Embark....

This month marks the eight month anniversary of the beginning of Freedom Church. Wow! What an amazing and incredible adventure it has been! God has been so very faithful to lead and guide us though all of the beginning steps as we have been "planting" this church. It has not been easy, but what in life really is. Anything worth having or worth doing requires effort, time and investments of various kinds.

Building this Church has been a labor of love, and one that has such a "sense of destiny" about it. One that we have enjoyed watching, and in various ways being a small part of. Faipule and I heard about it via e-mail. A former Pastor in our lives, Merv Peterson - who married us almost seven years ago, sent an e-mail stating that he was going to be back in the Lynden area serving a new body of believers.

After more than two years of a "desert" experience...having pulled away from church and ministry due to some hurts and brokenness we began to explore different churches. After trying many, and having a few God directed "appointments" we found a place that made sense.We had been plugged in to a small but beautiful church for about five months, during which time God had done some major healing in my heart and spirit, and Faipule was baptized in the Holy Spirit! It was a wonderful time, and we were just beginning to look for places to get plugged in and begin serving. Something though in the back of our minds told us that we were only going to be with that beautiful little body of believers for a short season, and that God had something else coming our way. Shortly thereafter we received the e-mail from Pastor Merve and Georgia. Their e-mail stated simply that they felt the hand of the Lord leading them to become part of a new "fellowship for the Lord in Whatcom County", and that they believed the Lord would "bring beauty for ashes and the oil of joy for mourning". We did not know anything about this new fellowship, but we knew that we loved Pastor Merve and Georgia and wanted to see them. So, we decided to attend the service the following Sunday. It just happened to be their second service since beginning this church body.

When we walked to the door of the VFW that morning, we were a little bit late. The music was already going, and people were already worshipping. It sounded great! We were tentative, but excited to have the opportunity to hug and catch up with pastor Merve and Georgia who - as far as we knew, might be the only people we'd know in this new church. We went inside and were very surprised! We knew a great deal of the people there! Many of these wonderful saints were people that we had loved and served alongside at the former church where we had been hurt. It was a bit of a shock, but there was no angst at all....it felt very much like "coming home". I looked at Faipule and he looked at me...we knew...this was what we had been sensing was coming.

Sometimes, there are moments when you just have to stop and stand in awe of the glory and goodness of God. What a great and wondrous God we serve! Many of the people in that room knew us and immediately approached us with hugs and kind words of welcome. Some, like the members of the Cook family have always felt like "our family". Pastor Dan and Ms. Bev have long called us "Son" and "Daughter"...and we have called them "Dad and Mom". What a joy to see their smiling faces and have hugs that warmed our hearts and bolstered our spirits. Johnathan and his wonderful family were there, and Jeff and Kendra too. More members of the Cook family that have always been more than just people you know from church.

We entered into the service, and enjoyed every bit! Unfortunately, Faipule had to work that night, so we were not able to stay after service very long. But we knew. We left that building that afternoon and knew that we would be leaving the wonderful little church in Bellingham. We called our Pastor the next day and made an appointment to see him over coffee. We wanted to be sure that we shared our hearts with him, and we asked for his blessing as we felt God moving us on. He was extremely gracious, and excited for us. He gave us his blessing, and asked only that we keep in touch. Pastor Anthony and Ms. Christina were a blessing to us during a time of rebuilding and refreshing. We are very thankful for the ministry that they poured into, and over us. We pray that God will continue to bless them! Amen!

Faipule and I had such a sense of God's hand in the whole situation, and we easily flowed into regular attendance, and eventually serving in the body. I love the heart and vision of my Pastor! It resonates deeply, and I agree with what he feels led to do with the believers that are a part of this fellowship. He believes in building people, he believes in growing them and encouraging them in the giftings that God has given them. He believes in placing people in positions and situations that will allow God to flow freely by His Spirit, and to gradually graduate people into and through various areas of ministry....eventually placing those with a call on their lives out into the world to minister in church plants and many other areas.

It has been a little more than a month since Faipule and I were asked to become volunteer staff at Freedom Church. We were so blessed when Pastor Dan and Pastor Johnathan approached us and shared what God had showed them. It felt very much like "destiny"...and we are excited to serve and be a blessing wherever possible. We are currently serving as the Connect Group Ministry Directors at Freedom Church. It has been an adventure, and at times a challenge. We are very excited to see what God does in the lives of His people through these "points of connection" as Pastor calls them. We pray that everyone involved will be blessed, touched, challenged and encouraged.