How It Happened

It goes back a few years, but I'll try and breeze through the first few. In 2004, I worked on staff at Verdugo Pines Bible Camp, and since then have been a counselor up there every summer. It was there that I met Jodi Greenstreet, the speaker for girls camp. Being on facilities staff, I didn't see much of the kids or program staff. The only reason I met Jodi was because all of the kids kept getting us mixed up (apparently we are either twins, sisters, or she's my mom). Long story short, two summers later, I joined Jodi, her roommate Patti, and another Bible college student, Kelsey, traveling to several camps where we counseled, helped Jodi with skits, and led worship. During the school year, Jodi and Patti run a youth center in ON, Canada-this will come into play later.

February 2007 came around and I was soon to graduate college without a clue as to what I would be doing shortly thereafter. I had had this crazy, off-the-wall idea back in my fall semester to open a coffee shop focused on connection and conversation, and involved in the community, but had no idea how to begin to think about opening a coffee shop. So I tried to forget about it. After some time, prayer, and the inability to stop thinking about the coffee shop idea, I pitched it to Jodi and Patti-maybe it could happen through an existing organization. They told me they'd pray about it, and after a follow-up or two, it kinda died out as I started to really freak out about what I'd be doing after graduation.
I spent last summer working for The California School Project down at Biola, and helping out with the youth at the church I had been attending. At the end of the summer, after going back and forth as to whether I should stay down there or come home, I felt like God wanted me home, though I still had nothing to do, and the grace period on my school loans was coming to a close. I needed some kind of income, so I called my high school and quickly got a part-time coaching job and was put on the list to sub.

What I did not know was that someone from the school, while doing my reference check, had called Jodi and Patti, and just mentioned that they were excited to have me come on to coach. That was the day they were going to call me and ask if I would consider coming out to Canada to work at the youth center. They took that comment as a sign from God to wait, and did not call me.

That was in late August or early September. In October, my best friend was in a car accident and broke her hip, confining her to bed for three months. Well, not only was I not in Canada, but I had no full-time job to keep me from visiting her in the hospital, and helping her at her house during the long recovery period. Jodi and Patti told me later that when they heard about her accident, they knew why God had told them to wait.

By January, I had been hired by two school districts and was coaching JV basketball, which I loved. I was on my way home from practice one day and thought to myself, ya know, I could do this for a while, stick around subbing; see some of my girls up to varsity, then figure out what to do next-but I'm ok for another year or two. Contentment. Finally! Then I got home.

I opened an email from Jodi and Patti and my heart leaped when I read that they wanted me to travel again with them this summer. Of course I would! That was such an amazing summer! Sweet! Then I read on. I literally stared at the computer screen for at least sixty seconds as I read and re-read their second proposal: They asked if I would pray about moving to Bradford with them in the fall and help out at the HUB (the youth center)-and if God works it out, they want to start a coffee shop to connect more with the community! I wish my screen had taken a picture of my face at that moment, because my chin must have hit the ground with how wide my mouth gaped at reading the email. After the astonishment subsided a bit, my only second thought was, but if I move to Canada, I won't be able to coach next year. I resolved to pray about it and gave myself a date to decide by, a month or so after that.

That weekend, I took my basketball team up to camp, as a sort of service project/team bonding experience. We had a lot of fun sliding around in the snow, getting no sleep, and somehow even made cleaning the dining room fun. We were there three days, Friday to Sunday, and had team devotionals each morning and evening. Saturday night we spent two or three hours discussing some difficult truth and in short, my entire team- without prompting from me, decided to act on that truth. There were tears and hugs and prayer and it was great. And of course no one wanted to go to bed afterwards (mind you it was 1am by this time), including me. So we stayed up for another hour, and then I insisted they get the remaining four hours of possible sleep before we had to serve breakfast. As I lay there on the futon trying to sleep myself, but still not being able to for the excitement at what just happened, I got this revelation: Beth, what would you be waiting around for next season? I mean it'd be great to get to coach again, but everything you wanted your athletes to get, everything you wanted to see happen on your team as a coach-just happened. And all of the sudden, I was free to go to Canada.

Two days after I got back from camp, I called Jodi and Patti and told them I'd love to move out with them. I am truly amazed as I look back on the last year-heck, six or seven years since people started telling me to think seriously about what I want to do with my life-how through all of my freaking out and confusion, God had it figured out all along. And on top of that, now I can look and see that He had so many blessings along the road to Canada that I would have quickly discarded had he offered them beforehand, but now having experienced them, wouldn't trade for anything. He was hiding his plan because he was spiteful, he knew it was the only way it'd work. He is truly worthy of my trust.