The following is a short excerpt from Natalie Shoemaker’s blog. She and her husband are planting a church using Missional Communities near Columbus, OH and are in one of 3DM’s Learning Communities. Check out how Persons of Peace (people God has been preparing in advance who are open to us and want to serve our mission) can come in all sizes through her story:

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We first met Dee when she and her cousin stopped by our house advertising their newly opening dog-walking business (we just so happen to be their only customers). We gladly let the two tweens take our active dog, Linus, on walks at least once a week. I’m not sure who walks who, but they all come back happy and thirsty each time.

The next natural step was to invite Dee and her friends to VBS, and they came. Not only did she come, but she brought along six of her cousins. After the week of VBS, Dee stopped by regularly to just spend time with me, cuddle Judah, and hang out in our backyard. Recently, she has begun coming early to Missional Community each week to help me cook and set-up.

In the midst of all these simple opportunities to show Christ’s love to Dee, she brought over her Bible to our house to read with me last week. After reading the first 15 verses of John, Dee decided to begin following Jesus. It was obvious, though, by our conversation that this was not her first encounter with God, Scripture, or faith. Someone has been planting seeds, turning the soil, and encouraging her for quite some time. This just so happened to be harvest time! It was also obvious to me that the words coming out of my mouth were not my own. Evangelism is not my base gifting, but it’s certainly becoming an area of growth and stretching right now.

I love this girl; she has a sweet spirit, an intelligent mind, and a servant’s heart. God reminded me through her that He’s always been using young people to advance His Kingdom (think David or Mary!). I can’t wait to see how He uses Dee as she grows in Him.