Email Your Testimony info@justmoved.org
We want to hear from you! Has Just Moved Ministry or an After the Boxes are Unpacked study affected your life?
Julee in Arizona
Our family moved to Arizona from Washington. It wasn’t a move we saw coming and not one we wanted. Susan Miller would call it a crisis move as we had to sell our home after a job loss. I was surprised by how hard the move was. I was an Army brat growing up and loved moving but moving as an adult after being in the same area for 20 years was different. We were very rooted in Washington and loved our little town on the Puget Sound. It was hard to go from hugging someone at every store I went in to, to no one knows me.
The After The Boxes Are Unpacked study ministered to me so much! Susan hit on every emotion and truly understood how difficult the transition was. I loved how she pointed me right back to Christ and the Word! I clung to the verses Susan gave us.
By the time I ended the study I couldn’t wait to give the gift away by leading a group study of my own! I wanted to help other women who were hurting and had no friends.
Michele in Arizona
On behalf of myself and so many women (& men), I am very grateful that you traded grits for guacamole those years ago. What a beautiful example of how God can use anything for good. Thank you for responding so strongly to the Holy Spirit's calling. Your class, book, and materials have helped me (and my family) "unpack" so many aspects of our move and be intentional in establishing new roots. I'm still on my journey (aren't we all?) but this class has helped me put things in perspective and helped me not to forget including God amidst the business of moving.
Carol in Arizona
I love and cherish this dear Christian community more than words can express! It is a lifeline for me! Just Moved has truly changed my life forever and I am so grateful to all of you for that blessing.
From Marilyn Ingram, Women's Ministry Director, Austin Ridge Bible Church, Austin, TX
Our Austin Ridge Bible Church's inaugural [After the Boxes are Unpacked] group just finished today with a brunch. What a celebration it was! ...their first meeting... the women were sweet, friendly and of course a little reserved. But today! Such energy, such happiness, such friendships! The leaders gave the women a time to speak and I wanted to share what a few of them said:
"No one appreciated this class more than my husband. I had been in such a desert after our move. I can truly say the rain has come after a long drought (because of this class).""I have been in Bible studies for years, but nothing has helped me as much as this class has.""I love the range of ages and stages in this group. It didn't matter what age you were because we are all going through the same thing."One woman is pregnant with her 5th child. She shared that after they moved, she had so many worried nights, wondering who she would call if she went into labor on a week her husband was out of town. "Now, I have a whole list of women that I know I could call to stay with my children until my in-laws could get here."Another woman wrote me a note, thanking us for "taking a leap of faith and providing this class." She went on to say, "Through this class, I learned more about the emotions I was feeling. At one point, I thought I was crazy, but learned that there were more people feeling the way I did. WOW! Most importantly, I learned that I don't need friends when I already had a best friend in God. Through many verses I found in the After the Boxes are Unpacked book, I could see things more clearly. I could trust that God had a hand on me and that He would never leave me." |
Thank you for your incredible ministry! We are so blessed to be part of it and to be able to point women to God through this class.
Connie in Arizona (soon to be moving again!)
Because of the [After the Boxes are Unpacked] group, core friends were met. Solid friendships have developed strong connections. We have laughed, prayed, cried, shopped, hiked, enjoyed so many wonderful local restaurants, shopped, shared holidays, traveled and dreamed together. Jeff and I have watched with excitement as these families have grown to include children and grandchildren... and now we too have a daughter-in-law!
