I Love My Church!

Howdy friends!

Hoping that this post is finding you all well :)

The Jansons have been struggling with the cooties for almost two weeks now. The weather being cold and rainy doesn't help, although I LOVE a good snuggle on the couch :) We could most definitely use some prayers regarding our health :)   

So today at church we celebrated something pretty cool!

We celebrated 6 years, as a campus, in Columbia!

Eric and I are celebrating that it's been 2 years since we first started attending NewSpring!

WOW!! Time really does fly. 

The absolute BEST part of celebrating 6 years as a campus is that, in that frame, we have seen 8,423 salvations in Columbia. 

OH MY WORD!!!!

The sweetest part about that is how Eric and I are a part of that 8,423.

It was two months after we started attending NewSpring that we attended Ownership class. We were so hooked on this church that were excited to dive right in. (And also get some free Chic-Fil-A for dinner, haha!)

Little did we know that night in November that we would ask Jesus into our lives, side my side. I remember that night like it was yesterday.

The impact that this church has had, not only on my life, but my husbands life and now my daughter's life is remarkable! 

So in honor of 6 years AND 8,423 salvations, this post is about the top 5 (out of many!) reasons why I LOVE MY CHURCH!

Here we go:

1) We believe growing people change:

I was a mess when I first started attending NewSpring. I liked drinking way too much, I cursed like a sailor and my overall life making decision skills were just not up to par. I was so apprehensive to start attending yet another church that would look down upon me because I didn't have my life together. NewSpring embraced it. I have leaders and friends from church that are constantly telling me it's ok to not be ok. They encourage me to grow in my walk with Jesus, in my marriage and as a mother .They remind that my story is far from being over and that growing people ALWAYS change! 

2) Community:

I was so very alone when I first started attending church, as was Eric. The "friends" we had in our life at the time were no good. After being saved and letting some of those friendships go, life became lonely. I am SO thankful for a church that believes we can't do life alone. I have met some of my very dear and close friends through serving, small group and just being an attendee. Life with community and others to do life with is so much sweeter.

3) I am taught how to follow Jesus step by step:

Overwhelmed couldn't even describe how I felt the day after I met Jesus. "Now what??" were two words that pounded in my head over and over. How thankful I am that I belong to a church that doesn't leave me in the dark but provides wisdom about where to do from here. I'm taught that there is ALWAYS a next step in our walk with Jesus and I am spiritually fed each and every sermon I listen to. 

4) KidSpring:

I am SO SO SO thankful for KidSpring. I am in love with the idea that my daughter has a safe place to go to where she can learn about Jesus on HER level. At first, I found it odd that kids, under a certain age, couldn't attend the regular service. But after learning what KidSpring is all about, I couldn't be happier that Makenna is being taught the gospel, even at 13 months old. I applaud every staff member and volunteer that puts in the time and energy to make KidSpring what it is :)

5) We believe FOUND people FIND people:

I LOVE what NewSpring is after; to reach 100,000 in the state of SC. To show others the good news that is Jesus Christ. I love, love, love seeing others asking Jesus into their lives. It reminds how I first felt when I was saved and how freeing it was. We, as a church, KNOW how miraculous, amazing, supernatural, loving and graceful our God is. We are on a mission to reach those far from God!

Jesus has and keeps using NewSpring to reach me in ways I never knew I could be reached. NewSpring has truly been used to save my life and to help us grow as a family. I love watching how Jesus changes our hearts. I love watching my husband, week after week, do what he does best in ministering to people. I love picking my daughter up from KidSpring, knowing that she is growing up in an environment where she can learn to follow Him. I absolutely love my church :)

Any questions about NewSpring? Want to attend or watch online?

Check out www.newspring.cc

Happy Sunday all!

Much love :) 

My top To Do's for this summer!

Hey guys!

I am SO super excited for this summer. Eric and I have been making plans, here and there, and I can't wait for all them! 

