Greetings from Michigan!

Josie · July 5, 2023

Hi Everyone,

I’m really happy to have found this site! I’m Josie, 40 years young, and a lot can be read on the “about me” section. But to flesh that out a little more, I was raised in a GARBC Baptist church but felt more connected to my grandparents’ independent Baptist church home. I went on missions trips to Mexico with them and to summer camp at the Bill Rice Ranch one summer. Later, I attended Bible College when it was Heritage Baptist University in a suburb of Indianapolis, Indiana.

Life has taken an “interesting” series of twists and turns that has led me to living all across the country and overseas in the Middle East. In my quest to make my faith fully my own, I also converted to Roman Catholicism in my young adulthood and later to Eastern Orthodoxy. Seven years ago, I returned to the United States and to Michigan and a year and a half ago, even though I was saved at a young age, finally accepted the full beauty of God’s grace and the simplicity of that expression by returning to my Baptist roots.

Nowadays, I spend most of my time as a postal clerk. I work most Sundays, though we are closed to the public, and I am praying for an opportunity to spend more time with my church family, worshipping the Lord together, and to be more involved, especially with ministry. Nevertheless, I am grateful for the everyday moments where I can be a blessing to others, demonstrating God’s grace and love to my coworkers, supervisors, and service to my customers. There are so many opportunities! There are so many hurting hearts. My daily prayer is that God might allow others to see Him through me and that they might come to know Him.

God bless you all,

Josie

TheGloryLand · July 5, 2023

Hello and welcome aboard

BrotherTony · July 5, 2023

Welcome, Josie! What part of Michigan are you from? My ex fiance was from Laingsburg, just outside of Lansing. Of course, that was 40 years ago. I was born a Hoosier.. born and raised for the first 6 years of my life in Bloomington. It's great to have you aboard.

Disciple.Luke · July 6, 2023

18 hours ago, Josie said:

Hi Everyone,

I’m really happy to have found this site! I’m Josie, 40 years young, and a lot can be read on the “about me” section. But to flesh that out a little more, I was raised in a GARBC Baptist church but felt more connected to my grandparents’ independent Baptist church home. I went on missions trips to Mexico with them and to summer camp at the Bill Rice Ranch one summer. Later, I attended Bible College when it was Heritage Baptist University in a suburb of Indianapolis, Indiana.

Life has taken an “interesting” series of twists and turns that has led me to living all across the country and overseas in the Middle East. In my quest to make my faith fully my own, I also converted to Roman Catholicism in my young adulthood and later to Eastern Orthodoxy. Seven years ago, I returned to the United States and to Michigan and a year and a half ago, even though I was saved at a young age, finally accepted the full beauty of God’s grace and the simplicity of that expression by returning to my Baptist roots.

Nowadays, I spend most of my time as a postal clerk. I work most Sundays, though we are closed to the public, and I am praying for an opportunity to spend more time with my church family, worshipping the Lord together, and to be more involved, especially with ministry. Nevertheless, I am grateful for the everyday moments where I can be a blessing to others, demonstrating God’s grace and love to my coworkers, supervisors, and service to my customers. There are so many opportunities! There are so many hurting hearts. My daily prayer is that God might allow others to see Him through me and that they might come to know Him.

God bless you all,

Josie

Welcome to forum. I live in central Indiana...about 25-30 minutes northeast of Indianapolis.

Pastor Matt · July 6, 2023

Welcome to Online Baptist. Thank you for sharing your testimony.

HappyChristian · July 7, 2023

Welcome aboard, Josie! We're glad to have you.

Josie · July 10, 2023

On 7/5/2023 at 7:43 PM, BrotherTony said:

Welcome, Josie! What part of Michigan are you from? My ex fiance was from Laingsburg, just outside of Lansing. Of course, that was 40 years ago. I was born a Hoosier.. born and raised for the first 6 years of my life in Bloomington. It's great to have you aboard.

Thank you, BrotherTony! I'm originally from the western part of the state, but now I live in the Metro Detroit area. That's really cool you live in Murfeesboro! I went to the BRR years ago, as a teenager, with my grandparent's church. I had no idea until the night before that the camp was in Tennessee! That was the first of my many wild and crazy traveling adventures! It gets really hot down there, though! It's muggy in Michigan, too, but your neck of the woods is pretty close to the humidity level I experienced living in the UAE! What brought you and/or your family to the south?

Thank you, everyone, for your kind words of welcome!

BrotherTony · July 10, 2023

8 minutes ago, Josie said:

Thank you, BrotherTony! I'm originally from the western part of the state, but now I live in the Metro Detroit area. That's really cool you live in Murfeesboro! I went to the BRR years ago, as a teenager, with my grandparent's church. I had no idea until the night before that the camp was in Tennessee! That was the first of my many wild and crazy traveling adventures! It gets really hot down there, though! It's muggy in Michigan, too, but your neck of the woods is pretty close to the humidity level I experienced living in the UAE! What brought you and/or your family to the south?

Thank you, everyone, for your kind words of welcome!

My father sold his part of a Western store in the Peoria Illinois area and three years later decided move the family South to Augusta Georgia. That's where I met my wife in 1983. My ex fiance and I split up and she married a nurse (male) from Ovid, MI. I married Vivian in 1984. We've lived in Minnesota, Indiana, Illinois, Georgia, and for the past 23 years, Tennessee.

Edited July 10, 2023 by BrotherTony