Wednesday, May 27, 2009

Hendersonville - God's Plan all along?



If you haven't heard, we are moving to TN this summer - Hendersonville to be exact. My Husband went out to visit different areas in March of this year - seeing as neither of us had ever been - it seemed prudent to at least check out the area - not that we have a lack of faith - we just wanted to know what we were signing up for. Now the areas that I gave him to check out were Franklin, Brentwood, Hendersonville, Mt Juliet and Lebannon - with my hopes for Franklin. Well - he really did like Franklin and began to look for a home there for us. After a few days though - he decided to check out some other areas. His first day in Hendersonville - he came across a house - and by the next day - he leased it. From what I can tell, it is a really nice house, in a quiet, newer neighborhood, just four blocks from the lake.

Now - what I just discovered this morning. God really has a sense of humor. Our youngest son, Carter was wearing a Bible camp shirt that came with him from Ethiopia. He got toothpaste all over it, so I asked him to go change. When he turned around, I noticed the writing on the back. I asked him to come closer - would you believe that it said First Baptist Church - Hendersonville!!

I just spoke with a very kind pastor from this church last week. It sounded like it might be too big for us, and one or two other things that would not be a good match for us, but now I feel like we have to at least check it out.

14 comments:

Fellowship 686 said...

Amazing confirmation Justine!!! God is awesome...

Shelley Egly said...

ok that is crazy! amanda forwarded this to me. my husband is the young adult minister at fbch and we are adopting two girls from ethiopia! we would be soooo glad if we could meet you when you move.

Jaime said...

Now that's a small world! hey, there may be other ethiopia adoptees at that church (hence, the tshirt) so that's worth looking into!

Jason Egly said...

That is amazing. Seriously, how did it get there?

Let me know if we can help you in any way. There are several great communities of faith here in Hendersonville, including FBC. I'd love to help your family find the one that is "home."

Anonymous said...

That is amazing about the shirt!!! Wow!!

Anonymous said...

Found the link to your blog through Jason Egly's web-site. I attend FBC Hendersonville, too. It really is an awesome place. We moved to Gallatin (just north of Hendersonville) in 2002. We had always attended smaller churches, and I was also worried about the whole "mega-church" thing. After one visit, though, we knew without a doubt that we would never leave. It is an incredible community. There are so many ways to become involved and really live out your faith. We have been thrilled with the children's ministry, and are now looking forward to the youth ministry since our son is now in middle school. Ed Stetzer, our interim, is just awesome. You will have to check out his blog sometime (www.edstetzer.com). He has posted about how God worked to bring him to FBCH even before we knew Bro. Glenn was sick. Anyway, sorry for the long post, but just wanted to encourage you from someone who was also scared of "the big church." :)

Anonymous said...

Oh, and incidentally, my son has that same shirt! ;)

Jessica said...

OK... that is amazing!!! I am here fr/ Jason and Shelley's blog and I cannot believe my tear-filled eyes!! God is so good!

KG said...

This gave me goose bumps! First Baptist Hendersonville is our Church home - we have never been members of a Church with over 200 people so it was a bit of an adjustment but we realized that we were putting limits on God and his Church - He is Wonderful and can do so much more than any of us can ever imagine!! Hope to meet you someday!

Coby & Brandy said...

I just went on Jason Egly's page and saw this story about your son and the tee shirt. I am a member of FBH and my husband and I adopted our son from Russia 9 months ago and we are looking into possibly going to Ethiopia for our next kid(s). You will love Nashville and all it has. We moved here 5 years ago from Northern California and we love it here!! Also, my husband is a realtor so if you have any questions about the area, I know he could answer your questions!! His e-mail is coby@cobyginsberg.com and our blog is www.ginsbergsrussianadoption.blogspot.com. Hope to meet you all one day!!! Godspeed with your move across the country. I know it's not easy, but you will love TN!! Brandy

Amy Watson said...

Found your blog through the Egly's Blog (a beautiful tapestry). What a cool story. Unbelievable.

We're adopting from Ethiopia as well, and also in the Nashville area (but not very close to Hendersonville).

Jen said...

Wow! What a great reminder of God's Sovereignty and that He cares about the details of our lives. We are adopting from Eithiopia also and live in H'ville. Would love to get together when you get here:)

Jean said...

Hey Gamble family! What an amazing story of the sovereignty of our great God!! I live over in East TN (just south of Knoxville) and we're DTE 080808 waiting for our referral for a little girl from ET as well. There's a great Ethiopian connection of families in the Nashville area (as well as a great ET restaurant with pretty authenic ET food) ...
Will be praying for your family as you make this transition!!

Blessings,

JC
DTE 080808

Kate said...

Justine, I had to check out the picture of the shirt-I followed the link from Jason Egly's Facebook page. I'm from FBCH as well and am so excited to hear your story! What a beautiful family you have!
Thank you for sharing in your blog the spiritual things God is teaching you. What a generous and vulnerable thing to do.
I am so excited you will get to be in Hendersonville! I hope our church can be your new home. You will find that the Egly family has quite a crew of friends rooting for them; I have never seen such a precious group of Christian brothers and sisters as God has given the Egly's. I know all of them will want to express their love and support for you and your family. I'll be praying for your smooth transition to a new place--always a challenge, but particularly with young children! May God continue to bless you and confirm what He has shown you to do.