life beyond the well…

Category Archives: Family


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Recap: Pastors and Leaders Conference 2014

This past weekend, Preacherman and I had opportunity to attend the 2014 International Pastors and Leadership Conference hosted by Bishop T.D. Jakes in Orlando, Florida.  We loved every minute of it.

Being busy without direction is dangerous because it can lead you to waste time, energy, and resources.  One of the biggest gains from this conference was being able to understand the HOW and the WHY of what we should be doing in regards to our ministry.  Not only that, we left with a clear idea of what we can do right now in our church planting process.  Every night, Preacherman and I found ourselves making to-do lists, reaching out to people, and processing all that we were learning.

A huge highlight for us was being able to connect with people–meeting others on the same journey as us, meeting people who have been in ministry for years, and seeing friends and family.  Our pastor, Andy Thompson presented at the conference on Marriage and Ministry, and did a phenomenal job! His session was engaging and entertaining, but grounded in wisdom and biblical truth.  It is such a blessing to be under the leadership of him and his wife, and we are so appreciative of their love and support of us in this journey.

There really are no words to describe how full we felt after leaving this conference.  Since being back, we’ve been hard at work applying the things that we’ve learned, building relationships, and finally hitting a stride in the church planting process.  Though we are at the beginning of this journey, it’s exciting to see things begin to take off and move in the right direction.

To God be the glory for the things He has done.

Be encouraged!  Peace and Blessings!


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The Orange String

This morning as I was finished getting dressed, and was preparing to gather my things to leave, I noticed a string hanging from the last button of my blazer.  While this normally wouldn’t stop me, I paused because the string was orange.  My blazer (and pants) are tan.  There’s no reason for any stitching on these garments to be orange, especially in this one place.

I started to pull the string, thinking that it would just be a stray from another item in my closet.  But as I started to pull, I realized that it was attached to the button.  Under closer inspection, I saw that in some kind of way, this orange string had been used to tighten the button to the blazer.

And once I saw that, I immediately knew the culprit was: my aunt.  You see, as Preacherman and I were preparing to completely uproot our lives in Durham and move to Jax, my aunts came to our home nearly EVERYDAY for two weeks, to help pack, clean, organize, and reorganize our belongings. They did this while we were away at a conference for our new jobs, while we were back, but working the final days at our old jobs. But not only did they help pack, clean, organize, and reorganize; they fixed stuff.  Stuff like this button, which I don’t even recall being loose.

I’m thankful for the orange string, which slowed me down this morning, and allowed me to reflect on God’s love for me through family.  Both Preacherman and I have been incredibly blessed to have our families love us beyond the miles, and having these little reminders just makes the distance seem that much shorter.  I’m grateful for the gift of family that God provides us, and I’m thankful for my family.

Where have you been reminded of God’s gift of love for you through your family?

Be Encouraged! Peace and Blessings!