Sometimes taking a break to regroup is necessary, even when it isn’t what you want to do. Sometimes the Lord says He wants you to press pause even when you can’t see the reason why. Sometimes you need to heal during the pause and be reminded of what His original call was in the first place. Sometimes, He is giving you a break while the pieces He is lining up will make the puzzle so much clearer and more beautiful than you can imagine. Sometimes, once He tells you it’s time to go again, what He has set up is so amazing that you almost don’t believe it. Well as of yesterday, that’s where we were. At Go. Standing in a building that is so perfect for Pioneer Community Church to meet in, watching 22 people fill our first service in Eagle Mountain, listening to their stories of being forgotten on the fringe of a community that doesn’t value them. For the very first time since our move to Utah, we felt like we were doing exactly what God had called us here to do, in exactly the place He wanted us, for exactly these people. It was perhaps the single most incredible feeling of our entire lives!
(I wish I had more pictures, but I was busy teaching and playing with these cute kiddos)
Obviously, we don’t know what the Lord has in store for the future, but we pray that even more people will hear about PCC and will come wanting to know more about the God who saves. Our number one prayer is to see many come to a saving knowledge of Jesus and grow deep in their love for Him. We desire to be church that points them to Christ, disciples them in their growth and encourages them to share their faith with others.
You may be thinking that 22 people in a church service doesn’t seem like a lot but for Utah, that is outstanding. Especially in Utah County and for the first week. We praise the Lord for bringing everyone of those faces. He is moving! Several of the people that came also expressed an interest in attending our Bible study that meets on Friday nights. Praise God! We were just so blown away by the response that we received yesterday and all the praise goes to the Lord. He has been so faithful to us. The road has been incredibly difficult sometimes. We have experienced some major spiritual battles and we are not expecting that to go away anytime soon. Still, no matter what the future holds for the Smith family or for PCC, we know who is in control and we will rest in that.
“Those who know your name trust in you, for you, LORD, have never forsaken those who seek you.” ~ Psalm 9:10
Thank you for being such a source of encouragement and prayer for us.
Barry & Jen
utahbound 