October Update #1
The past month-and-a-half has been quite the whirlwind of activity for us. On August 31st, we closed on our first home and are enjoying it tremendously. We were blessed to have the Shiloh Place team along with family, friends, and coworkers from Seacoast Vineyard out to pray over the house and write scripture on the walls that were going to be painted before we moved in. We are extremely grateful to Doug and Sarah Crew, Trisha Frost, Teresa Reynolds, Katie's parents and my mother for their help with painting, cleaning, and getting the house move-in ready. You know people love you when they are willing to paint your walls and clean your toilets! You can check out a couple of photos at the bottom of this post and at Katie's Facebook page.
In September, Katie and I led worship for the Power of Father's Love School in Myrtle Beach. It was a privilege and blessing to have the opportunity to pour into the lives of the students each morning during our times of worship. There were students there from as far away as Europe, all seeking to know and experience the love of God on a deeper level. There were a couple of things that we shared during this school that were both surprising but also quite timely for several of the students, and I want to share one with you.
For the first week or so after we moved in, Katie and I were watching movies "old-school" style on actual, physical DVDs and Blu-Rays because we didn't have Internet yet. One afternoon I walked into the living room and caught the end of "Dirty Dancing" which Katie had been watching and I had never seen. During worship at the school, Katie started to share something and spoke words I never expected to hear in that context. "A few nights ago, we watched Dirty Dancing. . ." I became concerned that my man-card might be revoked - not to mention that our ministry as worship leaders was about to come to an end, but what she shared next was powerful. She shared about the iconic scene when Patrick Swayze's character says, "Nobody puts Baby in a corner" and pulls the character, Baby, on stage because he was proud of her, he loved her, and he wanted everyone to see her the way he did. Katie then shared that God was in the process of pulling someone or several people out of corners they had either been put in by others or gotten into themselves. You could feel the atmosphere in the room shift as this connected with several students.
After worship, another team member shared that an example from "Dirty Dancing" had been on her heart, but from a different perspective. She said God impressed on her that it was important that Baby trusted Patrick Swayze's character in order to allow him to lift her during the dance, and there were students who needed to trust God again so He could free them from what they were in the midst of and pursue what they were created for. I never expected examples like this to to be shared in that setting, but it proves that God will use whatever He wants, no matter our perceptions, to show the depths of His love to us.
In addition to the schools, Katie and I have been working with the staff on the website, design, video ideas and planning and we will share more about that in the coming days.
There have been a few challenges along with the excitement of the past couple of months, and we have a couple of immediate needs that we would like to share and humbly ask if you would prayerfully consider giving a one time or reoccurring (tax deductible) financial gift.
1. Our trusty iMac computer (I affectionately named Milbert MacIntosh) stopped working after almost nine years of faithful service. This is the computer we used for thousands of hours of design and video production, as well as writing and recording music, so replacing it is crucial for us to continue our ministry work. A replacement will cost somewhere in the neighborhood of $3,000.
2. Our HVAC stopped working about two weeks after we moved in. We have a home warranty, but the warranty did not cover the full cost of refrigerant (a long story), so we still have around $628 to pay out of pocket.
3. We still need to replace our only vehicle. We had a reprieve when the AC miraculously started working for about two months during the summer, but it has since stopped and the repairs to fix the oil leaks would be both costly and not guaranteed.
If you would like to help, you can visit the donate page of Shiloh Place's website (shilohplace.org/donate) and follow the instructions - or reach out to us if you would like to send a gift in the mail or help in other ways.
Katie and I also encourage you to check out the events page at shilohplace.org to see what is coming up to find the next school near you. You can also contact Doug Crew to schedule a school or conference at your own church! Katie and I will be leading worship at the school in Greenville, SC October 20-22 and then in Myrtle Beach November 8 to 11, and we hope to see you there!
In September, Katie and I led worship for the Power of Father's Love School in Myrtle Beach. It was a privilege and blessing to have the opportunity to pour into the lives of the students each morning during our times of worship. There were students there from as far away as Europe, all seeking to know and experience the love of God on a deeper level. There were a couple of things that we shared during this school that were both surprising but also quite timely for several of the students, and I want to share one with you.
For the first week or so after we moved in, Katie and I were watching movies "old-school" style on actual, physical DVDs and Blu-Rays because we didn't have Internet yet. One afternoon I walked into the living room and caught the end of "Dirty Dancing" which Katie had been watching and I had never seen. During worship at the school, Katie started to share something and spoke words I never expected to hear in that context. "A few nights ago, we watched Dirty Dancing. . ." I became concerned that my man-card might be revoked - not to mention that our ministry as worship leaders was about to come to an end, but what she shared next was powerful. She shared about the iconic scene when Patrick Swayze's character says, "Nobody puts Baby in a corner" and pulls the character, Baby, on stage because he was proud of her, he loved her, and he wanted everyone to see her the way he did. Katie then shared that God was in the process of pulling someone or several people out of corners they had either been put in by others or gotten into themselves. You could feel the atmosphere in the room shift as this connected with several students.
After worship, another team member shared that an example from "Dirty Dancing" had been on her heart, but from a different perspective. She said God impressed on her that it was important that Baby trusted Patrick Swayze's character in order to allow him to lift her during the dance, and there were students who needed to trust God again so He could free them from what they were in the midst of and pursue what they were created for. I never expected examples like this to to be shared in that setting, but it proves that God will use whatever He wants, no matter our perceptions, to show the depths of His love to us.
In addition to the schools, Katie and I have been working with the staff on the website, design, video ideas and planning and we will share more about that in the coming days.
There have been a few challenges along with the excitement of the past couple of months, and we have a couple of immediate needs that we would like to share and humbly ask if you would prayerfully consider giving a one time or reoccurring (tax deductible) financial gift.
1. Our trusty iMac computer (I affectionately named Milbert MacIntosh) stopped working after almost nine years of faithful service. This is the computer we used for thousands of hours of design and video production, as well as writing and recording music, so replacing it is crucial for us to continue our ministry work. A replacement will cost somewhere in the neighborhood of $3,000.
2. Our HVAC stopped working about two weeks after we moved in. We have a home warranty, but the warranty did not cover the full cost of refrigerant (a long story), so we still have around $628 to pay out of pocket.
3. We still need to replace our only vehicle. We had a reprieve when the AC miraculously started working for about two months during the summer, but it has since stopped and the repairs to fix the oil leaks would be both costly and not guaranteed.
If you would like to help, you can visit the donate page of Shiloh Place's website (shilohplace.org/donate) and follow the instructions - or reach out to us if you would like to send a gift in the mail or help in other ways.
Katie and I also encourage you to check out the events page at shilohplace.org to see what is coming up to find the next school near you. You can also contact Doug Crew to schedule a school or conference at your own church! Katie and I will be leading worship at the school in Greenville, SC October 20-22 and then in Myrtle Beach November 8 to 11, and we hope to see you there!
Doug and Sarah painting our bedroom - at around midnight, no less!
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