Unity Community
A place where the congregation at Unity Church in Greenville, NC hear stories of life change, discover how God is working through our ministries, and hear from missionaries we support.
Unity Community
Get To Know The Staff: Office Administrator Cassie Hinson
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Host Tim DeCresie talks with Cassie about her faith story, her family's transition to Unity and eventually accepting a new position, and her testimony of God's faithfulness through it all!
All right, welcome. I am your host, Tim DeCreasy. Thanks for taking a moment to listen. Today we're going to continue our conversation with members of our church family, hearing real stories of faith, growth, and what it means to walk in Christ in everyday life. Every story matters, every journey looks different. And today we get to hear how God has been at work in the life of one of our own, and that's our new office administrator, Cassie Henson. Welcome.
SPEAKER_00Thank you for having me. I'm excited to be here.
SPEAKER_02Are you really excited?
SPEAKER_00I'm a little nervous.
SPEAKER_02Okay. Well, we don't want you to be nervous, so we're just going to get in and have a conversation, and you'll forget that we're recording, and um we'll just move on from there.
SPEAKER_00Okay.
SPEAKER_02So let's just start with what you do know, and that's a little bit about yourself.
SPEAKER_00So I I grew up in Durham and eventually, of course, ended up in Greenville. Um I'm married to Adam Henson, and we have three kids LG, who's 15, uh, or Lily Grace, Lorelei, who is 12, and Davis, who is seven.
SPEAKER_02Okay, so you grew up in, you lived in Durham your whole childhood?
SPEAKER_00Yes. Um I grew up so when my kind of getting this starts to kind of get in my faith journey. My mom grew up um assemblies of God, so she kind of has a Pentecostal background. My dad grew up at a Free Will Baptist church in Durham, very small church. Um, Adam actually worked there for three years, um, which is kind of how we got together. But um so when they got married, they were they weren't unequally yoked or anything. They were both believers, but their worship styles were drastically different. So dad would go to my mom's church and kind of be terrified, and mom would go to dad's church and think it was just dead. And so they kind of had a hard time finding a church home, but we ended up um I ended up going to Liberty Christian School, and so I really loved my school, and so we tried church out there, and that's it kind of seemed to be the right fit for all of us. And so I grew up at Liberty and then later on went to ended up at Southeastern, um, which is where I met Adam.
SPEAKER_02Okay, so tell us a little bit about meeting Adam.
SPEAKER_00So I first met Adam when I was 16, and he I was visiting a friend, she was already at college, Adam was a freshman, so I was I think I was a junior in high school, he was a freshman in college, and he was kind of in a singing group, and so she played the piano for that group. So we went down one Friday and she was like, Hey, I've got to go practice with this group, why don't you come with me? And so that was the first time I remember meeting him, and he didn't pay me any attention. He he said, he says he remembers, but he thought I was 12 years old. And so when I got to college, we both he had a girlfriend shortly after I ended up having a boyfriend, and we dated, we're very serious with other people, and around my junior year, we we he was already out of college, we both broke up with these people around the same time. And I remember I was at a ball game to go see my sister cheer, and I was actually on a date with another guy, and I look across the gym, and Adam is looking at me and he's smiling at me, and I'm sitting there going, Really? Like all this time, you had time to talk to me, never noticed me, never paid attention until I'm on a date with somebody else. And my mom always loved Adam. He was just she always thought he was the best guy, she wanted me to marry him, and so we get home that night and she said, Did you see Adam Henson looking at you? I saw him smiling at you, and I'm like, Mom, this is not gonna happen. I'm not interested in him, I'm dating this guy. Um, but about two months later, I was dating Adam. So anyway, um, so he he definitely I I I call him Mr. Steel Your Girl. He took me away from that other guy, and the rest is kind of history.
SPEAKER_02So okay. Well, good for him. Uh so how did you all end up in Greenville?
