It's been a hard two years. Health wise, house wise (two floods!). Add in a global pandemic, loss of jobs, loss of health insurance, loss of direction, and that's the Tiner family in 2020.
We've been waiting for God's direction and clear will in our lives for awhile. Chris's last day as an associate pastor for Lake Houston Church of the Nazarene was July 31. My last day at Elm Grove Elementary in Humble ISD was August 2. We'd been self-quarantined to the house for 6 months because of my health, since there were still way too many people in the Kingwood/Houston area who didn't take COVID seriously, upping my risk as an immunocompromised person of contracting the virus (another reason I had to resign from my job).
We were waiting. We were waiting on God. Our prayer from the beginning of knowing that Chris was feeling called to transition from youth/worship pastor to lead pastor was that doors would be opened wide that we should walk through, and cemented shut that we should stay out of.
We started getting really serious about seeking out lead pastor positions in March. Opportunities came, and went. And we kept praying the same prayer. And doors were cemented shut. Over, and over again, they were cemented shut. The days of a paid associate position were coming to an end. My days as a paid educator were coming to an end as well, although I didn't know it at the time. I cried out to God often, sometimes in despair. But we kept praying the same prayer.
Then the opportunity floodgates opened. Ten churches were suddenly considering us. I say "us" because even though it's Chris that they're hiring, churches always see what the spouse and family are like as well. We had several informal interviews, an informal visit, and then suddenly, we were onto formal interview prospects with three churches, with seven other churches calling and looking at Chris's resume.
And one of those felt right from the beginning. And that church was Lovington. Lovington First Church of the Nazarene, also known as LovingtonNaz, located in southeast New Mexico.
We kept praying for the opening or the closing of doors, and with Lovington, wow, did God (once again) show his faithfulness.
With Lovington there was always, ALWAYS this overwhelming sense of peace. A few weeks after the first informal interview, we had a more formal Zoom interview, and then drove over to Lovington to have a more formal interview with the board, and Chris preached.
Before the trip, we knew that I would have to have a job to make finances work. When I looked on the school district's website, there was nothing music related. The only thing I thought I might be able to add a certification to was high school Social Studies. So I was taking the practice Certification Test, when Chris came to me with a text from the board secretary who had contacted the Lovington District Superintendent. There actually WAS a music job available...an elementary music position for a 2nd and 3rd grade music teacher, but they hadn't been able to find an acceptable candidate for so long that they'd finally just taken the position off the school district's website. I cried when I got that news. A job that didn't exist for me suddenly existed. They arranged for me to interview while we were over there the day after Chris preached.
We arrived in Lovington. I became skittish when I found there was no coffee shop open on Saturday mornings (stupid, I know!). This was the first thing I brought up at the board meeting (great lead-in, Steph!). They happily informed me that there actually was a new coffee shop being built and would be open in the next week or so. So yeah, it was stupid, but they accepted my quirks and made me feel welcome. The board meeting went well. They let us be ourselves and were gracious as we shared our testimony. It really was a lovely time.
The next day our family helped lead worship and Chris preached. The congregants all came in masked, which was a huge relief to me. I know many see masking as unnecessary...for someone with my health, it is an act of love and compassion. It was a wonderful service.
Later than night we had an outdoor, socially distanced (and masked when not eating) cookout where we could get to know the congregants more and they could get know us. Again, such a wonderful time. They were so welcoming.
The next day, I interviewed for the music teaching position. New Mexico has significantly more stringent laws and regulations for COVID than Texas. In both of my schools, there is currently a 1 to 5 teacher to student ratio. Grades 4 and above are online. I won't be teaching music yet because it is considered a more dangerous subject to teach, and the teachers need classroom support, which I'm happy to provide. I was offered the job a few hours after I left (providing Chris got the job).
Both the board and the congregation approved Chris as the new pastor the next weekend. It was such a happy, happy moment for our family. Kadee Joy in particular had LOVED Lovington, and had been so welcomed by the teenagers of the church. We felt so confident that God had brought things about in such a miraculous way. Chris said yes to answering the call of the church.
After a crazy week and a half of packing (with the help of friends and members of Lake Houston), we got the house in Houston packed up and it is currently getting ready to be put on the market. We moved into the parsonage the church provided for us. They've welcomed us with meals, help moving in, messages to check in on us...It's been great. Chris had his installation service on Sunday, and I started my first day yesterday. We're still trying to get the kids completely enrolled in school (Kadee Joy and Luke are good to go, but Andrew and Jeffrey are taking a little longer because Special Education is always more complex, particularly in the current educational climate). Today was thrown off by having a bizarre ice/snow day. Welcome to southeast New Mexico!
I just can't begin to say how thankful I am for the many, many prayers that have brought us to this point. We are so, so happy and grateful to be in Lovington.
"Do not conform to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what God's will is--his good, pleasing and perfect will."
Romans 12:2
"I am not saying this because I am in need, for I have learned to be content whatever the circumstances. I know what it is to be in need, and I know what it is to have plenty. I have learned the secret of being content in any and every situation, whether well fed or hungry, whether living in plenty or in want. I can do all this through him who gives me strength."
Philippians 4:11-13
