“Have you ever felt lost, like you don’t belong and that you just don’t fit in….. That was both David and I until the day that we were being dragged on our knees crippled by the pain of past lives that had no boundaries and not knowing who we were or how we got here”.
We appreciate God is the Master planner and it’s all in his time. We weren’t ready until 2019 to walk in the light of his Kingdom as Husband and Wife. He needed us broken enough so he could teach and correct us as any good Father does. He tells us that at the time it will be painful and to embrace challenges as opportunities to grow stronger In our faith. It has been tough, we have been thousands of miles apart but Jesus rescued, saved us and put us back together. We are proud to say our Marriage and our lives have been rebuilt on a foundation of rock not sand. We have learnt that healing happens on the way to obedience and to give thanks in all circumstances. Each day we strive to close the gap on what we know and think about our faith but to be “On Purpose People” living out the word of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ.
We had just married and we believe it was our relationships that God used to bring the two of us to him. We believe he planted the seed 22 years ago when our paths first crossed. The emptiness & brokenness of our early years and our love and understanding for each other allowed us to explore what faith meant to us as a newly married couple.
Our Marriage was in most parts loving but under the surface we were being attacked. We were vulnerable as most newly married couples are, we were attending church every Sunday for 8 weeks straight when we fell apart. New to faith we weren’t prepared for the enemy to attack nor did we realise at the time how much he had played a part in our early lives. The one who comes to Steal, attack and Destroy crept up and took control.
We have learnt that The enemy despises marriage and of course God so when two of his strongest left him to Join their Father, the battle for our lives and our Marriage was on. What he didn’t expect was that the years of struggle made us tough and that we were ready for the battle that Our Father had created us and brought us together for.
David and I always dreamt of being married to our Best Friends and we have that plus so much more. We have found ourselves in our Father as individuals and also as a couple and being able to share our Faith with each other has strengthen us. We pray together daily surrendering our lives to our creator and asking him to guide us, share his wisdom with us and to fill us with the fruits of the spirit- Love, Patience, Joy, Peace, Self-control, Faithfulness, Kindness, Goodness, Gentleness. We are not perfect by any means and some days we fall short but we are there to help one another find our way back to the narrow path that leads to life.
The Crafter is a State Licensed Contractor born and breed in Ventura CA and has a natural talent for building and fixing anything. He really does surprise me away with his abilities and talents. As for me I am from Sydney Australia, I love to create and dream up ideas but never had the ability to really make anything. I dabbled with a few abstract paintings for my house many years ago and painted a few feature walls however In The Crafter I have found my hands and I am his creative energy. We inspire each other and push each other beyond what we think we are capable of.
Our first piece we created was a Dining room table. It was small, we lived in a 1 bedroom cottage and we needed a table for 3. We loved the time we spent planning the size, buying the material. It has a strong sturdy metal base that a friend of ours welded for us and we got to work. We were so proud and it felt amazing to be able to create and make it together. When we ate we would study it and tell each other how we could have done it better in places, it was a real treat to have made something we used each day.
2nd item was our bedhead, made from recycled pallets. It was another fun day in the small yard at the cottage. To say we became inspired was an understatement. We started to walk the beach close to our home and found some tree trucks washed on the beach. We took some home and created a beautiful platter and an amazing bowl that now holds our sea glass that we collect as a family. David couldn’t see what I saw in this piece and I encouraged him to love the perfect imperfection and he embraced my belief in him and it is spectacular.
We knew this is what something we wanted to continue doing. Often when he was in full swing of making I was in the Kitchen preparing our lunch or dinner. We dabbled with names for our future business that we dreamt of opening when we came up with “The Cook and the Crafter. First it was because I cooked and he crafted but looking at the name that God had laid on us we realised it was more along the lines of us cooking up ideas and dreaming together and then we craft them to pieces of perfection.
Before our marriage felt the effects of the enemy and our pasts this was going to be a business for us, our future. We have since come to realise that is was meant to be our hope for the future, a vehicle to give back to other by way of our creator. The old recycled pieces represent the old in us and that we are being restored to new like the pieces we create. God has been so generous in giving to us a new life that we wanted live with a purpose to help others in need.
Our home is filled with our creations, a TV stand, coffee Table, entry way bench seat, bedside tables all made out of reclaimed materials and we pray that we may fill your home with one of our one of a kind pieces that will fill you with peace each time you look at it.
Each design is unique like how our Father made each of us. Each product is listed with a financial statement telling you the story of where the material were sourced from, what it cost us to produce and how much will be going to charity. We are fully transparent, we are not in this for financial gain but to give to those in need by sharing the gifts we have been given.
We pray that our story of Salvation and Redemption resinates with you and you may spread the word and share our story and creations with family and friends. It only take One person, one smile, one purchase to make a difference in someone’s life. God made that difference in our lives.
For wide is the gate and broad is the path that leads to destruction and many enter through it. But small is the gate and narrow is the road that leads to life and only a few find it. – Matthew 7:13-14