SPEAKER_00So when we he was at a church, uh I mentioned the church my my dad grew up at for about three years, and that's kind of where we started dating. We got engaged, we got married there right after we got married, uh, went on our honeymoon, and we moved to Florence, South Carolina. And he was, I was gonna be the English teacher. I had already taught kindergarten a year in Durham. Um, I was gonna be the high school English teacher in Florence, and he, this church in Florence, and he was going to be the youth pastor. And so we literally like got off our honeymoon, moved to Florence. We were married like two weeks and took kids to camp. Uh, we went to the wilds. We got in trouble for holding hands at the wilds because I guess we look so young. Uh sometimes we look back and we're like, I cannot believe people let us take their children off because we look like little kids. But um, so we were there for about eight years. It was kind of a heyday of our ministry. I feel like, you know, you don't always know you're in the glory days when you're in them, but that was a great group. We've gone back and done several weddings, and I had a girl, I mean, I still have kids call me and or Adam and ask for advice about things. You know, they're all married, have kids. And um, so we were there for eight years, and I taught, and I was really starting to want to. I had a at that point we were leaving, this was in 2016. Um, Lily Grace was five, and Laurel I was two, and I was really wanting to stay home. And we were thinking about having another child, and so and the opportunity came um for a church here in Greenville, and so we moved here, and I kind of transitioned out of the classroom and started homeschooling at that point, and Adam became the youth pastor at a church in Greenville.
SPEAKER_02Okay, and then how long were you in Florence?
SPEAKER_00So eight years. So you were at that church for eight years, and then we had the opportunity to move to Greenville, and um, you know, uh both of our families are in North Carolina, and it just everything just kind of lined up. It felt like it was, you know, the right, the right move. It was really hard to leave, but uh we we really prayed about it. We so we moved to Greenville and we were uh at this church for eight years. Um and I so I stayed home, I homeschooled, so I've homeschooled about 10 years now, and Adam was um on staff there for eight years as well. Same thing as a youth pastor.
SPEAKER_02Okay, and so then what brought you to unity?
SPEAKER_00So, you know, youth ministry kind of it has a shelf life, and we were getting a little older, not old, but a little older, and we were kind of you know think trying to figure out like what's our next move. And it it we felt like it we were d done with the youth ministry part. Um and I feel like we're still kind of in transition, we're still trying to figure out some different pieces, though I feel like they're starting to kind of come together. And so anyway, we were just we left that that ministry and it was very weird because we we kind of woke up one Sunday and we had been at the beach and we're like, okay, where are we gonna go to church? Because for the first time in our adult lives, you know, we didn't have our parents telling us where to go to church, we weren't on staff somewhere, so we it was we had to be big kids and make our own decision. And so we were like, well, you know, unity's across the street. We'll just, you know, we've been gone all weekend, it was close, and we were like, we'll just we'll go try it out. Probably you know, we're gonna visit a lot of places, it probably may not be the one. Uh, but we we came and that was it.
SPEAKER_02So you said your parents were in different denominations. So tell us more about your faith journey and how you came to know the Lord.
SPEAKER_00Um, so when I went to when I started at kindergarten Christian school, I remember that being the first time I really remember she had all the Abecca fla Bible flashcards and she would do the Bible stories, and I remember really just taking it in for the first time, and it and you know, that people think that children aren't understanding things, but I really felt like even as a five, six-year-old, I really understood all the components of how to get saved, and and I it just all really made sense to me. And so I think I at some point said a prayer. I was say, you know, saved, baptized. Um, but then I got a little older and I started really doubting, like I couldn't remember, I couldn't even physically like remember what happened. And so I was in junior church and I was um, I got up at the during the invitation and I went to a lady who was our children's pastor's wife, and she thought I had to go to the bathroom because I'd been there, you know, I was saved, I was baptized, and she's like, Are you okay? Do you need anything? And I'm like, I need to get saved. And I just so I remember at when I was in fifth grade being 11, and that's when I really nailed down my salvation, and I really have never doubted it since then, and so I was baptized again um at that point, and you know, that's kind of how I I came to know the Lord. Um, and I as a teenager, I would love to say my husband was a really good teenager. He was kind of like some of the boys you see here leading the youth group, really involved, like right under his youth pastor's um wing. But I struggled a lot more as a teenager. I had kind of I felt like I was not a happy teenager. I had I kind of got in junior high and I wanted to be really popular, I wanted to have the cutest boyfriend, and I got really all about that kind of stuff. I drove my youth pastor crazy. Um and I I felt like I just always had one foot in church and one foot in the world, and I couldn't decide who I wanted to be. And um until I got in upper high school and I had a pastor's daughter I became friends with, um, I I I think I realized the popular kids weren't maybe the best friends, and they weren't, you know, they would turn on you, they backstab you, and and I realized some of these cute boys were jerks, and so I um became friends with her. She kind of wasn't wasn't my typical friend, but she was such a good friend to me, and I felt like she kind of pulled me in the right direction, and I felt like my life kind of shifted to a better traject trajectory at that point, and that's kind of how I ended up at Bible College, and and she was she really was just like we're still friends to this day. She was very life-changing for me. Um, but as she was in the the right crowd I needed to be in.
