Church planters are a special breed. One of a kind. A little wild.

It takes someone special to move into a new city and raise up a church. Last week we loaded up the kids and went on a road trip to Huntsville, Alabama. Our friends David and Stephanie Pursifull planted a church there about 10 months ago. They’re doing an amazing job. David and I were in Bible School together 17 years ago. He and Stephanie were on the mission field for 10+ years before they started Building Church in Huntsville and he’s been asking me to come speak and see what they’re doing for several months. So we headed over for the weekend. They’ve got a great thing going.

Over the years, working with church planters (and planting a church myself 11 years ago), my favorite part are the stories. Church planting is really a crazy idea if you think about it. And there are always wild stories that go along with it. Maybe its something only enjoyed by other church-planters, but there’s something therapeutic about hearing and sharing those stories. Just about every time we’re together, my friend Dino Rizzo says, “Tell me about some of those Sundays when you were driving home from church at The Homebuilders…” I always think of a good one and we laugh. Its crazy how you remember.

David and Stephanie have an amazing story too bizarre to believe. Don’t think I could even tell it right. David called me one morning several months back and said the craziest thing had happened the night before. In the middle of the night, they heard a loud noise, their alarm went off and the door from their bedroom to the patio swung open. They jumped out of bed, heart racing. Once they figured out no one was in the house, they closed the door, reset the alarm and went back to bed. It happened again. This time, the kids started stirring and it was almost 5a. They started walking around the house noticing these huge cracks in the walls and ceilings. They called 911 and in a few minutes fire trucks and police cars were racing in their neighborhood. To make a long story short, their new house that they had just bought and moved into, was sinking! Seventy feet below the surface of the ground the roof of an underground cavern caved in. As a result a part of their house sunk in a little and pulled the rest of the house. In a matter of hours, they told David and Stephanie they had a few hours to get out of the house, to get EVERYTHING out. They had just moved in!

David said that several nights in a row, the evening news opened live from his front yard. He was in the paper. Wild story. Sadly, the insurance company wouldn’t accept the claim. The developer of the neighborhood wouldn’t help. No one stepped up to help or accept responsibility. The good news is God has provided for David and Stephanie all along the way. They just settled into a brand new, beautiful home. It’s an amazing story they will never forget.

There is something about those stories. They bring out what is on the inside. They build you into something better. I’m sure you’ve got one (or 19), or maybe you’re in the middle of one. Hold on, God will see you through.