There is something new in Forney, Texas that I love. In fact, it’s one of the most inspiring things I’ve seen in a long time. It actually challenges, encourages, and compels me to continue to move forward with the vision God has placed in our lives as a family. Every time I pass it, I smile and feel so proud to know it’s in my hometown. I find myself thankful to know people personally that would have the audacity to do something so visionary& misunderstood right where I live. What is it? It’s a BIG Bridge.
Yes, a bridge, and I LOVE it! It stands literally in the middle of nowhere. It’s huge. It has so much character as it stands there nearly complete. You feel its sense of dominance as it towers over Hwy 80, and when you stand on top of it you realize it’s big as a 5 lane highway. You can stand on one side and literally not see the other side. When I stood on it this morning, I appreciated it even more. It’s an awesome bridge!
You might be thinking, “Steven it’s just a bridge. There are other bridges out there. Many of them much larger." You are right, but they aren’t like my bridge. When most people pass under it they shake their head and don’t get it. That’s why it has been labeled the “Bridge to No Where.” Many are right in their description to some degree. It is a bridge, and right now it doesn’t lead you anywhere, but what they don’t get is that one day it will. That is why I love this bridge! It represents vision! It sees what others can’t see. It looks toward the future. It doesn’t allow the fact that the roads coming off of it lead to “nowhere” today because it knows someday they will! That kind of vision makes me want to shout!
I was there the day the dirt was turned over to begin the project many months ago. I had been asked to offer up the prayer of dedication and blessing over the project as it began. As I look back on that moment, I am so honored to have been asked to pray that prayer. I will never forget it. It was a prayer of vision, over a project of vision, and it was offered up by someone that was walking out a vision of his own. I guess that is where my love for the bridge began. Not just because I was asked to say the prayer, but because I was able to see the beginning of such an amazing LEAP of Faith. It reminded me of the movie “Field of Dreams,” and the statement “If you build it, they will come.” It also reminded me of what God has called Donna and me to do. For those reasons, I didn’t feel so alone or isolated that day. That bridge didn’t know where it would eventually lead to, but it was being built anyway. We didn’t know or couldn’t describe (still can’t exactly) where we were going, but it wasn’t going to stop us from doing what God asked us to do either.
Yes, a bridge, and I LOVE it! It stands literally in the middle of nowhere. It’s huge. It has so much character as it stands there nearly complete. You feel its sense of dominance as it towers over Hwy 80, and when you stand on top of it you realize it’s big as a 5 lane highway. You can stand on one side and literally not see the other side. When I stood on it this morning, I appreciated it even more. It’s an awesome bridge!
You might be thinking, “Steven it’s just a bridge. There are other bridges out there. Many of them much larger." You are right, but they aren’t like my bridge. When most people pass under it they shake their head and don’t get it. That’s why it has been labeled the “Bridge to No Where.” Many are right in their description to some degree. It is a bridge, and right now it doesn’t lead you anywhere, but what they don’t get is that one day it will. That is why I love this bridge! It represents vision! It sees what others can’t see. It looks toward the future. It doesn’t allow the fact that the roads coming off of it lead to “nowhere” today because it knows someday they will! That kind of vision makes me want to shout!
I was there the day the dirt was turned over to begin the project many months ago. I had been asked to offer up the prayer of dedication and blessing over the project as it began. As I look back on that moment, I am so honored to have been asked to pray that prayer. I will never forget it. It was a prayer of vision, over a project of vision, and it was offered up by someone that was walking out a vision of his own. I guess that is where my love for the bridge began. Not just because I was asked to say the prayer, but because I was able to see the beginning of such an amazing LEAP of Faith. It reminded me of the movie “Field of Dreams,” and the statement “If you build it, they will come.” It also reminded me of what God has called Donna and me to do. For those reasons, I didn’t feel so alone or isolated that day. That bridge didn’t know where it would eventually lead to, but it was being built anyway. We didn’t know or couldn’t describe (still can’t exactly) where we were going, but it wasn’t going to stop us from doing what God asked us to do either.
The morning I prayed, I stood among dignitaries, shook the hand of a billionaire, and enjoyed a table filled with free (I like free) donuts, fruit, and snacks. I shook hands with folks, watched as publicity pictures were made, and soaked up the moment, but later that day I went back out to where the dedication took place. The tent was gone, the people had left, and all that remained was the dream & the construction workers working to make it a reality. I breathed in the warm Texas air as the wind blew across my face and smiled. No fanfare remained no politics, no opinions, just a vision. It felt good to stand there.