SPEAKER_02So yeah, and my mom would say, and really she said this until she passed away would have been you know, I would say when I was nine. Okay, I remember that day that the pastor came over and we said this prayer and um you know, all was good. But even with my own kids, when that decision was made young, you know, before ten, you know, I would say, you know, that's that's great, but let's see what happens when you're a teenager. You know, it's about really following the Lord, you know, and so um, you know, as a teenager, probably like you, one foot in church, one foot out, and one in the world. And uh, you know, I wasn't saved till I was twenty-seven.
SPEAKER_00Right.
SPEAKER_02You know, that's when I really turned my life over to the Lord. Yes.
SPEAKER_00So And I think it it it was good for us because I felt like when we had kids who were wayward in the youth group, Adam was always a good kid and he would maybe sometimes not that he would give up hope, but he would get frustrated and why, you know, why can't they get it together? And I think about one boy in particular who is a church planner now. Um, but I would always say no, never give up hope, because I was kind of a hopeless case. And, you know, I I always felt like the Lord was speaking to me. I always felt his presence near. I just I just couldn't commit. And and but then one day I did. And you know, I think sometimes my youth pastor is shocked how things turned out, but you know, it just shows you the Lord can change anybody's life, he can use anybody not to give up hope, not to quit praying for people. I know my mom blessed her heart, she prayed for me because I was such I was a very good little girl, and I always and even as a teenager, I was very responsible, I made good grades, I was trustworthy in a sense, but I I ch I changed. I wasn't the same girl, and I I know you know she prayed for me so much. Um and I think you know the Lord blessed that in a lot of ways.
SPEAKER_02Yeah, and you know, my mom did the same thing. I didn't really argue with her, you know, was I saved at nine or saved at twenty-seven? I don't know which one it was. I just know when I gave my life to Christ.
SPEAKER_00Yes.
SPEAKER_02You know, so that's but hey, that's maybe what God tethers us to is that early decision, and then now when you're older, this is what you need to be doing. Yeah, I don't know how it worked out. I just know how I am now.
SPEAKER_00Right. It did, it worked out. That's all right.
SPEAKER_02Um so now we can get into more of the present. You you're here at Unity, you're our office manager, um that's new. That's only been a few months now.
SPEAKER_00Right.
SPEAKER_02So um when did you first start coming to Unity?
SPEAKER_00So Easter, Easter of 2024. We had our last Sunday at our previous church, and we took a vacation for about a week and we came, so it was it was I think it was literally the week after Easter. So it's been we've been here just around two years exactly.
SPEAKER_02Okay, and so um I guess you had heard about Unity to make this your f your first stop. So you at least knew it existed.
SPEAKER_00Yes. And we're Free Will Baptists, and so you know, it just made sense to come try it out.
SPEAKER_02So Okay, and then what what uh kept you here?
