Since I’ve been in Borger the past few weeks, I’ve heard the same thing over and over from people there: “You and Andy seem so happy in Groom!” We are!! Oh my goodness—are we ever! There are several reasons and it’s taken me awhile to think about it and give voice to it.
•I chose to be happy. I remember on our way into Groom, I told God, “God, I CHOOSE to love these people and this place!” I honestly thought it was going to be a hard adjustment—but the people of FBC and Groom made it easy. They are amazing people. After our first year here, I told Andy, “What if we’d missed out on knowing these people??”
•I’ve continued growing and changing since I moved to Groom. In fact, I’d say some of the most significant changing has taken place as I’ve come to understand who I am. But that couldn’t have happened without God plowing up the ground of my heart in Borger. Borger was the place where we grew up!
•FBC Groom has taught us community. In a small church, it takes everyone to make something happen. And in a small community, you know everything that’s going on with everyone. After serving in a church of every size, I choose small. Relationships are so important and it’s so much easier to build strong relationships in small communities. (Which is also why large churches work to create small communities!)
•God is here. Of course...he’s everywhere! And he wants to do something through all of us to impact the kingdom of God. We’ve never felt the significance of that like we do here. So much of our ministry we’ve only been able to see the results in hindsight. But we feel the urgency and excitement here. Unity unleashes a limitless God!
Am I happy? Absolutely!! I’m sure part of that is because I’ve matured. So much of my life I’ve struggled over “the next thing.” I’ve finally learned to be content. And maybe the most beautiful thing is the connectedness we have with four different churches—Amarillo, Broken Arrow, Borger & Groom. It just feels like I’m in the perfect place physically and spiritually to see God do abundantly above all I could ask or think!