Eric is originally from South Carolina and since working in a field that requires him to travel all over the state, he's seen quite a bit. I, on the other hand, have not. We have been living here since October 2012 and I've only seen a fraction of what this beautiful state has to offer! I've been doing research on some family and budget friendly things to see and do this spring/summer and I've finally narrowed down a list. Here's what I am most looking forward to doing this summer:

1) Visit the Anderson campus of NewSpring church. For the past year and a half, on Sundays, I have been watching, my pastor, Perry Noble, live and would LOVE to go to watch him preach in person and maybe get the chance to meet him! I suggested to Eric for us to try and do this the weekend before my birthday (May 20th by the way, haha!) and he seemed fond of the idea. We would be able to check out the town the night before and I am super excited to put Makenna into KidSpring there! 

2) Go see a movie at The Big Mo. That name just makes it sound like a great time, doesn't it?! This is a drive-in movie theatre that I've been told about so many times. A night under the stars in the warm summer air, surrounded by popcorn and blankets. I LOVE IT!

3) Camping trip! I've never been camping. I mean, besides somebody's backyard, haha. I've heard that Edisto beach (in SC) is great for camping and hope that's something we can do this spring before it gets too hot! I'm not quite sure how I would be in a camping environment. Makenna will probably do better than me, haha! But I'm certain if there's plenty of food and an air mattress, I'll be just fine :) Any tips for first time campers?? Please share!!

4) CAROWINDS! I mean come on! I've lived in SC for two and half years and have yet to visit this place! When I was little, I wasn't a huge roller coaster fan and honestly, I have such a huge phobia of heights. But the older I get, roller coasters just seem to be an exception! This isn't a great place for Makenna to go to right now, so we would definitely make this a day or group date! Plus they have gluten free chicken tenders and french fries there! YES!!

5) I'm choosing Folly Beach over Myrtle Beach for this year. Folly Beach is located in Charleston County and from the looks of it, seems so historical; which I am super into! Eric travels into Charleston so often for work and has been longing to bring me there to visit. I feel like going to Folly Beach might be a little easier on our wallets since Myrtle Beach is super touristy. I definitely would love to get some beach time in this summer and I hope my research proves me right with this one!

6) Makenna's first birthday party! OH MY GOSH! I have already started to plan her party (picking through themes, location, budget, etc.) and have LOVED it! I am trying to be the mom that embraces and gets excited seeing her baby grow up instead of mourning the time passing. Planning her birthday is helping me do just that! I have a few themes to run by Eric and once we can both agree (that should be interesting!) then the party planning shall officially commence!!

7) This may not happen this spring or summer, but I would love, love, love to take a trip to Gatlinburg, TN this fall :) I've been there twice before and loved each time! I've never been the biggest nature fan but there is nothing like being up in the mountains and having a moment to just..think, reflect and enjoy the tremendous amount of beauty surrounding you. Makenna would be walking by fall and would be able to enjoy some of the things they have for kids! Plus places like this are always cheaper to do in an off season!

8) I look forward to doing the little things there are to do around where we are: fishing, hiking, museums, walking trails, BBQ's with family and friendships, bonfires and shopping ;)

I am so blessed and thankful to have such a fun, wonderful and sweet family to be able to grow and do things with! The friendships that I've made so far this year have been an amazing blessing and I am happy to have them to plan with as well! These next few months have been much anticipated and The Lord has so many plans and changes in our future that I am so excited for. I look forward to taking the time to step aside from all the changes and enjoy our time as a family.
I would love to hear what plans you have for the upcoming months! Any vacations? Just relaxing at home? Have suggestions for me to add to the list? Any day trip ideas? Let me know :) gfmamaj@gmail.com
I pray that whatever it is you are doing in the warmer weather that Jesus brings you many blessings and endless joy!
Much love!!

We took a nice walk to the park with Daddy today and had so much fun on the slide :) I adore these two!!