Moving on...

Well, we moved this summer. It has been interesting. It has opened my eyes to a lot of things. We got comfortable living in our old house and neighborhood. You get in a comfort zone. You get used to the same things, day in and day out. Living the dream. Work, play, eat, sleep, repeat.
Now all of a sudden I am plucked out of my comfort zone, and my world is turned upside down. All the routines that keep us going on a day to day basis are thrown out the window. Suddenly, things aren’t where they used to be. While kids are really resilient, they are also creatures of habit. So this has been a little hard on all of us. But instead of making this sound like an “oh poor me,” blog, I will tell you all the good things I have learned about moving so far.

1- Home is where the heart is? Yes, it is. You can pretty much use any of the cliché sayings like “Home is where you make it,” “Home sweet home,” ”Home is where your story begins,” “Home is where memories are made.” These are all true. I have learned this more than anything in the last month. I went from a 4000 square foot 5 bedroom, 3 bath house, to a 1500 square foot 3 bedroom, 2 bath duplex. To say that we downsized is an understatement. What is interesting though is that the external house doesn’t matter as much as I thought it did. So although I may not be hosting any big parties or fancy suppers anytime soon, the best thing about where I live is who I share it with.

2- When you have been somewhere for over 10 years, you accumulate a lot of stuff. No matter how organized you think you are, you can accumulate a lot of stuff. A lot of stuff = a lot of stuff you probably don’t need. A lot of stuff = abundantly blessed. But a lot of stuff takes a lot of people to move, and a lot of help. Thankful for so many friends who helped us move all our stuff, and thankful for a God who has blessed us with so many wonderful belongings. My goal though is that I never forget that stuff is just stuff. My God is my God, and that is who I worship…not my belongings. It’s a trap we all fall into at some point in our lives.

3- You can’t pick your neighbors, but you can pick how you react to them. Our neighbors are challenging. It is two broken families living together. A total of 4 boys from two different households. To say that these children need a few lessons in manners is an understatement. On many an occasion, I have had to hold my tongue and remind them gently that we say please, thank you, I’m sorry, and we don’t call names. Now while I could totally grumble and let this eat me up, worrying that I can’t control who my kids are friends with (my boys love the neighbor boys), I can also see what a good influence we can be. We had the oldest boy spend the night a few weeks ago. The next morning at breakfast, we prayed. At which time my oldest ask the neighbor boy if he prayed before eating. He said he did not. Then, Nick proceeded to ask him if he went to church, and when he said he didn’t, he asked him to join us. I couldn’t have been more proud of my Nick. And quite humbled myself, as I realized I have a prime opportunity to show Jesus’ love here. What if I am this kids’ only exposure to Jesus…please don’t let me screw that up…

4- Life goes on. We start a new routine. We find a new happiness. We create a new life in the circumstances we have. While part of me is sad that I have not only a storage unit, store room, and garage full of stuff I have hardly had to dig into, I am also happy to report that my boys who have 2 toy boxes full of toys (and probably more in storage we have forgotten), have hardly played with them. Wait, what? Yes, I am happy they aren’t playing with their toys. Why you ask? Because we have played outside more, gone on bike rides, learned how to make a dirt pile fun, and swam more than we did at our other house. I want to teach them that there is more to life than the things we own…if only I could learn that myself…

5- A clean house really is not a reflection of me. I once was a person who would have a house that barely looked lived in. I have since let that go, and realize that my house is lived in, and rather than spend time worrying about if my floors are filthy (which there comes a point when I absolutely can’t handle it anymore), I am outside getting dirty with my boys and laughing the whole time. I will never get this time back, so I am trying to make the most of what I can, no matter the living situation.

6- “Home is the place where when you have to go there, they have to take you in.” Let’s take a moment to examine this sentence. Is it true on earth? Probably, most of the time  Is it true for our heavenly home? I wish I could show up to heaven, and they would HAVE to take me in. However, I know that it not the case. Or is it???? I am a believer, and nothing can separate me from the love of Christ. His grace is never ending. Christ paid the price for me, so that I will ALWAYS have a home to come to when I am done with my earthly home, and for that I will be forever grateful. His grace is enough. This I must always remember. It is not about our home here, but about our heavenly home. Never forget that. This home is just temporary. It is not a means to an end, but a means to a NEW beginning.

“You will show me the way of life, granting me the joy of your presence and the pleasures of living with you forever.” Psalm 16:11