H♥me

There are many places I have been which I can call by such a name. It's a place where I'm at rest, A place where I know I am welcome, A place that draws me to it, A place that I always think of, A place full of friendly faces.. But there is one place I call home far different from the rest… For when I go there, something inside of me awakens. Suddenly people hold more value and time is preciously spent. My heart beats faster and a smile graces my lips. It's almost hard to describe… A sense of awareness overtakes me and I begin to see great needs.

When I stepped through the doors of Fairhaven Baptist Church shortly after arriving in Coolidge, that feeling swept over me. It flooded my soul and warmed my heart. I imagined those double doors wide open and all those seats full. I felt the cover of the hymnal and heard the precious singing. It is much stronger than magic, else I would use the word magical, but that doesn't do it justice. This place captivates me. Though it is further from all my other homes, I never feel alone when I stand in this place. Perhaps, it is because I've watched this church grow from that first time I walked through that old cafeteria door and saw the small group of broad smiling faces to the larger group of 40 odd people with even deeper warmth in their hearts and love in their eyes than the first time I met them. And I know why… They've been changed by the power resting in this place and in these people. You see, it is not magic at all, but a power strong enough to move mountains.

It is the same power Paul spoke of in I Corinthians 1:18.

"For the preaching of the cross is to them that perish foolishness; but unto us which are saved it is the Power of God."

It is the same Power of faith in God that Peter spoke of in I Peter 1:5.

"Who are kept by the Power of God through faith unto salvation ready to be revealed in the last time."

This is not some fairytale like the devil wants you to believe. It's real and it resides in the preaching of the Gospel of Jesus Christ! I am so blessed to be a small part of God's ministry here at Fairhaven Baptist Church! This is what I call my temporary home. It is the closest I can get to home until I get to my final Home where I will always be with my Lord. ♥

II Peter 1:16

"For we have not followed cunningly devised fables, when we made known unto you the power and coming of our Lord Jesus Christ, but were eyewitnesses of His majesty.