I used to be THAT girl & now… I’m not

 'Let the peace of Christ keep you in tune with each other, in step with each other. 

None of this going off and doing your own thing. 

And cultivate thankfulness. 

Let the Word of Christ—the Message—have the run of the house. Give it plenty of room in your lives. 

Instruct and direct one another using good common sense. 

And sing, sing your hearts out to God! 

Let every detail in your lives—words, actions, whatever—be done in the name of the Master, Jesus, thanking God the Father every step of the way.' 

  -Colossians 3:15-17

Tonight is the first Monday of the month. I love this night. It’s the night the elder’s wives & our female staff members come to my house so we can hang out. While our husbands meet to tackle the spiritual concerns of the church, we gather to read some scripture, pray together & talk about our lives. It is my most precious ‘meeting’ of the month. I love these girls. I love their quick minds, their desire to love God & love others & their determination to live with authenticity. I love that they know me &  ‘get’ me & they love me anyway.

 My husband is an authentic person. What you see is what you get.  For the longest time I struggled with the concept. I thought to be a pastor’s wife I always had to be on my game. This often left me feeling fake, extremely lacking or frightened that I had ‘over shared’. When I came to this church with my husband, going on 8 years ago now, I was unsure of how it would go. I had come from the church of my youth, & where I had tried & failed to live up the expectations I felt from the congregation & from myself. I had been hurt by people that I thought were my friends & was fearful that I’d never get a grasp on this PW thing. 

So much has changed since then. 

When I think about God & how He is moving, I can’t help but see what He’s already done.

The quiet, shy, insecure, run-for-the-car-immediately-after-the-service-girl is long gone. In her place is a girl who knows who she is & who God expects her to be. 

In this moment, I am overwhelmed with thankfulness… for Avon Community Church, for my beloved elders’ wives, for my small group girls, for my women’s ministry peeps, for my God Girls tween group, for all my adorable little Sunday school nursery kids & the girls I partner with in that ministry & for the amazing man God has given me to push me, grow me & encourage me in this whole ministry-by-marriage thing. God is so Good.