Since I left high school, I have not lived anywhere near my parents. In fact, most of the places I have lived have been at least a couple of hours away from any relatives. Not long after we were married, Mandy and I moved away and her story is similar: We have rarely lived close to anyone we are related to. That does not mean we have not had community. There was a time in California that our circle of friends were as close (or closer) than family. Almost every job I have had has included co-workers that I have become quite close to. And I have left some very good friends all over this country. But nothing compares to the community we are in the midst of now.

When we came to NewSpring nine months ago, it was primarily for me to put my IT & leadership skills into effect to help the church accomplish their vision. We saw it as a calling of God to be part of something dynamic. Since being here, we have become immersed in a community. I have developed some cool relationships with senior staff and other co-workers. The team I get to lead and work with on a daily basis are some of my favorite people in the world. It is only now, after discovering I have cancer, that I realize that us being here at NewSpring was more of an invitation from God. I realize now that God was not so much saying, “Zac, I need your skills in South Carolina to get stuff done at NewSpring,” as He was saying, “Zac, you need to be at NewSpring to get through what I’ve got for you.” We are here because this is the best place for us to be. I frankly do not know how we, as a family, or I, as an individual, could have dealt with all of this without the community that surrounds us.

To wit:

• Dinner was brought to my family while I was in the hospital and for several weeks following
• Absurd amounts of chidcare were provided
• We have been given Chick fil-A and grocery store gift cards
• We have been given movie theater gift cards
• We have been given Target gift cards
• We have been given cash
• Our large lawn was — and continues to be — mowed every week
• A team came out and sprayed our poison ivy and cleaned up the weeds along our lengthy driveway
• I continue to receive sweets of all kinds in an effort to fatten me up
• We have received emotional help
• We are constantly encouraged spiritually

And none of this shows signs of letting up. I would not want to be anywhere else in the world than in the midst of this community right now. The people of NewSpring live out their faith and their beliefs. In other words, they do not simply talk about Jesus, they act like Him.

Tags: Cancer, community, NewSpring

This entry was posted by zac on Monday, June 22nd, 2009 at 2:14 pm and is filed under Cancer, NewSpring. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.