A Big Hole in our Heart... with Destiny's name on it...

My husband and I would talk about how cool it would be to move out of state. He and I were both born and raised in Florida and pretty much all of our family also were born and raised in the Tampa Bay area. We would dream of fall colored leaves and snowy days. Well, my husband saw an opportunity to move, and low and behold, they gave him the go ahead to look into it. Long story short, my husband got transferred to Alabama. I was pregnant with our third child, we had a 1.5yr old and a 9 yo at the time. We didn't know anyone. We had no friends, no connections, just each other. It can be a scary thing, moving to a new place. Everyone there usually has their cliques, their groups, their family; and there you are...an outsider. We had no idea what to expect; we couldn't have braced ourselves for what was coming...

We decided about a month after moving there that we needed to find a church. Well, we tried one, but it failed miserably to give a warm welcome so we moved on. We overheard a neighbor bragging to another neighbor about how her church had a rockband, so of course, I inquired for more info.

From the moment we drove onto the YMCA parking lot we were greeted by friendly people waving us in. They somehow knew we were visitors and directed us to front parking spaces. If that wasn't enough, we were then greeted by the most outstanding front door team. Smiles were everywhere. We dropped the kids off in their respective, high energy rooms, and we were off to the sanctuary (which was actually a gymnasium). We sat down and we were warmly welcomed by a few others. The worship started, and by this time I couldn't get the smile off my face. Then, as if all this wasn't enough, the Pastor came out and gave a relevant, challenge "to take it home and try it and you'll like it" kinda message. I looked at my husband and knew that we were both hooked....we were home.

Bear with me here... I'm having a mushy moment...

So, six years later, as I watch the video, recalling being one of the attendees on those days. I can't believe how fast time has gone. The faces of all the people I've known, the memories and experiences flash through my mind like lightning and the tears flow down my face like rain. All I can say is wow....

Thank you, Destiny Family, for all the amazing things you've taught me. Thank you Pastor Joey, Melanie and Pastor Aimee for pushing me past my fears; into a place of blessing and favor like I've never known. Thank you for helping me find my purpose. Thank you to those of you countless people, who took the time to send encouraging emails my way on a Monday morning, letting me know that you were touched in some way by God's presence during a service; those encouragements came at the perfect time, just when I needed to know whether I was making a difference or not. Thank you Destiny family, for worshiping so passionately that you inspired me to worship with abandon. Destiny Praizteam, each of you have made a huge impact on my life and who I am today. You're beautiful worshipers and I am honored to have been a part of your lives. Thank you front door team for doing your job of giving a warm welcome that first day we came and visited Destiny. If you hadn't done your job, with excellence the way you did, we probably wouldn't have stayed and been able to experience all the blessings we experienced these past six years.

Destiny family... Keep loving, Keep serving, Keep inviting people... Cause you're world changers. You're making a difference. 5000 souls were saved in 10 years. Wow! That's awe inspiring. Countless other lives were changed too... I know, because I'm one of them. Happy 10th Anniversary Destiny!!