Change, Pain and Growth in God's Story

Even though I probably have had the least amount of time on team, I feel like I’ve grown so much just by being under the influence of Aaron and Steph and the other team members. They all have encouraged and pushed me to grow spiritually. The influence of Aaron and Steph started way before team though. In 2018, the combination of Aaron’s preaching at my local church and Steph’s truth squares and her conversations with me helped set my heart up for growth through the life change that was going to occur that year. The influence of the team members started before team as well. I had connections with all the team members the fall of their 2018-2019 year. So because of that, I started keeping up to date with them and praying consistently for them. Little did I know that my constant prayers for the team and the Coffey family, would lead me to the team a year later.
My spiritual growth continued through the process of God leading me to the team. I remember so many specific ways in my life personally that Proverbs 3:5-6 was fulfilled, and at the same time, hearing how God was working on the other end with the Aaron and Stephanie extending the invitation for me to join. Before joining team in August 2019, Aaron had us read The Gospel Primer and I know that it opened up my spiritual eyes more than ever before. I saw the Gospel in a whole different way, one that either I hadn’t ever paid attention to before or was something new that I learned! My mind was blown and I was so excited to grow even more with this new spiritual concept that was revealed to me, and I hadn’t even gotten to team yet! I remember how humbled I was when I initially joined the team. I didn’t come right out of college like the others, but I knew I had grown a lot from a hard situation in my life and knew God wanted to use me in a special way.

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Coming from a life of teaching full time, everything was always so structured, organized, and ran smoothly because that’s a particular way that God has gifted me. So after joining team as the only new person, I had to swallow my pride of not knowing everything and ask questions. My pride was exposed right away when my structure, organization, or my “ducks in a row” were all stripped away from me! It was sooo good for me though as I got quickly adjusted to team life. I continued to grow when we read Respectable Sins by Jerry Bridges together for our team devotions in the fall. I thought I was a pretty good Christian, a rule-follower, and a “good kid.” I got to a point where I was so self-sufficient that I didn’t see my daily sin. That book was such a huge spiritual spanking for me, and there were so many sin areas of my life that were revealed.
Our team devotion times were such a special time for me to hear how God was working in other people’s lives, be encouraged, and grow closer to the team spiritually. This past semester we were working through a book called How People Change and my eyes were opened again in such a huge way. For almost a year and half, I couldn’t call my biggest life’s trial good. I questioned so many things and yes, I accepted it as from the Lord and knew He wanted me to grow, but I didn’t call it good. I didn’t see the entire situation through the lens of the Gospel before. The book really helped me see it through that lense. I remember I was specifically struggling when we were in Matthews, NC. I was struggling with being in the same city as the day I was hurt the most in my life. The pain was unbearable that week as memories came flooding back and my heart was so restless. But the night that Aaron was preaching through Romans 8:28-39 as part of our “Romans 8 Singspiration,” tears flowed down my face as I finally realized that even my hurt, my pain, even the memories, were all considered good and part of God’s story for me. I can trust God in every chapter that He's already written for His redemptive story.
This year has been such a growing year for me, and there is so much more I could say. I’m so thankful for Aaron and Stephanie’s commitment to seeing me grow spiritually. They are not only committed to ministry, but they’re committed to our team as a whole, and to mentor me specifically. I’m incredibly thankful for how tangibly Aaron and Stephanie have shown me Jesus! I’m thankful for the ways that the team members push me to grow as well. Each of the team members have a unique way that God is working in their lives, and watching them grow themselves has challenged me. I am so thankful for five people who were committed to listening, counseling, & praying for me.
​I’m so excited for how God will continue to make me more like Jesus as I continue with the Coffey Team in 2020-2021!

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