It’s official. I’m now a member of the church.
On paper, it may look like a small step. In my heart, it feels like a big one.
Yesterday I sat with the pastor for 45 minutes, and in that conversation I felt something stir. Like roots finding soil.
I’ve already fulfilled the two-hour class, completed the application packet, and now I’m signed up to help set up for an event this Sunday morning. It feels good to begin lending a hand. Simple things.
There are many ways I can grow here. Through prayer groups. Through mentorship. Through serving. Through community. Through giving. Truth is, being part of a church family is not only something I want. It is something I need in this season of life. This feels right.
One of the ways we spoke about growth was through tithing. Scripture speaks of 10 percent. To be honest, I had some concern here.
The pastor did not pressure me. He spoke instead of trust. Trusting the Lord to provide, but also growing in that trust.
I gave him a number I felt I could commit to each month. He asked me to think of it not only as a dollar amount but as a percentage of my income. That way, part of my faith journey could be learning to increase it over time.
I am starting at 2 percent. That is okay. I have room to grow.
I will begin as a greeter via the Welcome Team, and I am genuinely excited for it. To stand at the door, smile, look people in the eye, and welcome hundreds as they enter.
It feels like holy work. The kind of work that requires the thing I can give best, simply my presence.
Beyond that, I see opportunities to serve with the skills I already carry. Digital media. Communication. Even a part-time ministry program seems to be opening as a possibility.
And here is the part that amazes me. This journey started with me as a janitor, scrubbing toilets and mopping floors in this same building.
Looking back, it does not feel accidental. It feels like God’s handwriting. As if He knew the arc before I even saw the line.
There is this sentiment from the poet, Mark Nepo. “The flower does not dream of the bee. It blossoms, and the bee comes.”
Maybe that is what is happening. Maybe my work is to keep saying yes. To blossom where I am. To trust God to send what comes next.
Trust is definitely growing.