It was a warm twilight night in the summer of 2006. I was standing in a field along with about 25 others who attended Life Connections. Though it would seem weird to many, our family and the group were pouring olive oil and praying over the five and a half acres that had been given to us in the heart of Fishers. Overwhelmed with thanksgiving, we were praying God’s anointing, favor, and Spirit would be on the soon to be built campus.
Walking along the west side of the property praying, I heard a voice, not audibly, but in my spirit say, “walk the property on the other side of the fence.” I had heard the inner voice before and learned to lean into it. Without hesitation, I climbed over the barbed wire fence and began my first walk off.
The land I had been walking on was mowed, but once over the fence, it was different. The grass was tall and as I walked I encountered thickets, brush, bushes with thorns, and fallen trees. There was a pond in the middle of the property, one that had been created when an overpass was put over the nearby interstate. That became my point of reference. I navigated around the pond, praying, pouring oil, and claiming the property for a church that was yet to be built on donated land.
It would not be the last time, in fact multiple times through the years God would prompt me to do another walk off. Over the barbed wire fence I would go, trudging through the rugged terrain, praying and claiming the land.
By early 2009 Life Connections new facility was completed, creating a beautiful campus. Ebbs and flows of pastoring kept us busy but still there would be days I would stand in my second-floor office and look out the window at the land to the west and wonder. Growth at Life began to explode and by 2014 we began to talk about our next expansion of our campus. As plans were being formed, I remember once again, hiking over the fence and taking a walk, claiming the land one more time. Construction on Phase 2 of our campus began in 2017 and it was about that time that I noticed some activity on the land to our west.
After some inquiring, I found that the property had been sold and that an assisted living center, Lake Meadows, was being built on the property. My heart was saddened. my spirit a little downcast. I had learned God’s promptings but, on that day, as work began on the far west end of the property, it seemed I had heard wrong and my walks in vain.
By 2020 our new stage and 300-seat auditorium was complete. Soon after we added an additional 175 chairs to handle incredible growth. It was that same year that Lake Meadows completed their construction. The owner of the property, Daniel Hubbard invited me to the ribbon cutting ceremony. He had not only built a beautiful facility, but also cleaned up much of the property, including a beautiful paved walking path around the pond that I had circled. That day was a mixture of happiness for him but some sadness for me. I still couldn’t get away from my prayers. Maybe it was my pride. Maybe it was embarrassment.
Fast forward six years, it’s 2026. Much had happened.
· 2020 – COVID has a devastating impact on our church.
· 2021 – God spoke to my spirit and said we had finished our purpose at Life.
· 2022 – Philip and Annie Daigle, are unanimously voted in as pastors of Life Connections.
· 2023-2026 – Miraculous growth. Two expansions. A new name and future, as Life Connections becomes Heart and Soul Church.
With that backdrop I come back to that first walk off in 2006. Mary and I are now but a reminder of what was, as life should, it goes on. But on a Sunday in February of 2026 the past, the walk offs, came rushing to the present. Setting in service, we are stunned when Pastor Philip announced that there has been an amazing opportunity for the church. The opportunity? The property to the west had become available and the church was in the process of securing the land.
While others clapped and rejoiced, Mary and I sat in silence. Emotions? Overwhelmed. Astonished. Stunned. Fill in the blank. A prayer that appeared dead, over, a futile waste of time, in an instant is very alive. 20 years later. In a different form. Under different leadership. A 20-year prayer is answered!
I often said that God says, “yes, no, and wait.” By experience I’ve often felt that God’s default answer was wait. I know people who are praying for physical and mental healings. Parents who have prayed for their children for years. Ministers who are praying for breakthroughs in their ministries or churches. People praying for financial relief. All seem to get the same answer, “wait.” Wait often feels like a “no.” External signs say it’s a “no.” Emotionally it often feels like a “no.” What do we do when “wait” feels like “no?” Keep praying. Have a faith that believes. Never let go of hope. Trust the process, God’s process. Keep walking it off!
