Tim a job, but we weren't too sure how his present employers would react to Tim quitting.  He went in yesterday and gave his 2 weeks notice.  Not one, but 2 of his bosses were very receptive to the reason he is leaving, and 1 of those 2 told Tim that God would bless us!  I prayed for that response, but I definitely didn't expect it!  THAT WAS COMPLETELY GOD!  And the best part to me is that God didn't have to do that!  We know that we are called to Second Chance Church, so it wouldn't have mattered how they reacted!  But God gave us another blessing as we take one more step toward Fishers, IN!  Our next hurdle is selling our house, but we know that God is going to sell it!  And we will continue to give him praise for all the wonderful things he is doing in our lives!  Thanks so much for your prayers for us and the rest of the families in Second Chance Church!!

The Absurd

We just got back from Family Camp, and heard awesome messages from evangelist Eddie Phillips!  In one service he talked about the Kingdom of the Absurd, and how God does things that don't always make sense to humans.  Absurd is defined as irrational, preposterous, ridiculous.  Sometimes I think that people feel we are absurd...selling our home, moving to a new place to help start a new church.  Usually the first question we hear from Christian and non-Christian alike is, "Is your husband a pastor?"  Then the next question usually has something to do with the actual location of the church.  It goes against the norm to be a church without a place to worship, but God has led us.  There is no doubt about that!  God has led Matt and Brooke Robinson to Fishers, IN to start Second Chance Church.  And God has led at least 8 families at last count to leave everything and join Matt & Brooke to show Jesus to Hamilton County!  Matthew 4:19 and 20 says:

19 "Come, follow me," Jesus said, "and I will send you out to fish for people."20 At once they left their nets and followed him.

They followed Jesus...left their nets and followed!  We have grown spiritually through this experience, but it really isn't tough to follow Jesus.  Just obey!  I tell our kids all the time that they have 1 thing to do and that's OBEY!!  It's really the same with Jesus!  All we have to do is OBEY!!  Do what He says!  And He's told the Hood's to go to Fishers, IN to be a part of a new church called Second Chance Church!  If you are interested in more information about SCC, click here.  We appreciate your prayers!!

The Land Between

Heard an awesome message at church yesterday...a video, in fact,  called "The Land Between"...and that's right where we are...the land between.  We now have a sign in the yard!  One step closer to Indiana, but we are still here...waiting...I'm not impatient!  I know this is where God wants us for the moment, but we are ready to go!  God has called us to Indiana, there is no doubt about that!  But until we get there, we wait...and continue to strive for complete obedience!  Psalm 119:60 says, "I will hasten and not delay to obey your commands."  That's obedience!  Of course, we would like to hasten our move even more, but God is in control of our move.  We don't know where we will move, when we will move, or where Tim will be working, but we DO know that God has all those answers!!  Continue to pray for us, but know that even though we are in "The Land Between", God is in the driver's seat!!

Wish Lists

I came across a list this morning while I was decluttering our desk.  It's a "wish list" that I made several months ago of things I wanted for our house as we put it on the market.  Things to make it look nicer!  Nothing too expensive, but I couldn't just go buy it all either.  Now, as I look at the list, I see that God took care of my list!!  For instance, I wanted a slip cover for our couch...just happened to mention it to a friend, and she found one EXACTLY like I wanted at a garage sale for $15!!  Or how about the pillows I bought at Hobby Lobby for our bed...$325 worth of pillows(not that I would have ever paid that!) that I got for $32.50!  The list goes on...and on...God wants to give us our "wish lists"!!  Keep praying for us as we continue to take steps closer to our new home in Indiana! 

The Roof!

     We finally have our new roof!  My dad is getting us started on the ridgecaps as I type this!  This whole roof experience has been a long, tedious process, but it's our next step...to selling our house...to moving to Indiana...to following God's call on our life!! 
     Since it rained all weekend, we were roofing during the week, so there weren't many who could help.  That meant that the kids and I were on the roofing crew!  That was the ultimate homeschooling field trip!  I was up on that roof, setting the shingles, and Joely or Roger would nail them down with the nail gun!  I told Joely, "There aren't too many 11 year old girls who can say they helped roof a house!!"  And it's an experience they will NEVER forget, just one of many new experiences as we get ready for our great adventure!!
   God is pushing us, pulling us, encouraging us, stretching us, and leading us as we daily seek His will!  Thanks so much for your continued prayers for our family and the Second Chance Church team!!