Change

Big changes are happening in our household lately!  A couple of months ago, Nick and I began to sense that the Father was moving us in a new direction.  I tried to resist at first, listing all of the reasons we are happy exactly where we are.  But I quickly began to see that His plans are always better, His ways are always perfect, and His leading is always worth following.    

Fast forward to a couple of weeks ago.  We received official approval that the direction He was leading would become a reality.  When we return from the States next February, we will be moving to a neighboring country here in Southeast Asia.  (If you get our newsletter, you will hear more details about our upcoming move in the months to come.  I won't be too specific here.) 

While we are sad to leave our home here behind, we are excited to follow Him in this new direction.  Change seems to be the pattern of our lives.  Following Him means that we have to be constantly listening, constantly ready to obey.  And willing to move, even if you selfishly thought you had already arrived at the place you would put down roots for the next 10 years.  Sometimes we have to be reminded that our plans are not our own.    

So what does this mean?  Well, right now it means that we are packing!  I have piles all over the house as I ask myself, do we want to take this to the new country, do we need this in the States, or do we need to give it away?  Let me tell you, the biggest pile is the giveaway pile.  Not because I am so self-sacrificing that I want to give my stuff away to others (as much as I would like to say that!).  It's because with an international move, we are limited to how much we can take with us.  We are narrowing down our apartment-full of stuff to several suitcases full of what we really want to take with us.  

You'd think I'd be a pro at packing.  We have moved 9 times in the last 11 years.  But I still stress about it.  Change is stressful.  It's messy.  But it helps me put things in perspective.  Stuff is just stuff.  Our homes here are just temporary.  Those things that are eternal, they don't change.  Those eternal truths are where my heart can find rest in the midst of surrounding chaos.

I hope this post gives you a little glimpse of where we are right now.  There are more details that I would love to share, but I need to be vague here for security reasons.  I put off writing this post for a week because I just couldn't focus long enough to type anything that was comprehensible.  But at least now you will know how to lift us up.