Over the many months that have passed this friend of mine (I consider the bridge and I now friends) has been misunderstood, used in negative campaign ads as a reason to not re-elect people that began to build it, and has found itself in the middle of controversy over and over again. All the while it just kept being built. It wasn’t deterred by the comments. It didn’t have to justify itself. It knows that people will eventually know why it’s there. It knows people will someday benefit from the fact that it is the only way emergency vehicles can cross the railroad tracks in the event of tragedy while the tracks are blocked. It knows that it will eventually relieve the flow of traffic in downtown Forney and provide convenience to thousands of people. It knows it offers hope for a bright future for our city and community. It doesn’t have to know exactly what shops, stores, or opportunities will eventually be in the huge fields on either side of its roads. It knows that one day those same people that complained, questioned, and condemned it will drive on its roads and benefit all the same.
Over the many months that have passed this friend of mine (I consider the bridge and I now friends) has been misunderstood, used in negative campaign ads as a reason to not re-elect people that began to build it, and has found itself in the middle of controversy over and over again. All the while it just kept being built. It wasn’t deterred by the comments. It didn’t have to justify itself. It knows that people will eventually know why it’s there. It knows people will someday benefit from the fact that it is the only way emergency vehicles can cross the railroad tracks in the event of tragedy while the tracks are blocked. It knows that it will eventually relieve the flow of traffic in downtown Forney and provide convenience to thousands of people. It knows it offers hope for a bright future for our city and community. It doesn’t have to know exactly what shops, stores, or opportunities will eventually be in the huge fields on either side of its roads. It knows that one day those same people that complained, questioned, and condemned it will drive on its roads and benefit all the same.
This reminds me of a passage that people quote all the time. It’s in Jeremiah 29:11, and it says, “For I know the plans I have for you,” says the Lord. “They are plans for good and not for disaster, to give you a future and a hope.”
People quote that verse all the time, but do you know the context of the verse? Do you know who it was spoken to? Do you know where they were? Do you know what they were experiencing? It was written by the prophet Jeremiah. He was writing this letter to the Jewish people who had been taken captive by King Nebuchadnezzar and transported back to Babylon, modern day Baghdad, Iraq, which was a long way from home. He was declaring to them a vision in the midst of bondage. He was telling them the promises God had made to them. Jeremiah was called the “weeping prophet” because the people wouldn’t listen to him. He was called by God to warn the people that if they didn’t repent that this bondage would happen. As frustrating and hard as it was, he still spoke! Then Jeremiah spoke again. He declared that even though their disobedience had caused them bondage that God still had a plan a. There was a “bridge.”
It didn’t make sense. It didn’t look like it was where it should be. It looked pointless, out of place, and like it was in the middle of nowhere, but there were people of vision that believed. They believed in the “bridge,” the vision God had declared to them. People like Daniel and the three Hebrew Children Hananiah, Mishael, & Azariah. Men and women like Ezra, Nehemiah, Esther, and others that believed God had a plan; A Vision; A Bridge! While others questioned, complained, and criticized, these men and women believed the vision God declared through Jeremiah. Then they acted on their faith. They had Faith that gave them favor in the palace of kings. They had Faith that would cause the mouths of lions to be shut. They had Faith that protected them in the midst of a fiery furnace. They had Faith that gave them courage to speak and stand in the presence of kings in spite of the consequences. They had Faith that believed a huge wall could be rebuilt, and the temple could be restored, and that what God said was true. They believed that there were greater plans. They believed in hope & the future. They believed in a “bridge.”
I want to believe like that! I want to build where God says build. Do what God says do. Go where God says go. Even if it looks out of place, doesn’t make sense, goes against the traditional model, and I can’t explain it completely even when I try. I don’t have to! I just have to build. I just have to follow. I just have to obey. I just have to believe that God has a plan, and that he has made a bridge…a Way!
Jesus told him, “I am the way, the truth, and the life. No one can come to the Father except through me.” John 14:6
Maybe you’re thinking, “Steven what do you guys know about this “bridge building” business.” I'd like to share with you our dream, our mission, our declarations…our “bridge.” You can read more about it under the “About Us” section of our website, but I want to copy a portion of that page below. This is our bridge in the middle of nowhere. No, it hasn’t been fulfilled yet. No, it isn’t fully funded or functioning. No, we can’t tell you how we make it through the month most times, but we know God will provide, open doors, and meet our needs. We believe He has a plan. We know it’s our bridge and we are standing on it together. I pray and hope you find yours.
People quote that verse all the time, but do you know the context of the verse? Do you know who it was spoken to? Do you know where they were? Do you know what they were experiencing? It was written by the prophet Jeremiah. He was writing this letter to the Jewish people who had been taken captive by King Nebuchadnezzar and transported back to Babylon, modern day Baghdad, Iraq, which was a long way from home. He was declaring to them a vision in the midst of bondage. He was telling them the promises God had made to them. Jeremiah was called the “weeping prophet” because the people wouldn’t listen to him. He was called by God to warn the people that if they didn’t repent that this bondage would happen. As frustrating and hard as it was, he still spoke! Then Jeremiah spoke again. He declared that even though their disobedience had caused them bondage that God still had a plan a. There was a “bridge.”
