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| My Life as a Soccer MomWhen I had my first baby, I never thought about the hours I would spend in the bleachers at softball fields and along the sidelines of soccer games. I never dreamed I would become a Padre fan, or that I would be so thrilled to see a professional women's soccer league come into being. My imagination didn't stretch to picturing myself as the mother of a teenager, let alone a high school freshman. And yet, here I am! Elizabeth is graduating 8th grade and taking high school placement exams. Christina is finishing 5th grade and looking forward to going off to church camp this summer WITH her friends and WITHOUT her parents. Like so many things in life, motherhood has led me on a path I never expected. It's a wonderful adventure with surprises at every step and turn of the path. So also with Christian discipleship. The decision to follow Jesus is only the beginning of a wonderful adventure, full of surprises. When Peter first put away his fishing nets, who knew that one day he would be healing, preaching, and teaching in Jesus' name? Who could have predicted that he would become such a strong advocate for removing barriers to the all-embracing love of God? We have had a similar experience with Faith to Fly. We set out, by faith, to improve the exterior of our facilities, and we ended up with a bigger and more connected congregation than we had before. Along the way, we not only painted, stuccoed, repaired, plumbed, planted, and electrified, we also put on a new roof! The initial three-year giving period has drawn to a close, but we have not completed everything on our project list. Now our task will be to come up with new ways of funding the completion of the courtyard landscaping and the expansion of the parking lot. And what a surprising story Finding Peace Fellowship has to tell! Not only did we start a completely new worship service, worship attendance at our other services has grown as well. We have been saying all along that our mission is to share the gospel of Jesus Christ with as many people as we can, and now we are being given the opportunity in an increasing variety of ways. I have noticed that with motherhood, I can never just sit back and get used to the way things are. My children are always growing and changing. There's always a new 'phase' just around the corner. I'm coming to realize that our life together as people of God has similar characteristics. We can't get too used to the way things are, because tomorrow God is likely to lead us someplace new! Faithfully yours, Pastor April |
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