Passion 07

The past month and a half has been quite a celebration with Josh's parents coming to visit, Christmas, and then our trip to Passion in Atlanta. I had great expectations for Passion (as it was my first conference) and God far exceeded that. Seeing our Oasis family was even sweeter than I imagined it to be. I cried pretty intensely when I saw Shelley for the first time. I know- no surprise really. So Sharla get ready because there will be some big tears when I see you in 2 weeks. Shelley and I could've talked all day and I still didn't feel caught up. Then to see Doug, room with Stacey, go to sessions with Melissa, get to know T.J. and Dena, and then a little talk time with Heather was the biggest of blessings. This is all in addition to the conference and having some time with Josh away from our kids. I was simply overwhelmed by the comfort of seeing our church family. It really was like coming home even though we were in Atlanta.

Here are some highlights from the conference: Beth Moore spoke on humility, Francis Chan on lukewarm Christianity, John Piper on recovering from sexual failure (and other sins) based on Micah 7:8, and then Louie spoke on saying "Yes, Lord" to go wherever, whenever, and however. There were some huge moments for us like God confirming our desire to go overseas somehow, somewhere, and sometime. Also, I heard something so basic yet so good for me in this moment of my life. Francis Chan was sharing that God doesn't duplicate, he creates whether it be in worship, daily living, future plans- anything. I really needed to hear this because God did something awesome in our lives in Boston but we no longer live in Boston so I need to continue to put my trust in God doing something great here and something new (not duplicating friends or ministry). He is doing something new in calling us abroad, new in our studies, new in our relationships, new in our 2 children, new in our hearts- it is all new! As much as I think I want it to be the same as it was in Boston with our Sunday morning time and church and friendships and the city- I must trust that God has something new that is His will- better than anything I could try to make happen. Also God grew my heart for the nations, people groups. I needed to be reminded of the needs all over the world- for instance the people groups who don't have the Bible in their language. Heather Mercer, who was imprisoned in Afghanistan, told us that she had been sharing the same story for a while about her imprisonment and she realized God had another story for her to share. She now lives in Northern Iraq and has been a part of building a student union in the middle of a campus so that Christians can come and serve and students can come and learn English. That it would be a place for relationships to be built. So that is her new story that God is doing in her life. I just felt so overwhelmingly excited to trust in whatever new story God has for us. For now we are in Louisville in seminary but our first practical step is to start the application process with the IMB (International Missions) and just see what God does. Something new!

Meg