James and I are tag teaming in the series on how Saint James Kingstowne came into being.  I was brought on in May with one primary mission: finding a location for our second site.  We all felt very strongly that God had called us to plant another site and that He would have a place for us.  In some ways knowing that, the pressure was off me, in other ways I felt this was my first task at a new church and I did not want to fail at it by coming up short.

I began brainstorming places and had a list of about 15 places to start: movie theaters, restaurants, government centers, and neighborhood clubhouses.  Other ideas came from leaders at Saint James and people who live in that area.  It wasn’t long before the Franconia Volunteer Fire Department made it onto the list of places to visit, but for some reason, it became one of the last places I went.

As soon as we received approval from the district to begin our search, I began spending my days on the road.  I drove around Kingstowne and Springfield, walking around shopping centers and industrial parks, going in to every place that had an open door (and some that didn’t).  Some of the most memorable were: the lazyboy store where I sat in comfy chairs trying to imagine an appropriate configuration of chairs and sofas, the churches that wouldn’t return James or my calls, the sports bar where the manager said, “You would want to hold church here?” as he looked over at the rack of alcohol on the bar and laughed, the bar that I walked out of when I couldn’t breath because of the smoke, the manager of another faith who suggested I consider the church on the corner (which happens to be a Mormon temple), the manager who said I wasn’t worth her time if I wasn’t talking four figures or more, the customer who was from a local church and asked me why I didn’t just join his church, and in general, the looks of surprise, confusion, and terror as I approached managers and employees alike.

The great thing about this journey was that I was able to take that time to walk all over the area that we knew we were called to.  I was able to meet people and let them know that there are churches out there that are willing to get creative to reach people.  People shared stuff with me in the process of leading me on or trying to say no thank you.  I learned about them and they learned about us.  That wasn’t futile in any sense.  In some cases I revisited people and had long conversations with them about their life or what we were about.  I can tell they still recognize me when our paths cross and I can only hope that they might come check us out.

Not only that, but I was able to pray over these areas and pray about this venture while walking and driving.  It is rare that we take that kind of time and this was a way that God provided it for me.  It was so encouraging to be reminded that this was His venture, not ours.

Then I went to the Franconia Volunteer Fire Department (FVFD).  There are a lot of entrances, but I picked one and found myself in the entry way to their Bingo Hall.  I couldn’t find anyone so I walked in and just looked around.  I liked the fire hall display cases, the stage, even the bingo board added something.  It had great features like being handicap accessible, a big entry way, plenty of space to grow, nice bathrooms, lots of parking, it was in walking distance to several neighborhoods, and something just felt right.  I eventually found someone who gave me a number to call.

I left a message for a lady who I have since come to love, but didn’t know what to expect.  The next night I was asked to give an update at our leadership meeting and I shared that I had not had any real leads and was going to keep trying.  We talked about the possibility of postponing, as we were getting close (this was July 17 and we had originally planned to kick off in September).

The next day I was headed down to my other church job in Richmond.  I left early as I was going to try to spend some extra time with one of my youth, but we came to a sudden stop on 95 just a half hour South.  I soon learned from a truck driver that there was a Hazmat accident 1 mile ahead (just 1 mile!) and that we would not be going anywhere for a while (3 and a half hours later they turned us around and had us take a detour on 95 N to US-1 S).  Fortunately I had just eaten lunch, I had a full tank, and I was in no real rush, so I set out to chat with people who were getting out of their cars too.

As I was walking on the side of 95 on a hot summers day, trying to calm down some frustrated people and stay hydrated, I got a call from a lady named Susanne at the fire house.  She asked why we were interested in the Bingo Hall and what we were about.  She loved the description of our church and she loved the idea of our coming to the FVFD.  She said that she was the hall manager and pretty much had the ability to say yes or no at will and she gave a tentative yes right then.  From the moment she called, I got chills and they took a while to go away.  I felt like right there, on the side of 95 in scorching heat and under the oddest of circumstances, I was standing on holy ground.  God had given us the place He had promised us when He called the leaders of Saint James to this vision.

I just knew it was the right place and Susanne and I instantly hit off and put our heads together about a possible schedule, proper financial arrangement, and even the idea of forming a stronger bond between the FVFD and Saint James.  She seemed really excited that we weren’t just interested in using a space, but getting involved in a community.  How wonderful that anything we give them for using their space goes to helping a fire department and that they might be more inclined to talk to us or maybe even go to church because we are there.

When James, Tony, and I walked into the FVFD to meet with Susanne for the first time she recognized me from the picture on our website.  She cared enough to look us up and find out more about us.  We all hit it off and it seemed like everything we asked for, she was willing to work with us on.  We all left that night knowing without a doubt that this was going to be one great adventure for God.  God taught me a lot about trust and His care through bringing us to the location of our second site.  It took two months for me to really get that lesson, but I wouldn’t have traded that time for anything.