We are excited to announce that we have officially met our first deadline of $7,000 … 3 MONTHS EARLY! Yes, you read that correctly. 3 months early! WHATTTT!!!! We are continually blown away by how good God is! … and the official number is $7,434.00. WAHOO! (He always goes above and beyond what we need!)
As we have watched blessing after blessing, seed after seed pour into our account, we are still brought to tears each time the fundraising bar moves forward. But, if we are being honest, we didn’t think this would happen.
We were doubtful. We were hesitant. We were afraid. We were hurt…
Let me explain the hurt part, because that is what has brought on all the other emotions.
In the fall, we experienced a great deal of hurt by some people in our life. People we trusted, looked up to, confided in, and more. Did we play a part in the situation? Yes. But did we agree with how it all was handled? No. We were left with questions unanswered and emotions entangled. I once read that, “Insults hurt from those outside the body of Christ, but when they come from inside the body, the wounding can hurt so much more deeply. The reason is because the community of Christ is meant to be a safe place.” And we no longer felt safe.
Everything went down a few days before we learned we were accepted to the World Race. And it took us almost 3 weeks to share the news with anyone. Literally, we sat at the computer night after night staring at our “announcement blog” debating whether to share it or not. We even deleted the post from Facebook several times before leaving it up for the world to see. I mean, who wants to share such exciting news in the midst of a really confusing time? We sure didn’t. And what we feared most were the responses we might get from those we once trusted.
What will they say? What if they don’t support us? What if they tell us we aren’t qualified for ministry? What if…
So many questions and thoughts ran through our minds. And we felt ashamed and embarrassed. Hurt and confused. Disappointed and misunderstood.
Right away we put ourselves into counseling. We had two goals: deal with our actions and process through the hurt. We knew there were things we could have done differently in that season of our life. And we wanted to deal with them because we want to be all the God has called us to be. But we also felt that how everything was handled was not fair. And it was hurtful. Thankfully, counseling has been so rewarding and we have been able to process everything in a healthy way!
We learned that we need to think more about what Christ has done FOR us and less about what others have done TO us. We need to not be afraid because HE alone has called us and will take care of us.
And we know that any season can be used for the glory of God. He can use our wounds to comfort others.
All praise to God, the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ. God is our merciful Father and the source of all comfort. He comforts us in all our troubles so that we can comfort others. When they are troubled, we will be able to give them the same comfort God has given us. 2 Corinthians 1:3-4
This is where hurt has become thankfulness.
I hope you understand a little more about the fear we experienced and the hesitation that we had when starting this journey. That is why making it to our first deadline (and early!) is an indescribable feeling! We are right where God has called us to be. We are thankful. Blessed. Humbled.
Something else that we have been encouraged with is an amazing community of people who support us in prayer and finances. A wise friend of mine told me, “God always supplies not just finances, but a community of believers to surround and accomplish what he desires in you on this earth. What was once taken from you will be replenished 10 times over.” And we truly believe this has come to pass over the last 7 months. That community is you – the one reading this post. The one who has given. The one who has prayed. The one who has met with us, encouraged us, and poured into us. That is our community. And we are so grateful for each and every one of you. THANK YOU.
To each person who has brought us to our first goal of $7,000 THANK YOU. Whether it was through prayer, encouragement, or finances. THANK YOU. We pray that God blesses you for your faithfulness to His Kingdom. That is what this is all about – His Kingdom. His glory. His power here on earth. So, THANK YOU.
Loving the least,
Billy & Ashley
We have a new goal, and it seems big, but we serve a BIG God. We want to reach $12,000 by May 1st.
If you wish to give towards our next goal, please click the “Support Us!” button at the top right of your screen. Thank you for advancing God’s Kingdom on earth!
