Dear Hallows Family,

As many of you know, we recently worshiped with you in person for the last time prior to our transition to California. We wanted to write to say thank you for being our church and extended family for the last nine-and-a-half years, to reflect on how we have shared life together, and to share a few words of encouragement.

We moved to Seattle without friends or family and felt loved, accepted, supported, and cherished since our first visit to The Hallows. The Lord was gracious in leading us to The Hallows in 2012 on our second week in Seattle (which was the second week the Hallows was meeting) when Pastor Andrew was preaching through the book of 1 John (the same book our church in CA was studying)–coincidence? We tried to sneak in and out the first few Sundays, but that proved to be difficult with The Hallows’ hospitality (and Kim and Mary Ann in the room and the Moores living in the city). We were quickly integrated into the fabric of The Hallows through a Missional Community and being pursued by many people who love Jesus.

We can’t imagine our life in Seattle without The Hallows. We have been through many seasons together as a church family, sharing highs and lows, facing joys and rough patches in marriage, raising families together, seeing life created and taken away, and experiencing the grit of daily life in Seattle together. Many of us have shared hugs (now fist bumps), tears, late night texts of prayer requests, spirit-prompted words of encouragement, camping trips, marshmallow fights, Sunday set up and tear down, early morning coffees, and real, hard conversation around fire pits. Through it all, we are deeply connected through our love of the Gospel and our Hallows missional DNA.

From its roots of small 20-person gatherings, when the room was mainly filled with the southern accents of the original planting team, our church is now a diverse cross-section of three different areas of our city. We have been repeatedly humbled as the Lord provided generously for the needs of our church– including physical meeting space. We are praying for and excited to see how the Lord will bless the launch of the new building in Wallingford, to see the new rhythms that will be created as in-person gatherings return to “normal” over the next few months, to see faith strengthened in disciples, and to see new believers come to faith as our church maintains its focus on Jesus, missional living, and serving the city.

We will miss you deeply,

Colin and Lauren MacMillan

 

Pictured Above: Colin with the first elder board of The Hallows Church (not pictured: Wes Moore); Lauren leading through Scripture Reading at a Good Friday worship gathering, family picture of the MacMillan crew having their last family worship in their Seattle home, family picture celebrating Easter and Colin teaching in Kids Ministry (not pictured: Lauren crawling around serving in the nursery next door). 

Please praise the Lord for the gift the MacMillan family has been to our Hallows Church family for the last 9 years, and pray for them as they transition into a new home and season of life. To email them words of encouragement or prayer, email Lauren here.