the Pathway

to stay in touch,
Hello out there world. especially Ky yehhaw. the family and i have been in the midst of turmoil and struggle. It is a very exciting time in our life we are beginning to feel the stress from giving up our comforts, and yet even our faith feels tested. If I could give you a snapshot of the last few months where would I start. We were called by God to leave ministry to pursue missions in SC to be simple servants and share Christ with the world in a radical way. We left behind two very sick parents, our dream home, our stuff (like TV, bed, tools, garage, home, pets and my fav-the beloved couch) and family, basically everything. Ironically, those very Words were planted into my heart before we even answered the call. You remember when Jesus told his disciples that if you weren't willing to leave houses, mother or father, for the sake of the kingdom then you were not worthy of Him--He meant it. All this to live in beautiful Summerville, SC--full of pine trees and sand (seriously that is all there is here). In the strangest of ways we know we are here for this one reason to live in the center of God's will for our life.

Speaking of Will, God thought it was a good idea for us to crash with them (Will & Tarah) for a yr or or actually until the home in Ky sells (praying that it is sooner than later) they are a great family who lives are busy full of many things different from our own yet somehow we co-exist. 8 people and a dog in one house can easily feel cramped. Their grace and generosity has been more than we could ask for or expected. They have become in some ways our new family.

In the midst of this wild ride I have been seeking God more and experiencing God more and more . I am sure that is why life seems a bit difficult right now. I even feel somehow that I am not as useful as I could be here but God reminds me that if it is just to sweep up the floors of the church the I need to be here. Jerm 29:11 reminds that He has a plan, and it is better than mine that is the CMV (chris mattingly version). So as the Mattingly's hang on by a thread God is weaving us into the people he wants us to be, changing our lives one day at a time. I am so glad that I came. I will one day look back on these moments with no regrets and only praise to my God who loves me, sanctifies me, and gives us all a hope and a future. Chris