***Did you know that today marks the 9th anniversary of the weekend in which we went public with our ministry in this community? We initially started in September of 2004 with weekly prayer and church-planting training and preparation. But we didn’t go public until March 25-27, 2005.
Before that public opening we were already ministering in Harrisburg. We ministered in a weekly food outreach, providing praise and worship while a team from another local church, distributed food to the people who gathered. We also participated in various prayer gatherings and even ministered in a couple of churches. All the while, we were preparing our team to minister to the hearts and homes of Harrisburg. We met weekly in a leased facility in uptown Harrisburg. Meanwhile, another congregation was preparing to unite with us as our ‘opening day’ approached.
However, we weren’t ready for the spiritual warfare that was about to be unleashed upon us. Even as we were purchasing equipment, furnishings, chairs, carpet and flooring, the demonic forces over this community were preparing their weapons and sneak attacks against us.
By the time we went public on the Easter weekend of March in 2005, the other congregation had been manipulated by its interim leader into voting against uniting with us. Within our own ranks, there was division as we fell into disagreement. We didn’t handle it very well. Since then, we have all been reconciled, but at that time, we were overwhelmed.
We held our first public service on Good Friday and the place was completely filled with people from the community, including one pastor who brought his entire congregation to welcome us to the city. Our first Sunday service was filled with well-wishers and visitors. We were feeling pretty good about things, in spite of the relationship strains and the broken promise from the other congregation. Little did we know that this weekend was the start of what was to become a pattern of warfare and opposition over the next nine years.
Six months later, in September of 2005, our Bishop and overseers came to Harrisburg to officially install and appoint us in our new roles as senior pastor and first lady of the new church. This took place exactly one year after our initial launch in September of 2004. Many powerful exhortations and words of wisdom came forth, as several pastors from the community joined together to unite with us in the spiritual battle over this region.
But, just three months after that, most of our small congregation was gone. Our initial team was gone. Miraculously, someone paid off our final two months of our lease, and we moved out of the facility, placing all of our church equipment and furnishings in storage a couple days after Christmas. It was the saddest and most depressing moment
of our lives.
The first thing we had to do was look for jobs and start the transition from full time ministry to full time employees in someone’s company or organization. God graciously gave us both jobs with the state of Pennsylvania.
We tried to keep the church family together, as we met in a hotel for about four weeks before shifting our meetings to our home. A few more of the members dropped off at that point.
One of the local pastors, who befriended us, offered the use of a room within their church. We took him up on that offer and we began meeting in one of their classrooms on Friday evenings. On one of those Friday gatherings, a new family started coming to our church. So we just began to focus on ministering to them.
The years that followed were nothing short of hell on earth. We were simply crushed with one disappointment after another. It became too much to keep trying to meet in a public setting so we shifted our weekly gathering to our home. We continued to meet on Friday nights for several months. The Lord ministered healing to us, even as we ministered healing to those who attended faithfully.
After almost a year, we moved back into the public, returning to a hotel on Sunday mornings. Then we returned to the church of our pastor and friend. We met on Saturday evenings until the Lord opened the door for us to move into the United Church Center in December of 2009.
Since moving into the United Church Center, we have been able to stabilize the ministry and provide consistent teaching. After a couple years, the same old attack pattern of the devil came against us again. This time we had to fight through satan’s attempt to get us kicked out of the Center and that fight led to an open door for our own meeting space.
As we sit in our new office or walk into our meeting space, we’re incredibly thankful to God for His presence. We’re so thankful for our church family. Even though people have come and gone, we have been able to stay on track and establish a foundation for rebuilding, restoring and renewing hearts and homes.
All of this, and so much more, fills our thoughts as we reflect upon the significance of this week. It simply causes us to proclaim the goodness, mercy and faithfulness of God.
Please receive our testimony and story as confirmation that God will sustain you through anything. This is the reason why we declare, “You cannot lose unless you give up. So don't give up!.”
In spite of our disappointments, failures and fears, God has brought forth the fulfillment of many of His promises to us. This is the Lord’s doing and it is marvelous in our eyes.
