After years of praying and planning, Christie Garrett and her husband Rick were launching a new church. It was a parachute launch! Christie shares,”With a fervor that matched our naivety, we set a date and launched Grace Conway. And out of nowhere, all hell broke loose.” It was spiritual warfare that threatened to destroy her and her family! Read more of Christie’s story here.
David Erik Jones knows better than anyone that habitual sin and addiction, in this case pornography, is hard to face and even harder to overcome. But through the battle, marriages can endure and hearts can be healed. He and his wife are living proof that God’s love, grace and power can overcome the most difficult addictions. Read more of David’s story.
Tom Nebel and his wife planted a church 25 years ago. They were young yet they experienced momentum right out of the gate. But Tom learned quickly that without the proper perspective, i.e., eyes on God, fear will overtake a church planter. Read more from Tom Nebel as he talks about maintaining perspective when starting a church.
Can you tear up the IOU’s? A lifetime of debts owed to you by friends, family, ministry leaders and other offenders? Jo Saxton was faced with this difficult choice. Forgiveness isn’t easy, but it is the path to freedom that many ministry leaders must choose to move forward. Read more of Jo’s story here.
Pastor Mark Lee talks about one of the sifted moments in his new ministry. “My plan versus His plan. My fame versus God’s fame. My expectations versus God’s expectations. . . . My spiritual report card was always tied to a number that could never be high enough.” And it brought him to an all-time low. Read more of Mark’s story here.
For over ten years Kenny and Amy McNatt were involved in a great ministry. But personally, they were being sifted, going through disappointment and pain over and over again. God used them in spite of their personal struggles with adoption and miscarriage. What they didn’t see at the time? God was birthing a new ministry in them. More of their story here.
“I would never tell you that God owed me anything.” said Daniel Doss. But through the struggle of adoption, Daniel learned that, in fact, he thought God owed him a lot. Daniel Doss and his wife experienced the pain of infertility and years of frustration through the adoption process. Daniel shares the story of how God redeemed them and was there from start to finish.
Church planting is stressful and when combined with other life events, it can take its toll on the pastor & family. When Pastor and Planter Ron Edmondson experienced the sifting result of that, he took action. As he puts it, “If you are experiencing more bad days than good, it’s time to get back to the basic disciplines of your faith.” Read more of Ron’s story.
As a church planting wife, Christine Hoover gets real about the unexpected difficulties and blessings of church planting. She says, “I don’t care who you are, or what kind of church planting work you’re doing, or what is going on with your church, you will face the decision daily: faith or fear? “  Read more from Christine.
When Pastor Jason Dukes received a devastating phone call, his life changed in an instant. The months that followed affected his family and career and caused him to question everything he’d come to believe, including God. He had a choice to make. Read more of Jason’s sifting story here.