Kris in Texas
I am attending the After the Boxes are Unpacked class at Cottonwood Creek Baptist Church. It is about a 25 -35 min. drive for me but so worth it! I am so thankful for these special new friends that God has placed in my life. They are truly a blessing! I am passionate about sharing Just Moved Ministry with others because it has literally saved me! 🙂 I thought I had prepared myself for what I would be feeling after our move but I wasn't. I'm so thankful that a friend of a friend shared Just Moved Ministry with me! Thank you for contacting me. I am learning to bloom where I've been planted! 🙂
I am thankful for this church - I look so forward to coming to mass every week, seeing all the smiling faces. LFIt's been quite remarkable, so glad we're participants at this church. Not many churches are welcoming like this. I feel closer to Christ and to the mission. CW
The book brings a spiritual connection to the move - helps you put your trust in God. HS I had struggled with my faith and fallen away. But this church is different - so welcoming and warm. JB My personal walk with God has been enhanced. SC-B Here at St. Matthew, my husband and I want to make an effort to get involved. Loved the Welcome Matt. SA I've loved this class, loved coming here each week, and now we just need to take this step to get back to church - and we will. EP I know more people's names here than I ever did at church back home. CO This church is just different - there's a vitality and spirituality... (tears!) SV St. Matthew offers a feeling of belonging and it is SO organized, with the nursery and the faith formation - it makes it easy to participate. TT |
Julie in Arizona
It has been almost 17 years since I arrived in Phoenix....single. The After the Boxes are Unpacked group "saved my life" as I didn't know a soul. Some of my best AZ girlfriends are the ones I met in my class. Life has changed greatly for me since then and I still find myself longing for the "familiar" of Colorado. I think however that I have finally learned to cherish what I left behind and cling to what I brought with me....my gracious, loving Lord!
Members of the After the Boxes are Unpacked class at South Mountain Community Church in Draper, UT near Salt Lake City, wrote about their experience in the class. Here are a few of their responses...
- Jennete
- Jenna
- Kelle
-Lauren
- Cydney
- Amie
- Dawn - Arizona newcomer
- Shirley - Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates(In a letter written to Class Leader, Sue Wood.)
- Audra - Washington newcomer
- Julie - Arkansas newcomer
This class has been a bright spot in my week. It was a safe haven where I could share my feelings unconditionally. It was a wonderful help in getting adjusted to my new home.
- Newcomer - St. Louis, Missouri
We did the class last September at Stonebridge Church in The Woodlands, Texas. You would be thrilled to know we have 'Moved On' but all of us still meet weekly and have become wonderful friends and sisters in Christ!! Thank you so much for this class!!
- Shannon - Texas newcomer
Just Moved is such a grace-filled ministry which has blessed me so much. I found these words in 3 John 2:5 that remind me of each of you and the ‘After the Boxes are Unpacked’ class:
"DEAR FRIEND, I PRAY THAT YOU [and your families] MAY ENJOY GOOD HEALTH AND THAT ALL MAY GO WELL WITH YOU, EVEN AS YOUR SOUL IS GETTING ALONG WELL. DEAR FRIEND, YOU ARE FAITHFUL IN WHAT YOU ARE DOING FOR THE BROTHERS [sisters], EVEN THOUGH THEY ARE STRANGERS TO YOU."
Thank you for welcoming me with trust, openness, hospitality, and genuine love. Your generosity was astounding! Thank you for your encouragement.
- Cindy- Arizona newcomer
Wow, am I ever late, but better late then sorry! 🙂 I found out about this great study the long way around but when I found out about it, I knew I had found the answer to everyone who moves! I had moved away from 50 years of friends, family, etc. and it was like a death. Thanks for being there to help others. I would like to share this with someone who is up in years who is moving so she may know she has someone who cares about her on this earth!
- Lois - Maine newcomer
- Gaye - Alabama newcomer(A note written to Class Leader Susan Cloar)
- Anne - Virginia newcomer
- Holly- South Carolina newcomer
The After the Boxes are Unpacked class has become a bright spot in an otherwise dreary world. My mom read your book before I did, and called to encourage me to read it and to attend the class. This move has been a very difficult adjustment for our family. Despite the difficulties, God has brought me precious friends in a short amount of time, and I have been grateful. Our neighbors are also wonderful and the scenery is beautiful!
- Logan - Virginia newcomer
Although I have always gone to church, prayed, and been active in church outreach programs, this is the first time I have taken a spiritual class. Through the class I felt that God had presented me with a gift and a chance to mend inside as well as out.
- Jamie- Arizona newcomer
It took me about 5 minutes in the "After the Boxes are Unpacked" class to be in tears; tears that only flow when you feel compassion (from a stranger no less!). I was surrounded by women of all ages who were just like me! I was a mess because I just uprooted my children (ages 6 and 9) and moved to a big city where I didn’t know a soul. I couldn’t figure out the area codes, let alone how to find my way around town. I felt completely anonymous, invisible, lost, depressed, and very, very lonely.
- Karen- Arizona newcomer