I blinked and we are half way through the year. It’s hard to believe, really.
New month.
New city.
New place to call home.
A new world of endless possibilities unfolding before us.
New opportunities & challenges that teach us that there truly are doors that only God can open. There are things only He can bring forth.
And so here we are, watching things come to pass in this new place that we expected to see in the last place, where so many lessons were hard learned & so many miracles were experienced.
This new place affords opportunities that I never imagined but I find that I’m excited for the potential & the new experiences, and a new way of life that will come with both good and bad moments, but also always Jesus at my side through it all.
It’s hard to believe it’s been 2 weeks since our impromptu relocation. Those days seem a million miles away already, and at times I miss the familiarity of the place, and the people we met there. I pray God continues watching over them all & that they know we are a phone call away should they need us.
However, I am really glad to be here.
I am grateful, so grateful.
God has been so faithful.
He has had obedient soldiers every step along the way, helping, guiding & encouraging us through the challenges of life.
We could not have made it this far without those loving souls who seek to be His hands & feet, and truly live out their faith, as do we.
We could not have made it without the prayers & support of strangers who became family.
The first six months of the year were a very hard, very educational, and faith-cementing. I saw God in every detail, I saw His hand, His provision, His correction. He truly has kept us through it all.
When I had nothing else, I had my Bible & I found that it truly was all I needed.
You cannot imagine what it’s like to have it all in Christ until He & His word are all you have. I am grateful for it, because I am better for knowing, for having experienced having just Him.
I will not even begin to assume to know what these next six months will bring, but I find that because of His faithfulness, because of His gentle love & mercy, because of His presence, because of the hard lessons we learned there, I am better equipped for here & just excited to see what comes next.
I have learned that He can be trusted. His ways are not ours, His timing is not ours, but He can be trusted. I know His nature, I know that no matter how hard things can get at times, He makes all things good, and until He does, He never leaves my side.
He is worthy of my trust, and obedience. He is worthy of it all.
“Dear friends, don’t be surprised at the fiery trials you are going through, as if something strange were happening to you. Instead, be very glad—for these trials make you partners with Christ in his suffering, so that you will have the wonderful joy of seeing his glory when it is revealed to all the world.”
1 Peter 4:12-13 NLT
“So humble yourselves under the mighty power of God, and at the right time he will lift you up in honor. Give all your worries and cares to God, for he cares about you. Stay alert! Watch out for your great enemy, the devil. He prowls around like a roaring lion, looking for someone to devour. Stand firm against him, and be strong in your faith. Remember that your family of believers all over the world is going through the same kind of suffering you are.”
1 Peter 5:6-9 NLT