The charismatic move was hindered when shepherding arrived. It came like a ‘thief in the night.’ The church we were attending announced that a shepherd would be our ‘covering’ to receive our tithes and guide us through life. We would need the shepherds’ permission to make any decisions. Also, we were no longer permitted to attend services at any other church! We asked for a scriptural basis, but it never came.
We had worked hard to be free from the bondages that entrapped us, and we were never going back. Our upbringing would always be close to our heart, but we had found new lives and were thoroughly enjoying it.
“Therefore, if the Son makes you free, you shall be free indeed.” John 8:36
The men’s group at the church had planned a missions trip to Guatemala and Dave went with them. When he returned, he said God touched him and he was “called.” I did not know what that meant, but I agreed when Dave said “yes” to the ministry calling that came. We heard about a new bible school in Tulsa, OK and we decided to go.
So along with our four children, we packed up and left Pittsburgh. I did think that my mother would have never agreed, and my father, who had remarried, struggled a bit, but he wished us well. The shepherds tried to stop us but sent us off with prayer. It was now 1976 and we were on the way to a new life. My life would never be the same, and it all started with a regular yellow kitchen chair that became an altar.
“Then Jesus said to His disciples, “If anyone desires to come after Me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross, and follow Me.” Mathew 16:24