SPEAKER_00So uh well, a few things. Okay, so our first week um it's so funny. The people who popped up at the beginning. So one thing, you know, we get there and the music's really good, of course. And then I remember I pull up the church app and I'm looking through the notes. And I've I was an English teacher, so I scrolled to the end and I see all of his end notes. And uh and I th I I looked at Adam and I said, He ha Pastor Jeff has to study 10-15 hours minimum a week. I mean, it was it was a research paper basically, and you know, and we kept coming back at every week, and I was just amazed at just the amount of study. I was so impressed by that. And we were just from our transition, we were really worried about our kids. So hard to move your kids to churches, and especially, I mean, Lily Grace was 12, 13 at the time, and she was really nervous, and so we were really, really wanting community for the kids. And it's it's hard to put yourself out there at a new place and everybody's already has their own friends. Um, but they were just it's funny, I wrote down different people who kind of popped up when we first came that I remember. Um, so one, Lorelai was in Miss Jennifer's class, uh, life group, and and then she would she went up to Miss Nelda, and Lorelai just loved both of them. They, I mean, just from the beginning, they really impacted her. And then Davis had Diana Mills, you know, who was like famous, you know, all the kids' pictures on the walls. And, you know, he she just loves on those kids and he he just loved her. And of course, both of those, uh Lorelai's in youth group now, but at the time, she, you know, she had Chris, she had Ty, and they I think it was really impactful for us because they went to junior church and they just they came home so excited and they loved it. They wanted to, you know, when can we go back? They were so excited. And then, of course, LG was in youth group, which was super scary just to walk into a brand new youth group. And she was the one who was hesitant. And I remember the first Wednesday night, she's like, I don't want to go, and and she was terrified. And of course, Jordan and Courtney were great from the beginning. And and Jordan, I have watched him, he's really good about making sure, like, hey, go speak to that person, go welcome them. And uh Kaylee Letchworth came up to Lily and invited her to sit with her, and they have been like peanut butter and jelly ever since. And then Riley Ether, she she kind of became part of their group, and they just were so welcoming to her, and it made her youth group experience so good. And so, you know, I I appreciate Kaylee putting herself out there to make Lily feel welcome because it really made all the difference because then she started to love youth group and feel apart, and uh, and then Adam and I um it was funny, we came the first week, and then the next week we're like, okay, we're gonna go to life group and we're gonna put ourselves out there, and so we went in Greg and Ashley's Letchworth's class, and we made a pretty quickly started to make friends and find community there, and that was just a great class. Greg studied a lot, Chris taught some too, and I, you know, once again, I appreciated the amount of study, the amount of work they put in, the discussions were really good. And so, you know, all these different people just stick out as the initial people who welcomed us, and I ended up helping Ashley with VBS, and we've kind of started working together on different projects, and you know, so the I think the community I I think that's what we were looking for, and that it was we were just welcomed. We we did put ourselves out there, but we were also a lot of people were very welcoming and kind to us at the beginning. And then Pastor Jeff approached Adam about starting the um we call it newlyweds, but it's you know the young married couples life group. And so um he started that and we're trying to build that class up right now. So, and we love that and love to pour into this group, and but we miss Greg and Ash's class too. You know, we have mixed mixed emotions, of course, but um we've enjoyed starting this new yeah, it was definitely a need.
SPEAKER_02There was a spot for it, and so we've So you and Adam do the young married couple.
SPEAKER_00Yeah, kind of five years or less. Um, you know, we we maybe have a couple couples that are a little bit older than that, but kind of that's our age group.
SPEAKER_02And are there a lot of couples in that class?
SPEAKER_00After five years, do you say, Look, you gotta graduate to the Well, we assume we assume, you know, Greg Ledworth's class was at one point the young couples, and you know, right.
SPEAKER_02They just kind of stick together.
SPEAKER_00They're all out in their 40s now, so yeah, we assume we'll just we'll eventually move up to a different name, but that's where we're right now. So uh I would say I'm trying to think. You know, not everybody's always there every week because people are in nursery in different places, but I would say we've probably got five or so couples right now who, you know, that's a good name. Eight to twelve probably every week, somewhere in there. Um yeah, we've got a good start. We're and the kids in our the kids in our class, look at me. Um the young people in our class, they really are good about trying to invite other people. We we just had a couple get married and they've started coming, and so you know, it'll we we know it'll grow.
