Eleven Years and Onward
I retell this story every year. If you have heard it a dozen times sorry, but as I get new followers all the time, I feel it bears repeating.
Eleven years ago this morning, Dan and I got in the car and moved from Ohio to Florida. However, our story did not begin there. In fact, God had led us up to that decision. Dan and I met through very unusual circumstances. We were living three hours away from each other. Despite all the drama that surrounded what happened, we both knew early that God was orchestrating our relationship. A year later we were married, and living in Pittsburgh, PA. Dan was finishing his degree at The Art Institute. We both knew that God was going to move us somewhere other than Pittsburgh. We began praying and seeking the Lord. I will never forget the day I was driving from work and I felt the Holy Spirit say to me that we were going to move to Orlando, and Dan was going to work for this one specific company. When I got home and shared that with Dan he was excited but that one company was not really hiring. Therefore, we kept looking. Eventually we moved back to Ohio with my mom and dad while we were figuring out where to move. One month turned to four. We had looked at jobs and cities all over the US. Jobs that seemed to look like they were going to pan out and then for various reasons it did not. Jobs located: in New Jersey, Cincinnati, Columbus, OH, Boca Raton, Dan had an open door in Los Angeles due to a long story, and we even briefly entertained somewhere in Minnesota. I could not shake this moment with God, when God told us Orlando. That particular company still was not hiring but there was a guy in Orlando that was just opening his own company, and working out of his garage. He wanted to hire Dan. We knew it would not be long term that Dan would work for him. This was about the time we found out that our oldest daughter was on her way.
Maybe it was a moment of divine faith that made us pack up our car that morning 11 years ago, or maybe it felt more like a moment of desperation. We put everything we could fit in our car and we drove or Florida. I puked in the car all the way down. We left Ohio on a Monday, and arrived in a motel on Tuesday.
On Wednesday morning, we woke up and decided to call around to a couple churches we wanted to check out. I had always felt that wherever we were moving to was critical for us to be in the right church. That it was not just about a job, or a location, but about being in the right church connected with the right people. We were planning to go somewhere to church that evening. We had planned to check out several. The first one to call us back was Freedom Life Church (then Freedom Tabernacle) in Kissimmee.
We walked into Freedom that night, and forever our lives changed. Pastor Arthur Lee began prophesying over us, “That we weren’t going to go forth like tumbleweeds, and God brought us down to FL. When all those had said if you go there you’ll never make it God was saying He brought us here.” That is a quote of a very long word; essentially God through Pastor Arthur read our mail that night. Pastor Arthur went on to be a dear mentor and friend to us. Today I believe he is with the angels in heaven cheering us on. (Hebrews 12:1) While I maintain that we will not be in FL forever, it is where God wanted us for right now.
Eventually Dan did work at the company that God told me he would work. It took several months and some different shifting, but it all worked out.
I always tell this story for many reasons, but mainly that it is easy to loose sight of the fact that God directs you in the ways you should go. It can be very easy to get frustrated and feel He is not there. However, all along God knew where He was leading us, and we had to step out and obey. But He was always there to guide us and show us His will.
Isaiah 30:21 (NIV)
Whether you turn to the right or to the left, your ears will hear a voice behind you, saying, “This is the way; walk in it.”
That scripture is one of my favorites. God loves to direct His people into His will! We have to listen and obey. We have to trust Him despite of what we feel. I can list countless times that we wanted to leave Florida, but we had to commit to be here until God directs us otherwise. For this season of our lives, it has been destiny that we are here in Florida, even if it has not always made sense to us.
I am not special. God wants to direct you in the seasons of your life. He has a divine purpose and plan for your life. Trust in Him! He will lead you. Allow yourself to be led. He has awesome plans for your life. Get Excited!
Eleven years ago this morning, Dan and I got in the car and moved from Ohio to Florida. However, our story did not begin there. In fact, God had led us up to that decision. Dan and I met through very unusual circumstances. We were living three hours away from each other. Despite all the drama that surrounded what happened, we both knew early that God was orchestrating our relationship. A year later we were married, and living in Pittsburgh, PA. Dan was finishing his degree at The Art Institute. We both knew that God was going to move us somewhere other than Pittsburgh. We began praying and seeking the Lord. I will never forget the day I was driving from work and I felt the Holy Spirit say to me that we were going to move to Orlando, and Dan was going to work for this one specific company. When I got home and shared that with Dan he was excited but that one company was not really hiring. Therefore, we kept looking. Eventually we moved back to Ohio with my mom and dad while we were figuring out where to move. One month turned to four. We had looked at jobs and cities all over the US. Jobs that seemed to look like they were going to pan out and then for various reasons it did not. Jobs located: in New Jersey, Cincinnati, Columbus, OH, Boca Raton, Dan had an open door in Los Angeles due to a long story, and we even briefly entertained somewhere in Minnesota. I could not shake this moment with God, when God told us Orlando. That particular company still was not hiring but there was a guy in Orlando that was just opening his own company, and working out of his garage. He wanted to hire Dan. We knew it would not be long term that Dan would work for him. This was about the time we found out that our oldest daughter was on her way.
Maybe it was a moment of divine faith that made us pack up our car that morning 11 years ago, or maybe it felt more like a moment of desperation. We put everything we could fit in our car and we drove or Florida. I puked in the car all the way down. We left Ohio on a Monday, and arrived in a motel on Tuesday.
On Wednesday morning, we woke up and decided to call around to a couple churches we wanted to check out. I had always felt that wherever we were moving to was critical for us to be in the right church. That it was not just about a job, or a location, but about being in the right church connected with the right people. We were planning to go somewhere to church that evening. We had planned to check out several. The first one to call us back was Freedom Life Church (then Freedom Tabernacle) in Kissimmee.
We walked into Freedom that night, and forever our lives changed. Pastor Arthur Lee began prophesying over us, “That we weren’t going to go forth like tumbleweeds, and God brought us down to FL. When all those had said if you go there you’ll never make it God was saying He brought us here.” That is a quote of a very long word; essentially God through Pastor Arthur read our mail that night. Pastor Arthur went on to be a dear mentor and friend to us. Today I believe he is with the angels in heaven cheering us on. (Hebrews 12:1) While I maintain that we will not be in FL forever, it is where God wanted us for right now.
Eventually Dan did work at the company that God told me he would work. It took several months and some different shifting, but it all worked out.
I always tell this story for many reasons, but mainly that it is easy to loose sight of the fact that God directs you in the ways you should go. It can be very easy to get frustrated and feel He is not there. However, all along God knew where He was leading us, and we had to step out and obey. But He was always there to guide us and show us His will.
Isaiah 30:21 (NIV)
Whether you turn to the right or to the left, your ears will hear a voice behind you, saying, “This is the way; walk in it.”
That scripture is one of my favorites. God loves to direct His people into His will! We have to listen and obey. We have to trust Him despite of what we feel. I can list countless times that we wanted to leave Florida, but we had to commit to be here until God directs us otherwise. For this season of our lives, it has been destiny that we are here in Florida, even if it has not always made sense to us.
I am not special. God wants to direct you in the seasons of your life. He has a divine purpose and plan for your life. Trust in Him! He will lead you. Allow yourself to be led. He has awesome plans for your life. Get Excited!
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