Random moving thoughts

I love the fact that I moved to a new city with my little family... I know people move to new places alone all the time and find themselves in a big, strange place without a single friend or even acquaintence - but I just don't know if I could do that! A lot of people were surprised in finding out that we would accept this job and give up the life we'd built in NKY to move to a city where we wouldn't have any friends and where we'd have to leave our house behind. I know some people thought it was crazy that we were "giving up" so much to take this job opportunity. I see it in a whole different light... who better to take off on an exciting adventure with than my best friend and the two little boys that I get to be a mom to? This new job and move was the answer to many prayers for us - allowing me to be a stay at home mom, putting Gary in a good career path with an exciting job, great benefits, and an exciting adventure (something Gary and I have talked about doing for a long time!) After spending our high school and college years in the Cincinnati area, we kind of always dreamed of moving somewhere brand new... moving to KY was a baby step in that direction for us, I guess :)

So, yes, we were very sad to leave behind some good friends, a fantastic church, and a nice home, but we got to bring our closest and most important relationships with us. And we know God will place us in another church where we can grow/learn... and not to sound too cheesy (ok, I know it does, but I'm going to say it anyway) - a home is where your family is.

So here we are, we don't know a single person, I have to stop and think for a minute when someone asks me my address (and I've even given the wrong one out a couple of times...), we can't get around town without the use of a GPS (thank God for technology!), and we are busy putting together a new home! And I love it! My best friend is right alongside me and my treasured babies are with me, and that really is all that matters for now!

That brings me to my next point...

We have made it our goal to find a church by the end of September so that we can start getting to know some people and continue to grow spiritually with others. We set the deadline of September since we would like to start making some friends and because we know it is easy to get into the rut of church hopping because you just can't find that "perfect church". Well folks, there is no such thing... so we've set some guidlines and some "non-negotiables" and we'll do the best we can to find somewhere that fits those and call it our home :)

We've learned through our experience at Grace Fellowship the importance of a few things and we kind of know what we would like to look for...

• Small groups - we've decided this is a "non-negotiable" for us - small groups have been so important to us and this is where real growth happens and real relationships form!
• Bible-Teaching - this seems like a given, but we've been to churches where the pastor doesn't even preach from the Bible! So the pastor better be quoting lots of scripture, encourage people to read their Bibles, and be giving more than just "feel good" sermons.
• True worship - we don't want to be at an "entertainment" driven church where they are there simply to put on a show for those that come
• Evidence of service and fellowship
• Good children's ministry

There are some other things we'd like to see, but these are the main things we've talked about and put at the top of our list. So please pray that we would find something quickly and start forming some relationships!