Hello CCiPH friends and family!

As you all know, there are always seasons in life. We seem to be on this
cycle of change about every 2 years, in the form of major relocation. We have both experienced this pretty much since graduating high school, albeit separate paths for many of those years. Now we are facing this new reality that this time around, we may be staying put for much longer. I can’t seem to wrap my mind around looking down the road and us still being where we are now, but as of right now, all signs are pointing that way. I don’t feel an overwhelming sense of comfort and stability as you may imagine one would when they feel as if they may have finally settled down. I know that God is in control, and I am so grateful for that comfort. I also know that I could be wrong about what our future holds. We lived the past 2 years knowing that our purpose in Cincinnati was for growth and change, now we don’t have a clear direction for this next season. We know of the always present purpose of loving Christ no matter where we are and what outlet that may take, but we don’t know what our specific ministry will be for lack of a better way to explain myself. I guess this is where my unease comes from, in the unknown of how to use what we have learned. It takes new relationships, which neither of us are great at initiating. I guess its time to step out of our little boxes and see what comes of it.
Dan and I have both had the opportunity to attend a Sunday morning service by ourselves, and both walked away missing you all a great deal. We are now faced with the question, how do you do what American society calls church after being a part of a Body that “does things a little different?” Dan compared this to the Matrix. Once you have been taken out of what you thought was reality, you see that so called reality in a whole new light.
You don’t quite fit there any more. In our case, we were so blessed to be a part of a Body where there was an understanding of family and relationships, where the word hospitality was lived out in many lives above and beyond what I would have ever thought to do for another person, and where no one had a Sunday’s best because they were the same everyday of the week, which is a good thing. I know that we all choose the attitude that we have in any given situation, but that can be a real struggle sometimes to choose the right one. I don’t know what the answer is as far as a Sunday service, but I do know that we need to connect with others in the family of Christ, and that seemed like the easiest way to do that. I guess I was looking for the easy answer and finding that maybe this is where we apply what we learned about doing things a little different and need to focus on someplace a little different than the obvious.
We haven’t finished this move yet as we are still staying with my parents for another couple of weeks, and then we’ll have our own place, then and maybe I can feel like we are home again. Please don’t think that I’m looking at only the negatives as there are many positive things about this change, such as seeing my boys connect with our family here and blossom while playing outside in a more relaxed environment with more of nature around and less concrete. Mixed in with all of the uneasiness is excitement to see what God has in store for us next. I guess we all have some fear of the unknown and of change, and that is the biggest hurdle for me to overcome right now.

SUNDAY CELEBRATION   We meet each week to worship jointly as a community at 10:30am at 931 McPherson Ave, Cincinnati, OH 45205 (click for a map). To get driving directions please click here.