This is an article I wrote that will appear in a Grace Communion International publication in June . . .
After the Worldwide Church of God underwent major
doctrinal shifts in the mid-90s, Dishon and I wanted to learn more about
mainstream Christianity. We belonged to
a Baptist church for a while, and we were heavily involved in ministry. Once we found out we were pregnant with
Serena, we sought out a more multicultural church experience. We briefly tried a megachurch, but at the
risk of sounding like Goldilocks, it was just too big. We spent seven years in a Pentecostal church
in Boston, where Dishon served as the Youth Pastor. We moved from Boston to Randolph, and around
the same time, a friend posted a link to Called
to Be Free on Facebook, so we began to look into Trinitarian theology. It was like finding the perfect wedding dress,
and in a way, like coming home.
Being a church planting family has been a very
interesting journey. From 2010-2012, I
worked as a Literacy Coach and then K-5 ELA Director in our town, which is
where we’re planting. I felt more
connected to the community then, because I saw the faces of the children we
wanted to reach every day. My position
was cut last year, however, and now I’m working as the Curriculum and
Instruction Director for a Boston based nonprofit organization. It takes more creativity to stay connected, so,
for example, I take advantage of the time we spend sitting next to other
parents at Cairo’s basketball games and participating in our town’s Amazing
Race. I also continue to serve on the
Recreation Board and the Board of Trustees for our library.
Maintaining balance is also challenging. Until recently, we were meeting in our home,
so our weekends have been packed with getting the house ready for church and
hosting the meeting each Sunday.
Dishon is a bivocational pastor, and he works from
10-6 downtown Boston, which enables him to take the kids to school, but it also
means that he gets home after we’ve already had dinner, and he’s not as
available as he’d like to be to help with afterschool activities. Our weekends are so jam packed that
doing “normal” things like having a sleepover are really difficult when our
Sunday mornings are filled with getting ready for our celebration service.
At the same time, church planting is very
rewarding. I read the local newspaper
with a different eye as a planter, looking for opportunities to show love to
our community. We were able to host a
college student from Korea during our celebration service when he was studying abroad in the Boston area. Each time we have a community dinner, and I
see people connecting meaningfully with people they never met before, it feels
worthwhile. Within the next few months,
Dishon and I will be facilitating a series of marriage workshops for the community,
and I look forward to seeing how God will reveal Himself there.
As was the focus of Dishon’s sermonette the day we
met, “. . . all things work together for good to those who love God, to those
who are the called according to His purpose.” I’d have to agree wholeheartedly. I still have an Empire State of Mind, but it’s God’s Empire as we join in His
mission, and I wouldn’t have it any other way.
