Planting a Church Is Like Buying a New Couch

Well, as you know, our precious toddler tot was diagnosed with a dust mite allergy recently, and we are scrambling to make as many changes as we can in our home to keep her from getting sick as often.  We have carpet out of one room and have three more rooms to go.  We have the laminate flooring for one more room but then have to find more for the other two.  Since money is obviously tight as we transition full swing into church planting, I have been praying like crazy for God to provide the resources we need to knock out the dust mites in our home.  Like a good Calvinist, I haven't just been sitting by waiting for everything to drop in our laps. We have been building websites like there is no tomorrow.  I have been scouring craigslist like a vulture waiting for the perfect deals on flooring and furniture.

This past week, God graciously provided the deal of a lifetime on a fairly new leather couch and loveseat set.  A lady was downsizing and needed to get rid of her lightly used furniture quickly, so she sold us everything for $150.  Is it 100% leather?  I doubt it, but it is 100% dust mite unfriendly either way.  For a mom that is sick of seeing her sweet girly whiny with one sinus infection after another, I jumped on the bargain and sent Bryan to pick it up.   Yay!

We quickly realized after moving the new furniture into our tight cozy living room that this was going to be a big change.  After shifting item after item around for about 2 hours like puzzle pieces, we figured out the best combination and locked everything in to stay.  The end result- we have much more room but realize that not everything we have is going to work well with our new setup.

The list starts like this... The chandelier is going to have to leave the room... ok.  It was getting in the way every time we rearranged furniture for launch group anyhow.  We are going to have to downsize our big table. No problem.  Bryan has what we need to build a smaller pub table.  And the list goes on... a necessary change (a.k.a our new leather furniture) has caused a cascade of smaller changes that are inevitable to make the whole thing work.

Welcome to my life now as a church planter's wife!  As we welcomed church planting in as the next frontier of the Cirlot household, so many other things about us are changing and shifting. More than ever, I know how much I need Jesus.  But... I am not complaining.

Just like our new couch, church planting is exactly what we need right now.  Living day to day seeing God's provision is a beautiful, challenging thing. 

I am thankful to be on this journey.  I like being His.

The Jesus Storybook Bible

I just wanted to share a link this morning of a book that we have been going through with Abby during our family devotional times.  I absolutely love this so far!  It does an excellent job of teaching the Gospel message in word imagery that even my two year old can understand.  Check it out!  I've also added a link to Amazon- so far the cheapest place I can find that sells it.

From Carpet to Foam Tiles

Life has been moving really quickly for us in the Cirlot household in the past month.  We've been to Birmingham to visit Audrie and meet her gracious host family.  We've met with church planters to learn how to do what we are doing now most wisely.  We have built several websites and logos for companies local and beyond.  We are quickly nearing the end of Phase 1 of the Acts29 assessment.  Bryan has taught a Dnow,  has had a guys retreat with old friends, and I have taught a VBS class.  Abby has had another positive doctor's appointment from her allergy doctor who just affirmed that our carpet and upholstered furniture has to go soon, and that the changes we are making are making a big difference with her dust mite allergy.  Here's where we are.  

I have been praying that God would provide us with the flooring we need to get rid of our carpet.  This weekend, I found a lot of foam play mat tiles on Craigslist for $30.  We had already bought several packs before to keep over the center of her playroom floor.  The extra tiles I picked up yesterday were EXACTLY the same type we had already bought and EXACTLY the number we needed to rip up the carpet and completely cover the floors.  Isn't God good?

The old gross carpet we had to start with minus the baseboards.

No wonder Abby is sick all of the time.  It is gross when you pull up carpet!  It smelled funky too.

10 hours later... Flooring is complete! Abby saw it for the first time this morning and said, "WOW!"

The Story

Check this out.  It tells the Gospel in a beautiful way that is easy to understand.  I shared it with my VBS class today, and they really listened to it well.  I hope you enjoy it too!  Share with your friends.

Silly Daddy!

Silly Daddy from Peripety Designs on Vimeo.

Daddy trying to get Abby ready for bed. He tried to take her dress off without unbuttoning it to begin with. Funny!