SPEAKER_02Just so how long have you and Adam been married?
SPEAKER_00So June will be 18 years.
SPEAKER_0218 years. Okay, so maybe you know a little bit of a lot of people.
SPEAKER_00A little, a little. So we still have a lot to learn, but we we maybe we maybe can help them a little bit.
SPEAKER_02So what is uh put you on the spot. Okay. What is some advice do you give a new married couple? If you could tell them two things, this is what you need to make your marriage last.
SPEAKER_00I think I one of mine and Adam's strengths is we are good commun, we communicate well. And and I think when sometimes when people have problems, that's a lot of times a big a huge problem they're having in some way, shape, or form. Um so I we th I think communication, I mean Adam comes home from work and I'm usually making dinner and we'll talk and he'll you know, usually pitch and help help make dinner or help with kids, but we try to spend 20 minutes just going over our day, and so we've always been good at communicating, and I feel like that helps, you know, and just even just communicating about like what needs to be done and kind of working together as partners, you know, as as a team, especially once you have kids, especially. And I think too, once you have kids, it's not hard to to prioritize like date nights and time quality time together before kids, because you have time, but when there's kids it gets a lot harder. And we we've never unfortunately lived near um his parents live about an hour away now, but no one lives in town. So babysitters are that that thing kind of thing has always been has made date nights difficult, but we know like investing in your marriage that way is very important. And like I said, it's not as hard when you're newly married, but once kids start coming along, it gets it gets more difficult and you have to be a lot more intentional. So I think those the quality time, the communication are important. I think putting each other first. That's something we've talked about in class a lot, you know, because you're coming from different two different families, everybody has opinions and you know, so just uh you've got to make decisions as a couple, you know, you the Lord directing you, and and you too as a couple have to put each other first and listen to each other and and you know, not that you can't take advice and things like that, but sometimes, you know, that can cause problems too when there's there's too many opinions, you know.
SPEAKER_02So I just asked that because uh I know when Terry and I first got married, or before we got married, we were, you know, doing some counseling with Jeff. I mean maybe it was after, but whatever. He just said, you know, once the honeymoon's over, what how are you gonna keep your marriage together? You know. Not that he was saying love doesn't last forever, but you know, once the lovey feeling goes, you know, like how are you gonna make it?
SPEAKER_00That comes and goes. So you have to make it intentional effort. Yeah, absolutely.
SPEAKER_02So what I've always told uh new couples is look, it you're gonna have disagreements, but if you if both your if both of you are following after the Lord, then that's what you tell yourself. Yes. Is we both want to serve the Lord. We both want to do right by God. You know, whatever. We we mess up, but ultimately I know my partner, I know Terry wants to do right by God. Absolutely. So I have to provide grace. She probably has to say that about me more than I have to say that about her, you know. But um just as long as you have your eyes on on God, it makes the marriage so much easier, especially in difficult times.
SPEAKER_01Absolutely. Absolutely.
SPEAKER_02Um, okay, so that counseling session is over. That was all free advice in this podcast um for those young married couples. Uh so tell us about um How are you enjoying your new role as office administrator?
SPEAKER_00I I'm very much enjoying it. I feel like it's the kind of work that's aligned with my personality. Um it's it's just I'm still processing everything that's happened because you know, I was just working on Fridays for like just to give Elaine a day off during the, you know, an extra day off during the week. And you know, that was all that was gonna be. And then in September when she fell, Pastor Jeff called me and he's like, hey, you know, can you work a few days, you know, to get us through? And and so, you know, I I I think I was telling somebody the other day, like things that were not on my bingo card for this year that I would be here um, you know, that at this point and have taken this job. But um, you know, when he came and when Elaine decided not to return and Pastor Jeff came and talked to me about the position, I I just really felt like from the Holy Spirit, like this is what I'm supposed to do. And and Adam and I talked it out a lot. Because we we that we have logistics with homeschooling things we have we've had to figure out for next year, but I just really felt like it was what I was supposed to do. And so um, I enjoy it every and I I it's a very peaceful atmosphere. Everybody's so nice, and I love working with Anne. And uh, because of course we're close quarters, but it's it's just been it's been wonderful. It was not what I expected, but it's been it's been great. And Elaine had wonderful, um, Anne calls it. We have like notebooks of if you get hit by a bus with all these notes about what to do, like how do you do attendance, how do you do the cake auction, how do you do baby dedication? And Elaine had great notes, and I've been able to call her and say, hey, explain this. And she her brain is amazing because she can just she can literally tell you how to get to things on her computer from her memory. Um, so she's been super gracious and helpful. Uh, because I especially at the beginning, I had to call her a lot, but she had great notes, so that was super helpful. Um, and I'm still learning, but hopefully I'll get there.