It didn’t make sense. It didn’t look like it was where it should be. It looked pointless, out of place, and like it was in the middle of nowhere, but there were people of vision that believed. They believed in the “bridge,” the vision God had declared to them. People like Daniel and the three Hebrew Children Hananiah, Mishael, & Azariah. Men and women like Ezra, Nehemiah, Esther, and others that believed God had a plan; A Vision; A Bridge! While others questioned, complained, and criticized, these men and women believed the vision God declared through Jeremiah. Then they acted on their faith. They had Faith that gave them favor in the palace of kings. They had Faith that would cause the mouths of lions to be shut. They had Faith that protected them in the midst of a fiery furnace. They had Faith that gave them courage to speak and stand in the presence of kings in spite of the consequences. They had Faith that believed a huge wall could be rebuilt, and the temple could be restored, and that what God said was true. They believed that there were greater plans. They believed in hope & the future. They believed in a “bridge.”
I want to believe like that! I want to build where God says build. Do what God says do. Go where God says go. Even if it looks out of place, doesn’t make sense, goes against the traditional model, and I can’t explain it completely even when I try. I don’t have to! I just have to build. I just have to follow. I just have to obey. I just have to believe that God has a plan, and that he has made a bridge…a Way!
Jesus told him, “I am the way, the truth, and the life. No one can come to the Father except through me.” John 14:6
Maybe you’re thinking, “Steven what do you guys know about this “bridge building” business.” I'd like to share with you our dream, our mission, our declarations…our “bridge.” You can read more about it under the “About Us” section of our website, but I want to copy a portion of that page below. This is our bridge in the middle of nowhere. No, it hasn’t been fulfilled yet. No, it isn’t fully funded or functioning. No, we can’t tell you how we make it through the month most times, but we know God will provide, open doors, and meet our needs. We believe He has a plan. We know it’s our bridge and we are standing on it together. I pray and hope you find yours.
• weDIGit doesn't have set fees. They believe God will always meet their needs, and never want to price themselves out of an event or opportunity. weDIGit is simply called to GO & share the Gospel. That is how Jesus operated on this earth.
• weDIGit goes immediately as the Spirit leads. They are ready and able to go at a moment’s notice where God leads to minister and bring hope. Much like scripture says in John 4:4 that Jesus “had to go through Samaria." Steven and Donna believe God desires for them to move as Jesus moved on this earth to wherever He calls them to go and do whatever He has called them to do.
• weDIGit has been commissioned to give and help those in need. To BE the church and minister to the needs of those that God brings into their lives. weDIGit is a vehicle to give, serve, and bless as God allows, and then teach others to do the same.
• weDIGit blesses those in ministry. After 22 years in full-time ministry, Steven and Donna believe that God wants to use them to bless families in ministry that are serving. They know what it is like to struggle and serve, and want to be in a stronger position to help these families throughout the year with encouragement and resources.
• weDIGit teaches people to BE the church at home first. Steven and Donna truly believe, and live out in their own family, the house church model. It is their desire to teach and encourage husbands\fathers, in agreement with their wives, to shepherd and care for their families and neighbors as outlined in the book of Acts. BE THE CHURCH.
• weDIGit serves and ministers within the culture. From the formation of weDIGit the call upon Steven and Donna's life was to go! Go to where people are living, working, and serving through events and opportunities as a couple. A husband and wife team working together to move into the marketplace and society by serving, consulting, and encouraging as God opens the doors.
• weDIGit goes immediately as the Spirit leads. They are ready and able to go at a moment’s notice where God leads to minister and bring hope. Much like scripture says in John 4:4 that Jesus “had to go through Samaria." Steven and Donna believe God desires for them to move as Jesus moved on this earth to wherever He calls them to go and do whatever He has called them to do.
• weDIGit has been commissioned to give and help those in need. To BE the church and minister to the needs of those that God brings into their lives. weDIGit is a vehicle to give, serve, and bless as God allows, and then teach others to do the same.
• weDIGit blesses those in ministry. After 22 years in full-time ministry, Steven and Donna believe that God wants to use them to bless families in ministry that are serving. They know what it is like to struggle and serve, and want to be in a stronger position to help these families throughout the year with encouragement and resources.
• weDIGit teaches people to BE the church at home first. Steven and Donna truly believe, and live out in their own family, the house church model. It is their desire to teach and encourage husbands\fathers, in agreement with their wives, to shepherd and care for their families and neighbors as outlined in the book of Acts. BE THE CHURCH.
• weDIGit serves and ministers within the culture. From the formation of weDIGit the call upon Steven and Donna's life was to go! Go to where people are living, working, and serving through events and opportunities as a couple. A husband and wife team working together to move into the marketplace and society by serving, consulting, and encouraging as God opens the doors.
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