Tuesday, August 26, 2008

Moving...and an update

I moved on Sunday. I wasn't expecting to, but an opportunity for a cute little yellow house with a balcony presented itself, and I just couldn't pass it up. It's a great little place, and sooo much better than the place we were before.
But there was just one problem: moving. I hate moving. It is one of my least favorite things in the entire world. The process of neatly packing everything up, just to drive a little ways and unpack is so frustrating and exhausting!

Also, I have really weak arms - did I mention that? Well they are uncharacteristically weak - very unlike my friend, Lindsay, who is freakishly strong. It's true - don't mess with her.


As I was getting things ready to move, I stopped just for a moment and considered calling it off. That's how much I hate moving. But you know what motivated me to keep going? A new balcony. Washer/dryer hookups. Two bathrooms. More than one outlet. A dishwasher. The place I was going to was so much better than the place I was leaving. And I knew it.

But what if I didn't?

There is not a chance that you could get me to move somewhere I'd never seen. No way, no how. What if my new place had no outlets? What if I had to share a room with a girl named Helga (no offense to you Helgas out there)? Without knowing where I was moving to, the work would not be worth it. It would be too great a risk.


And then I realized: God asks me to do that all the time. He asks me to pack up my mindsets, my neatly organized perceptions, my comfortable ways of doing things, and asks me to move them into a better place. Somewhere that they will be challenged and changed. The catch is that I've never seen that place...but He has. And suddenly my battle is not with the work it takes to move, but with my faith in who God is. Because if I really believe that He is good, then He will take me to a good place - even if it is hard to get there. But too often I've dreaded the task of moving, and missed out on God's plan for me.

Change can be intimidating, seasons are shifting, and moving sucks...but God is good.

"Praise our God, O peoples, let the sound of His praise be heard. He has preserved our lives and kept our feet from slipping. For You, O God, tested us; you refined us like silver. You brought us into prison and laid burdens on our backs. You let men ride over our heads; we went through fire and water, but You brought us to a place of abundance." - Psalm 66:8-12 (NIV - UK)

I long for the faith it takes to get to the place of abundance. Don't you?
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UPDATE: There was an ornament hook, a few pens, a highlighter, crumbs, 7 cents, and a receipt in my couch cushions.

2 comments:

Jenna said...

It's ironic as I read your feelings about moving...they are quite true but I was laughing because God has taken me to a place where I frequently move, often to other cities/countries of which I have never seen. It is quite an adventure but it makes me feel crazy at the same time. God asks us to walk in faith in ways I never thought possible. It's big, eh? Yea for your new home...it is Oh so cute!

Lindsay said...

It's true. Don't mess with me.