SPEAKER_02Okay, so you you're in this new role, you've been at you both have been here at Unity for a couple years. Um how has the last two years personally changed you? Or maybe your family.
SPEAKER_00So okay. Um so I mentioned you know, we were in transition and and we were at a big transitional point, and of course we're I'm I'm 39 when all this is happening. And so I almost feel like we've gone through like a midlife crisis, I guess. But um I feel like since coming here, I feel like maybe I was on an autopilot faith before. You know, I just grew up and you know, you you go to church and you look a certain way and you you tithe and you teach your class or do your Christian service and your ministry, and you know, you check all your list of things to make you a good Christian. And, you know, but it's not a very deep faith. And so I feel like Adam and I have been through a lot of transition. We've had a lot of uncertainty the past two years, um, a lot of things we're we've been trying to figure out. Um and so I feel like I've gone from that kind of like checklist, autopilot faith um into a place where things have become very real. And when things are real, um it's not as pristine and perfect looking, it's messy. Uh, there's doubt, there's uncertainty. Um I I I kind of think of it like the velveteen rabbit. You know, at the beginning it was pristine and perfect, and you know, this child had this perfect little stuffed animal, but over time it's worn, it's tattered, it's not as pretty as it used to be. But in all that it becomes real. And I feel like um the Lord has really just used this time in our lives to kind of okay, do you believe in me? Do you trust me? When when you don't have the answers, when you're waiting, you know, he's he's really fleshed out some things for us. Um and made it it's really shown us what we're what we're our faith is made of and where we need to grow and strengthen and things like that.
SPEAKER_02So it sounds like God might be stretching you at this point.
SPEAKER_00Mm-hmm. Absolutely. Yeah. And there's we've been waiting on a lot of answers for things and wrestling. And I love to say, you know, we always just uh handle things perfectly, but uh we don't because we're human and and we have we doubt, we wrestle with God, we have dark nights of the soul, you could say. Um but you know, and I think usually when you're growing, there is pain involved, but um there's been a lot of joy at the same time, and uh and I it's funny, it's it's one like I said about not on my bingo card. I never thought we'd end up here. I did I just it was across the street. I passed it almost every day, you know, driving in our neighborhood. And it would I it was just not on my trajectory of things that would happen, but it's in a way I feel like it's the best thing that ever happened to us because it's I feel like it's exactly all these things happen to put us exactly where we're supposed to be. And it and it it wasn't what I saw coming, but I'm super thankful for it.
SPEAKER_02Well, we appreciate you being with us today. And um before you go, I do want to say a little prayer for you and Adam and uh your family. Thank you. And then we will we will call it a wrap and you can go back to work. So, Dear Emily Father, we just thank you so much uh for all that you do for us, that you meet our needs in unexpected ways, and you do extraordinary things with us, and we thank you for your faithfulness, your growth, your um and for the work you're doing in Cassie and Adam's life. And we just thank you for shaping them and helping them to trust you and continue to guide and direct them as they uh teach the young married class, as they raise their own family, and as they continue to put their trust and faith in you. I just thank you for all that you do for us and what you're doing for them and for our Unity family. In the name I pray, amen. So thank you for joining us. We'll have to get Adam on here at some point so we can get his side of the story. Um, but until then, to our listeners, as God is writing the story in your life, go and tell.