Hello again, friend! I’m so excited to have you back. I loved sharing how our journey began, and I’m just as excited to tell you the next part.

Now, where did I leave off?

Oh yes—we left.

Genesis 12:1 says, “Now the Lord said to Abram, ‘Go from your country and your kindred and your father’s house to the land that I will show you.’”

That verse still hits me deep in my soul. It speaks so clearly to the next chapter in our adventure. We knew God was calling us to go—away from everything safe and familiar—toward somewhere He would show us.

I imagine Abram must’ve felt a lot of what we felt: uncertainty, anxiousness, even fear. And he didn’t have the benefit of Apple Maps or Zillow! At least we had some idea of what we were stepping into.

So, we headed to my parents’ house in Maryland. I needed care at the wound clinic at Fort Belvoir, and they graciously opened their home to us while we waited on God’s direction for what was next.

The Healing Journey

Before I dive too far into our next moves, let me take a moment to share about my healing—because it’s a big part of how God was working during this season.

At this point, it had been over two months, and my foot still hadn’t healed. I still had a literal hole between my third and fourth toes. Walking into the wound care clinic at Fort Belvoir, I felt immediate hope. It was like a breath of fresh air.

The physician I saw had a plan—and a backup plan—and even a backup to the backup. That alone was more encouraging than anything I’d heard up to that point. It reminded me of the day back in Hawaii when the infectious disease doctor rounded on me and told me that my bones were pristine—the infection hadn’t spread to them. He looked at me and said, “Someone up there is looking out for you.” He was honestly shocked.

Later, the doctor at Fort Belvoir told me he’d had multiple patients in similar situations—some had lost their foot or leg, and one had even lost their life. Hearing that put it all into perspective. By God’s grace, the infection was completely gone, and I was finally on a path to healing.

It would still be six more months before I could walk normally, but I finally felt confident that my body would heal. And looking back, I see how gracious God was to place me under a provider who gave me a real, tangible hope—right when I needed it most. I was frustrated, exhausted, and just wanted to be able to run again.

A Temporary Home and a Big Decision

While I healed, we were living with my parents—who, fun fact, were also in transition to their new lake house in Virginia. So, Bruce got to help them move from Maryland to Virginia (I cheered from the sidelines!) and helped get them settled in their beautiful new home. And once again, my parents graciously let us keep living with them until we figured out where God was taking us.

During that time, Bruce had a couple of interviews. One church sounded promising—they were able to offer him a small stipend, and it looked like things might move forward. But while Bruce was talking with the pastor during the interview, he heard an audible voice say, “This is not for you.”

That’s it. Just five words—but they completely changed the trajectory of our story.

Bruce thanked the church and walked away from the opportunity. Then he picked up the phone and called Pastor Mark.

Park Valley Church

Back when we were still in Hawaii, Bruce had a conversation with Pastor Mark from Park Valley Church (PVC) in Haymarket, Virginia. Mark had told him to call once we got back to the East Coast. So, Bruce did.

They worked something out, and not long after, Bruce started at PVC as the Associate Campus Pastor and Youth Pastor for a satellite campus—and as Assistant Care Pastor for the entire church.

It was exactly where God wanted us. But… it didn’t come with a paycheck.

Gulp.

Still, we stepped out in faith and said yes. And PVC ended up being a place where our faith grew beyond anything we expected—and where God provided in the wildest ways.

Mark and his wife Judy graciously offered to rent us their basement apartment—for way less than they could have—and they became incredible friends. Mark is still one of Bruce’s closest friends and mentors. We love them dearly!

So we moved out of the lake house and into the home of anotheramazingly generous couple in Haymarket. God was stillproviding.

More Provision and the Beauty of Flexibility

I kept looking for work. We had savings, but it wasn’t going to stretch over two years of Bruce not being on active duty (spoiler alert: it ended up being eight years!).

A few months in, the small groups pastor at PVC needed an assistant. I interviewed and got the job. It was part-time and flexible—just what we needed. If I had to go into the office and Bruce was unavailable, I could bring our toddler with me. It wasn’t a huge paycheck, but it was enough—and yet again, God was providing.

We truly thrived at PVC. We loved being in ministry, loved the people, and loved being in it together. But I’ll be honest—I still struggled to trust God with our finances. I believed He had called us and was providing, but it didn’t always look the way I wanted it to. We both had moments of doubt and struggle, but thankfully, we never doubted at the same time.

So we kept serving, kept growing, and kept trusting—imperfectly but wholeheartedly.

I had the joy of helping launch Growth Track and worked with Pastor John to develop small groups and pour into small group leaders. Bruce learned how to lead a campus, shepherd a care team, and step back into youth ministry. We especially loved pouring into the youth and children at the Ashburn campus—it was so life-giving to be in ministry together again.

A Pivotal Conversation

We also joined a small group, and through that group, a key moment in our calling unfolded.

At a party hosted by a couple in our small group (Vickie and Charlie we’re waving at you!), Bruce met a retired Navy chaplain. During their conversation, the chaplain mentioned that the Navy had changed its requirements for chaplains. Specifically, half of the Master of Divinity program now had to be completed in person.

At the time, Bruce had been working through his M.Div. online through Liberty University. He was already more than halfway done.

And y’all—drop/add week for the semester ended in three days.

“Go” — Again

That night, we stayed up late, praying. What were we supposed to do? Making the change to resident student status would mean a sudden move to Lynchburg.

The next morning, I got in my 4Runner to head to work. It was a beautiful, sunny day. I rolled down the windows, turned up the radio, and K-LOVE was playing “Reckless” by Jeremy Camp.

As I listened, I just knew—God was asking us to “go” again, to a place that he would show us.

I called Bruce and said, “I’m in. One hundred percent.” (Even though the idea of leaving our PVC family made me incredibly sad.)

That Thursday, Bruce started making calls. In order for him to switch from online to residential, several things had to happen in about 24 hours:

• Apply for residential status

• Get accepted

• Update financial aid

• Get permission for a 21-hour semester (an overload semester to meet the residency requirements of the Navy)

• Enroll in classes that still had seats available

It felt impossible, insurmountable. But God. 

Down to the Wire

By 4:00 p.m. on Friday, Bruce had been approved for everything—except three classes were full. The only option was to show up and ask the professors in person to force-add him to their rosters.

Meanwhile, I was breaking the news to friends, family, and our pastors: come Monday, Bruce would be in Lynchburg,attempting to get into the classes he needed. (Let me remind you—I was six months pregnant at this point. So to say I was an emotional mess, may have been an understatement.)

Monday morning came, and Bruce drove to Liberty to attend his first class. Over the next two days, each professor he needed to meet with agreed to add him. Every door opened.

In less than a week, Bruce had gone from online student to full-time residential, enrolled in 21 credit hours.

Only God

Friends, I’m tearing up just remembering how good God was through all of it. Even now, I get goosebumps. None of this surprised Him. He knew the Navy would change the requirements. He knew the deadline was tight. And He had already paved the way.

What an amazing God we serve! He is faithful to keep his promises. A situation that seemed impossible and insurmountable was only so in our own strength.

All He asked of us was to trust Him.

And I’m so glad we did.

So once again, we were off—to a new place that God would show us.

Thanks for being here with me friend. I hope you’ll come back for Part III of our story. Until then, I’m praying you’ll see God’s fingerprints in your own journey and be moved by our story to trust Him more fully with every detail of your life!

Blessings,

Amber