UPDATE: IN 2017 THE BULLS ARE HEADING TO THE USA

You didn’t read it wrong, we will be heading to America for three months in 2017! Please explain you may ask, well let me back track and give you a little bit of context to all of this. 

Earlier this year Tayla and I began to get an ever so gentle sense that our time at METRO was coming to an end. Pastor Garry (our senior pastor) and I began to have conversations about this sense of unrest and uncertainty about the future. Tayla and I prayed earnestly, sought after wise counsel and after a lengthy process came to the decision that we felt like the time was right for us to finish up at METRO. This decision was not made lightly and was not made over night even though it may come as a complete shock to most of you. Many really healthy and honouring conversations have taken place in the right forum and we felt at complete peace about the decision. I must mention how great Pastor Garry and the elders at METRO Church have been and we so appreciate their voice in both of our lives. 

The best way to describe the leading we both had was that we felt like we must take step one, which was finishing up at METRO, and God would reveal step two after that. A verse in Hebrews which talks about Abraham being called to go out and not know where he was going best describes how we felt. Hebrews 11:8 “ By faith Abraham obeyed when he was called to go out to a place that he was to receive as an inheritance. And he went out, not knowing where he was going.”

So we took step one, agreed to finish up at METRO at the end of the year and step out into the unknown. This process has definitely been character building as it has made sure our faith and trust is in God alone. For longer than a month now we have been prayerfully considering our future, not rushing any decisions and really looking for the leading of God in all of this.

A few months ago Tayla and I booked a two week holiday to the USA in January. The idea arose recently to extend our trip in the USA and get involved at a church we’ve loved from a far called Newspring Church in South Carolina. Newspring is a church that sees 26,000+ people attend on weekends and meets in 16 locations across the state and in the past 16 years have baptised 25,000+ people. We have friends on staff there and started chatting recently about the potential of moving over there for a few months to get involved, catch culture, learn and serve at the church. On Monday this week we received the news that it was all clear for us to head over there for a few months and be a part of the church. 

We are heading to Newspring to volunteer and be a part of something pretty special that God is doing! We have no children, no mortgage and nothing holding us to the Gold Coast and it’s the perfect time in our life to go on a wild adventure. We're pumped to roll up our sleeves, get involved, make new friends, lots of memories and go to an NBA game (well maybe just me on that last one). I preach all the time at Revolution that the gospel leads us to take risks and to unknown places. We feel that we are practicing what we preach!

Our greatest desires is to still see people come into a relationship with Jesus. Our passion is as strong as ever before for the local church and we believe that God will do something great in and through us in this next season of our lives. Come January 17, 2017 we will be off to the America and then due to our visa we will return to Australia in April and see where God leads us after that. Next year excites us, feels right and we believe that this is the next step we need to take.

In conclusion I will say this after being on staff at METRO for four years I have learned a lot, made great memories, seen God do amazing things and I leave knowing METRO will always be family. Pastor Garry gave me a shot, my resume was not flattering but God partnered us together. I can’t begin to say how thankful I am for my time at METRO and particularly Pastor Garry and Kasey. I’m only better because of my time at METRO. This next chapter of our lives is exciting and I’m glad I go into it knowing METRO will always be family. 

We would appreciate your prayers in this next season and thank you all so much for your support!