Grace Alive Allowed Us To Connect On A Deeper Level
Difficult and trying times call for brothers and sisters in Christ to place the interest of others before themselves while encouraging, praying for, and loving one another. At the beginning of 2020, my family and I were in a difficult and trying season after losing our first born son, Kayell, in October 2019. My wife Ladeen went into early labor at only 6 months pregnant. During that time, we were also transitioning from our current jobs, searching for a new church, and dealing with broken relationships. We had a lot of mixed emotions during that time, however, we had no idea that making the decision to visit Grace Alive one Sunday morning would impact our lives in such a positive way. We experienced Philippians 2:1-7 from the day that we arrived at Grace Alive. We realized that Pastor Cam and staff didn’t only recite the phrase “We are not like a family, We are a family”, but they actually loved living that phrase out amongst the flock.
After visiting Grace Alive a few times we became excited to witness our fellow multi-ethinic brothers and sisters serving alongside one another and loving one another. Having the opportunity to labor in Christ alongside a diverse group of people became a beautiful reality and we felt like we were catching a glimpse of heaven. This filled our hearts with joy and gratitude and we feel blessed to partake in the masterpiece that only God himself could put together.
Another thing that we thoroughly appreciated and found beneficial were the amount of people we were able to connect who poured into our lives immediately. The constant prayers and check ins broke down our walls from past experiences. It allowed us to connect with others on a deeper level without feeling like we had to protect ourselves. Personally, I’ve built relationships at Grace Alive that it would’ve taken years to build in the past because of how genuine everyone is. Community groups is another outlet that helped us connect with others and allowed us to feel free to share our story without being judged.
Since Grace Alive is a church plant, it has plenty of opportunities to serve the body. This provides new members, such as myself and my family, an opportunity to serve the body in many ways. My wife and I enjoy serving on Sundays and during the week to help fuel the mission by spreading the Gospel to our community. It is truly satisfying to see people respond to the call of the Gospel and witness lives change. We serve because Christ first served us by coming to die for our sins on the cross and, to express our gratitude, we serve with excellence.
We are excited to see what God is doing in our lives and in the life of the church. We're also thankful that God has brought us to Grace Alive because it has truly edified our spirits by hearing the Gospel every Sunday morning and being part of Community Groups which helps us throughout the week. We can’t wait to see where God takes us on this journey at Grace Alive. Last but not least, we thank God for blessing us with our baby boy Kaleb who was born in October, 2020.