New Things...
What a whirlwind this new year has been. I know we are now in the month of May and I haven’t had an update in awhile so here’s what’s been happening…
For the past two years we’ve been attending a Calvary Chapel that is two hours away from our home. We didn’t go every Sunday, but when we had a chance we would attend. Sometimes it was once a month – sometimes more.
We have been friends with the Pastor and his family since 2006. When we came to the church just for a visit in March 2023 we could see that it was struggling a bit. The Pastor looked tired and burned out along with other things that I won’t go into detail about.
Mark received a phone call one day from the Pastor asking him to be an elder. Mark said he’d pray about it, talk to me, and get back to him. After much prayer and talking over logistics, one being that we weren’t regular attendees, my husband called the Pastor back. They talked for a while and Mark brought up some questions that we had especially about us being so far away. He answered our questions and thought that us not being close in proximity wouldn’t be an issue. Our friend was looking for accountability and wanted a godly man to be an example to the congregation. So we said yes.
Fast forward two years and through some very hard things that came to light, the Pastor stepped down and my husband was voted in to become the Pastor of the church.
Since January our weekends have been spent traveling two hours on Saturday, preaching on Sunday, and leaving on Monday or Tuesday to head back home. We aren’t living in the town full time yet as we still have our other ministry called Cherith Brook.
Thank goodness that our son-in-law, Cole has been a part of and graduated from our discipleship program and knows how it all works up on our property. He is a great example to all of the people on the mountain.
It’s been amazing to see God work and to see healing happen among the congregation. We do fellowship after church with a potluck and since the weather is nice, yard games too.
For anyone that knows our family, we are all about fellowship! My husband is a very hands-on leader, meaning he doesn’t believe in being far removed from the flock. How can he know what the needs are if he isn’t up close and personal?
Some may be wondering how can we do this not living there full time? Well, we are at the church the whole weekend and the doors are always open. We have had several people stop by on a whim. We schedule counseling appointments based on our time there and we have shared many evening meals and/or coffee with the people of the congregation.
We are usually physically exhausted by the time we leave to go home, but it’s a good tired. We don’t know what the future holds, but I trust the One who knows all things!
Our ministry at Cherith Brook is still going and we hold Bible studies on the days we are there. It looks a little different than it did, but the neat thing is that the discipleship students who have been a part for a few years are now traveling with us to pour out onto others what they’ve learned through the study of the Word at Cherith Brook.
It’s exactly what we envisioned (maybe not how we would’ve executed it). That the students would be able to put into action the living Word of God and love on and encourage others in their walk with God.
Mark has also been doing a podcast that can be accessed through Spotify. He’s been trying to record the sermons and other discussions he has with myself and our nephew, Ben who has come back to Christ after being an atheist for many years.
Please pray for us as we navigate this new aspect of ministry!
Isaiah 43:19
Behold, I am doing a new thing; now it springs forth, do you not perceive it? I will make a way in the wilderness and rivers in the desert.
If you want to visit the Calvary Chapel Methow Valley Church we are located off Highway 20 in Twisp, WA. Service is at 10:00 am on Sundays.
It is Finished! Grace in Plain Sight: The Power of Agape by Mark Landis
It's been years in the making, and it is finally finished! Grace in Plain Sight is a book about learning the true meaning of Grace. Once you understand that the Grace of God is actually the Power of God enabling you to become all that God dreams of you becoming you will be forever changed. Dive into this insightful book and you will be inspired to share it with others!
Our Podcast is up and running! Listen on Spotify! |
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A Garden is underway!
We have been dreaming of a raised bed garden for quite sometime and this spring its actually happening! Our daughter, Storm, provided most of the materials to get this up and running! We knew after trying for two years that putting a plastic weed barrier down was a must. We also wanted gravel in between the raised beds and some fill-dirt. This was a huge undertaking, but one that we will all benefit from! It was great to have the help of everyone on the mountain with this endeavor!
