Hi, we're the Boyles and this is the story of Bethel Barn.
In late 2017 while we were living in Charleston for the second time in our marriage, Brad came across an interesting real estate listing. Prior to moving back to Charleston we sold what had been our dream farm in NC. Now, living back where we met and were married we thought our farm days were past. God thought differently.
There are two things I distinctly remember about the email Brad sent with the listing. First, he said, "Don't show Jackson", because he knew that, of our three sons, Jackson most missed NC. Second, I remember thinking, "Why is there a church on the property?".
Although I personally wrestled with God about the decision, we ended up selling our Charleston home. In fact, we sold it to a neighbor's relative without even listing it. There were many more confirmations making it clear that this was His will for us.
So, in February of 2018 we moved for the ninth time in 25 years. The "church" is actually a barn built in the 70's and designed by the previous owners. Unique is really an understatement. The farm also includes a double wide mobile home and a small stick built house. Our intention was to live in the double wide until we built a house somewhere on the property.
I had been praying about what to name the farm. One day while studying Genesis and the life of Abraham, I read that he settled to the east of Bethel. When, out of curiosity, I looked up the meaning of Bethel, I found that it means "house of God". I knew immediately that was the name and Bethel Farm was born.
The barn has been tossed around a lot over the past five years. Ideas included: wedding barn, winery, hunting lodge. In 2019 I decided to host a vintage and handmade barn sale with vendors, food, and music. We had 30 vendors lined up for Saturday, March 21, 2020. Obviously, that did not happen. Cancelling that event was heartbreaking for me. But, once again, God had other plans.
Some time in 2020 we were on our nightly walk around the farm when Brad said, "Maybe we should make the barn into our house." I have to admit at that moment I was still hopeful that my Barn Sale would eventually be rescheduled. But as time went on the idea grew on me.
We started drawing up our own sketches of floor plans and dreaming. After more talking, dreaming, and praying we contacted an architect and had plans drawn up. Things were getting started or so we thought. With Brad being a commercial contractor things like mechanical, electrical, and plumbing would be easy. But finding subcontractors for things like masonry, carpentry, cabinetry, etc proved to be impossible after covid.
Finally, nearly two years after we drew those first sketches we were given the name of a local homebuilder. One meeting with Nelson and we both knew it was a God thing. We've had a few hoops to jump through getting a building permit but we've officially begun this journey.
This blog will chronicle our journey and we'd love to have you join us. Brad and Ann-Marie
