Before the previous post, it was my joy to be with Jason Allen and his family in Belle Chasse, LA. Jason is now serving as pastor of Belle Chasse’s First Baptist Church. Obviously, the Life Lessons series about faith difficulties was already on my mind. And as I looked forward to seeing them again and meeting their church family, something happened. During my travel time, it struck me that Jason is one more great example of the people God calls to help us take steps of faith.
Life Lessons: God Will Make A Way
Our Father’s ways are not our ways. Some of you know Jason personally. For those that don’t, I met Jason when he joined the staff of a church we were already serving. He came as our youth pastor. We have children a little older than Jason and some who are younger. So I saw two opportunities when we met:
- The joy of working alongside a Godly young man
- Doing whatever I could to help further equip him for his calling
That was my perspective, but it wasn’t the only one. I enjoyed knowing Jason and working with him. I did everything I could to share whatever wisdom and experience that might be helpful. Maybe I helped; I hope so. Those are good things. But God was at work for both of us in ways we could not possibly imagine!
Life Lessons: We Can Only See the Present
Jason eventually left our church staff and took his first pastorate in the Baton Rouge area. We talked about that when it happened and I was happy for him. Then, I also left my position in that church and took my role at ROW which lead to EquipUs. As I said in an earlier post, God doesn’t just call us to tasks of faith. He calls us to do those tasks in community with others. Did Jason and I meet by random chance?
We enjoyed the time we worked side-by-side, but that was not the end! Jason called one day and invited me to preach at his church and share mission opportunities. The result of that was Jason engaging that church in a mission project. Did I have any idea when we stepped into a faith ministry that God would use Jason to be part of it? No, I didn’t. While I was uncertain about many things, God was sure of everything. My job wasn’t to know, it was to trust and follow. And your job is…..? 🙂
Life Lessons: God Unfolds His Plan in His Time
Gabby busy on the slide. And guess who was fascinated by his spoon?
Jason and Heather’s life and ministry took another turn. Their current place of service is in the New Orleans area. Jason called a few months ago and asked about equipping his current congregation for missions and evangelism. The result of that conversation was my visit with them this past weekend. And as I spoke to the church, it was apparent God has placed a message of faith before that congregation. I preached about it and so did Jason. We had a great time and I met some awesome people. So, it almost goes without saying that I can’t wait to see what God does with this church (or any church!) that is willing to follow Him from faith to faith.
Please continue to pray as we schedule and coordinate mission opportunities for this year. There is a place for YOU to serve!