New Year Resolutions

Last year Preston and I began attending our church. We had both been thinking of finding a new church to attend as our home churches were both an hour away. We were asked by a fellow fireman to come and visit during a Christmas play. We really liked it so we kept going. To our surprise we have LOVED going there! I say to our "surprise" because we were both raised in very traditional/small church settings. I am Baptist and he is Methodist. The church we now attend is non-denominational, contemporary, and made up over around 5,000 people. Next weekend is their "Discovery" class where we can learn all about what it means to be a member there. We are going and we are really excited! We feel we have finally found our "home church." After almost two years of marriage it feels great to have found a place that has deepened our love for the Lord! We couldn't think of a better place for us!

Each few weeks our pastor begins a new series of study. Before Christmas we went through each of the Ten Commandments. Believe me... they aren't as simple (or cut and dry) as you may think. To begin the new year we have now started a "New Year's Resolution" series. Here are the "resolutions" we will be covering over the next few weeks:

- I will say "no."
- I will say "yes."
- I will say "I love you."
- I will say "I'm sorry."

Last week we learned that saying "no" helps us to focus on the things that matter most to us in life such as God, family, marriage, etc. It was a great message to hear, especially before going back to work. This week we learned that we should say "yes" to God's love and that we should always ask ourselves "What would Jesus do?" before we act. We were also reminded to find scripture that relates to our needs and desires before we ask God for them. I cannot wait to see what our pastor has to say about the next two resolutions! I will have to keep you posted.

On another note (but still on topic... it involves our church as well) here is an update on our Mina Project. This project is sponsored by our church each year. Every person over the age of 18 is given an envelop with money inside ranging from $10 to $100. It was our job to find a creative way to multiply our money. Our proceeds from the project were to go to someone in our community. Preston build a fishing rod and sold raffle tickets to raise money for his God Mother who has cancer and is going through chemo. I sold half and half tickets to raise money to buy Christmas meals for the homeless at a local shelter. Preston raised $485 to his God Mother and I raised $214! It was an amazing process to be involved in and we are both very happy with how things turned out! Both of us were able to help those we really care about and it felt so good to have the support of our friends, family, and even total strangers!

It is amazing what is possible walking by faith!