United with Christ

Summary

Janet Chang and Don Chang share a testimony about their family’s three-year period in Atlanta after leaving Houston. They describe it as a faith-stretching “assignment,” not a career move. Their central claim is that God can be trusted—especially when the full reasons for a decision aren’t understood in the moment.

Leaving Houston and why Atlanta

• The family moved from Houston to Atlanta three years earlier without fully knowing God’s purpose.
• Through prayer, prompting by the Holy Spirit, and counsel from church leaders, they became convinced God was calling them to Atlanta.
• They repeatedly returned to Genesis 12:1, emphasizing trust before you see the whole purpose.
• Janet highlights that their primary motivation was not career advancement or expanding ministry.
  • It was their family—re-centering marriage and discipling their children during formative years.

Guidance before the move: “Atlanta as a three-year assignment”

• Pastor Eric (and others in their church network) offered recommendations.
• The family treated these as loving guidance rather than mere ideas.
• Their plan was to view Atlanta as a three-year semi-sabbatical:
  • Serve quietly and humbly where doors opened
  • Invest deeply in family life
  • Prayerfully return home if staying wasn’t clearly from God

Evidence God “went before them” (children, school, and church growth)

• Children

  • God provided a strong Christian environment at Whitfield Academy.
  • Sophia and Joshua formed healthy friendships.
  • They later testified that the move taught them they could trust God because God provided something better than they expected.

• Church life

  • Through Pastor Eric’s guidance, they ended up at Here and Now Church.
  • Janet says Here and Now was “already prepared” for their family before they arrived.

• Multiplication at Here and Now

  • Don details growth over the three years:
    • More house churches
    • Retreats
    • Baptisms (including 17 mentioned by Janet)
    • Leadership development
    • A deepening culture of discipleship and service

Janet’s workplace turning points and “margin” for God and family

• Janet’s job situation changed unexpectedly:
  • Her boss, who was planning to build a team for an investment fund, became ill and stopped pursuing those plans.
  • This raised questions about whether they had heard God correctly.
• She eventually became CFO of a private food technology company.
  • It meant less money but more “margin”—flexibility to be present with the Lord and her family.
• Janet also describes a spiritual corrective:
  • She realized she had been “competing” career ambition with the priorities God had entrusted.
  • Her renewed focus became loving God wholeheartedly and loving her husband and neighbors faithfully—starting with her family.
• Life coaching with Pastor Daniel and Ellen served as a turning point:
  • They reframed her “life KPI’s” around how she would love God, her husband, and others.
  • This helped her reorganize attention and commitments.

Decision at the end: returning to Houston

• As the three years ended, staying in Atlanta was tempting because things were going well spiritually.
• They prayed for clarity on whether God wanted them to remain or return to Houston.
• Confirmation came through:
  • Their children choosing obedience to return even though they wanted to stay
  • Family circumstances aligning with “bringing everyone home,” including:
    • Janet’s father accepting a role at the University of Houston after decades in Korea
    • Don’s parents planning to move back to Houston

Don’s perspective: humility, unity in Christ, and how Here and Now flourished

• Don frames his testimony around Philippians 2:1–4:
  • Encouragement in Christ
  • Unity in love
  • Humility that values others
  • A refusal to act from self-interest
• He emphasizes that the real reason God took them to Atlanta was not comfort or convenience, but participation in God’s work at Here and Now Church—and learning humble unity.
• He recalls that their initial experience at Here and Now felt quiet and small—almost “not ideal.”
  • Rather than choosing based on preference, they committed to the work God was doing.
• He attributes the church’s growth to surrender and servant leadership:
  • Shepherd training
  • Retreats
  • Membership formation
  • Developing men’s and women’s retreats
  • Increased fruitfulness, including baptisms/testimonies and house church multiplication

Overall conclusion and key message

• Both presenters describe Atlanta as a season of pruning and multiplication, not simply relocation.
• They insist God often calls for obedience without revealing the whole story.
• God’s work exceeds what they could see at the time—echoed through the John 6 theme of “small lunch” multiplication.
• They return to Houston “confident because the one leading them is faithful,” not because they understand the future fully (closing with Ephesians 3:20–21).

Presenters / Contributors

• Janet Chang
• Don Chang
• Pastor Eric (mentioned)
• Lynette Joe (mentioned)
• Pastor Mia (mentioned)
• Pastor Daniel and Ellen (mentioned)
• Pastor Jay and Christine (Here and Now Church; mentioned)
• Gus and Angel (MAG team referenced)
• Bobby Tran (helped with slideshow)
• Elliot (Pastor Eric’s nephew; mentioned)
• Melissa (friend; mentioned)
• Simon Pac, Steven Chun, Tony, Judy, Andy Park, Jen, Jay Lee, Michelle (various church members mentioned)
• Paul Juan and Roger Pac (mentioned as future men’s retreat speakers)