About a year ago, we started getting that “feeling” that God was about to do something new with our family. Well, shortly thereafter we found out we would be having our third baby. That was definitely something “new,” so we carried on with business as usual. But as Jack’s arrival came closer, we found ourselves growing even more aware that there was something else on the horizon.

About that time, I sat down with a church planter named Todd Magouyrk who was headed to the West Ashley community of Charleston, SC, to plant River Church with his wife, Lori, and their three kids. Todd had been a part of West Ridge in its early days before leaving for college and then serving ministries in Chicago and Cincinnati. Now he was attending the Church Planting School at West Ridge while serving as a Church Planting Intern.

During our conversation, I asked Todd to tell me about River Church. What was his vision? That question sent him into a casting of vision that could have come from my own journal. I was floored by how similar our passions and hopes were for the Church and how we felt God had shaped us to help fulfill our callings. From that moment, I knew something was up, and I immediately took my thoughts to Annette. We began to pray, “are You asking us to go?”

Battery Park in Downtown Charleston

Well, Christmas came and went, and then Jack was born. Needless to say, we were a bit distracted from the idea of River Church. Yet God kept our minds and hearts loosely attached to the thought. And as the craziness of having a newborn in the house began to slowly settle, the curiosity we had continued to grow.

To make a long story short, there was one particular week where God finally urged us to pray specifically and fervently and to more intentionally seek wisdom from others who know us well. When that process began we found ourselves caught in a wave of conversations, scripture, and prayer that confirmed unanimously that River Church in Charleston, SC was where God was calling the Parris Family.

Specifically, He has asked me to serve as the Arts + Innovation Pastor. I will be responsible for equipping our community for all aspects of Worship, and equipping River Church to be constantly improving its processes, awareness and technologies.

So…crazy, huh? I’ve lived in the metro-Atlanta area all my life. And Annette has lived in the same county all her life. Our parents live in Atlanta. Our kids were each born in Atlanta. We own a home in Atlanta. It’s a huge change for us! But what trumps all of the safety, certainty, and joy that staying the course in our “hometown” and at West Ridge is a calling to take the Kingdom of God to a city that needs to know the love of Jesus Christ.

What’s the timeline? Well, it depends on a few factors. We have a house to sell or lease (or lease/purchase). And since River Church is being built from the ground up and does not yet have a budget to pay us a salary, we  need to raise financial support. That being said, our hope is to be heading to West Ashley by early June. That’s audacious! But it’s necessary. We will begin preview services at River in August or September and launching in January of 2010. That doesn’t give much time to find a location, meet and connect with dozens of musicians, technicians, artists…

Cooper River Bridge

Please pray for us. And get involved! We are not called to go to Charleston on our own will and power. This is a positioning of the Kingdom, and we are merely the do-ers. This task still needs pray-ers, financiers, encouragers, investors, equippers. And needs them by the hundreds!

We hope you’ll stay in touch through this blog. Take a minute to read the other pages we’ve posted, please leave us comments from time to time. We’ve set up a “ParrisFam E-letter” mailing list, and provided ways for to to commit to prayer and financial support. And we’ll be adding information about West Ashley and Charleston, the progress of the church…all kinds of fun information.

Thanks for reading! See you real soon! (Sorry…the girls are watching Mickey Mouse Clubhouse as I write this.)