going home to make a home
First let me give you a glimpse into my moment here: I am sitting damp in my bathing suit in my 85 degree house with my towel wrapped around me and a freshly brewed cup of Starbucks Dark Roast at my side. Am I hot? Am I cold? Both. I am a girl who loves comfort. I cannot lie. At 40 years old I can finally admit I long for the little creature comforts in life.
We are going home. How the thought makes my heart swell! I could cry. 8 Weeks from yesterday we board a plane that takes us back to U.S. soil for keeps. And there's more! My big brother who is now 42 and never been married, is engaged to his sweetheart!! In less than a year they have met, courted, and now are planning their big event. I couldn't be more thrilled to be gaining a sister in law!!
And there's still more!!! As we have been seeking the Lord and praying about the plans that he has for us, connections from our past have sprung up with the hope of a ministry opportunity. And if this is what God has for us, we will be blessed people. Working alongside friends in ministry is a dream we never even dreamt, to be honest. And the locale of where this next church is meets so many criteria for our family. We really are basking in the goodness of what could be unfolding.
Last November, I wrote out a list of prayers both "big" and "small." You know what I mean, right? Not that any answer to prayer is big or small, really. But some requests were more like pipe dreams while others were like "Dad's healing." The two don't compare, right? But here's the amazing reality: one of my "pipe dream" prayers has now been answered in a way I could never have orchestrated myself. I asked God for a way to visit a dear friend of mine from the past. And recently, not only did He grant that, but our ENTIRE family went on the trip and it's BECAUSE we were there to check out their church and potential pastoral position. A-MA-ZING! I'm telling you, friends, God truly births the desires in us, causes us to pray toward their fulfillment, and accomplishes them in His perfect time. Sometimes that "perfect time" is sooner rather than later. Sometimes.
So we are going home to make a home. And honestly, even if this exciting ministry opportunity doesn't work out, we will still bask in the joy of all the other happy things. My brother's wedding. Settling into a new home. Having access to Wal-Mart and Target (please, don't judge me). Having access to Goodwill and Salvation Army stores. Having access to homeschool resources, co-ops, and dual enrollment courses. Having access to our family that, due to lack of health or wealth, have not been able to make the trip here to see us. Having access to good libraries. Being able to mail my mom a birthday card that gets there in less than 3 months...with the envelope still sealed. Being able to do my own banking again. Being able to go to the dentist again. (Did I just say that?) Golly, I think I may even like buying gas again at $3.50 a gallon rather than $5.80!
I know the human condition is to always see the greener grass on the other side of the fence, to be discontent. I am guilty as charged, often. But there is a sense in which now, more than ever, I cherish the privilege of getting to "go home." The smallest things I took for granted now seem like luxuries. I hope it has changed me, even a little.
If nothing else, we have learned that the United States is, in fact, a nation blessed by God. Oh how we don't see it when we're in it. We can only criticize and fret over it's current condition. We bemoan all that's been lost since its founding. But I tell you, as one who only longs to return to it, there is much to thank God for there. Perhaps if we learned to thank God more for all the good and the light that still shines brightly there, our energy to make it wholesome again would be re-charged. Our prayers for its leadership would be fueled for godly ends. Our lives would be marked by using the freedom we still possess to do the most good we can. May God help us. He will help us.
I digress. We are going home. I am happy. End of blog post.
We are going home. How the thought makes my heart swell! I could cry. 8 Weeks from yesterday we board a plane that takes us back to U.S. soil for keeps. And there's more! My big brother who is now 42 and never been married, is engaged to his sweetheart!! In less than a year they have met, courted, and now are planning their big event. I couldn't be more thrilled to be gaining a sister in law!!
And there's still more!!! As we have been seeking the Lord and praying about the plans that he has for us, connections from our past have sprung up with the hope of a ministry opportunity. And if this is what God has for us, we will be blessed people. Working alongside friends in ministry is a dream we never even dreamt, to be honest. And the locale of where this next church is meets so many criteria for our family. We really are basking in the goodness of what could be unfolding.
Last November, I wrote out a list of prayers both "big" and "small." You know what I mean, right? Not that any answer to prayer is big or small, really. But some requests were more like pipe dreams while others were like "Dad's healing." The two don't compare, right? But here's the amazing reality: one of my "pipe dream" prayers has now been answered in a way I could never have orchestrated myself. I asked God for a way to visit a dear friend of mine from the past. And recently, not only did He grant that, but our ENTIRE family went on the trip and it's BECAUSE we were there to check out their church and potential pastoral position. A-MA-ZING! I'm telling you, friends, God truly births the desires in us, causes us to pray toward their fulfillment, and accomplishes them in His perfect time. Sometimes that "perfect time" is sooner rather than later. Sometimes.
So we are going home to make a home. And honestly, even if this exciting ministry opportunity doesn't work out, we will still bask in the joy of all the other happy things. My brother's wedding. Settling into a new home. Having access to Wal-Mart and Target (please, don't judge me). Having access to Goodwill and Salvation Army stores. Having access to homeschool resources, co-ops, and dual enrollment courses. Having access to our family that, due to lack of health or wealth, have not been able to make the trip here to see us. Having access to good libraries. Being able to mail my mom a birthday card that gets there in less than 3 months...with the envelope still sealed. Being able to do my own banking again. Being able to go to the dentist again. (Did I just say that?) Golly, I think I may even like buying gas again at $3.50 a gallon rather than $5.80!
I know the human condition is to always see the greener grass on the other side of the fence, to be discontent. I am guilty as charged, often. But there is a sense in which now, more than ever, I cherish the privilege of getting to "go home." The smallest things I took for granted now seem like luxuries. I hope it has changed me, even a little.
If nothing else, we have learned that the United States is, in fact, a nation blessed by God. Oh how we don't see it when we're in it. We can only criticize and fret over it's current condition. We bemoan all that's been lost since its founding. But I tell you, as one who only longs to return to it, there is much to thank God for there. Perhaps if we learned to thank God more for all the good and the light that still shines brightly there, our energy to make it wholesome again would be re-charged. Our prayers for its leadership would be fueled for godly ends. Our lives would be marked by using the freedom we still possess to do the most good we can. May God help us. He will help us.
I digress. We are going home. I am happy. End of blog post.
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