It's so amazing to me how fast things can change.
Just about the time life seems to fall into a predictable routine something can suddenly derail and completely reroute your present course, oftentimes requiring a paradigm shift in your way of thinking. Sometimes these changes happen gradually, in slow steps that you can see and prepare for in advance. Other times it's seemingly overnight with no warning at all. And then there are those weird times that it's a little bit of both... things changing slowly right in front of you giving you a sense of something to come but then that something arrives much faster than anticipated leaving you breathless and anxious with an overall sense of chaos and confusion.
Well, such has been my life over the past several months. I saw something coming, wasn't sure of the details exactly, but definitely something coming that would bring about change, but when it hit it happened so fast it left my head spinning. This change is right, timely, and in God's will for our lives. Just because it happened fast doesn't mean it happened in a hasty, thrown together decision at the last minute.
After much prayer and careful consideration, my family and I have resigned this past October from the work at Greater Faith Tabernacle in Greenville, MS where my husband has been Pastor for the past two years. This has been one of the most difficult decisions of our lives. We dearly love each and every member and will miss them greatly.
When you give your life over to God and place everything in His hands in complete surrender, and pray daily that He would order your steps and lead you in His will, it's not that shocking to be seemingly uprooted from one situation only to be planted in another. Such is the life of ministry... this I well know. All of my life, from the very day I was born, I have lived in the home of a minister. Being raised in the Truth and watching my parents prayerfully respond to callings and burdens throughout my life, I have come to understand concept of change. I married a minister, who was also raised in the home of a minister, so both my husband and I have a hold on the importance of following the will of God for our lives. Sometimes that will can lead you through doors you were fully anticipating walking through, sometimes it doesn't. The important thing is knowing the voice of God, and correctly responding to it.
We are now living in Oxford, MS and working with Pastor Glen Williams at Christ the Rock Apostolic Church. My husband has been installed as Youth Pastor (and Pastor's Assistant). This church holds a very special place in my heart, as it was founded by my Dad when I was a teenager. I couldn't be happier about this change, being much closer to friends and family, as well as the school my children were based out of while we were homeschooling in Greenville. (The school, Oxford Christian Academy, is an extension of the ministry of the church we now attend.). We lived with my parents for the first 4 months until the dust settled and we could get our feet back under us. I honestly felt sorry for them! It was a crowded, crazy few months but it was wonderful being with them so much. I had missed them more than words could say. In February of this year (Valentine's Day, to be exact!) the Lord blessed us with a beautiful home. I was amazed at how it all just fell into place. It was only another confirmation of what we already knew, we were right where we were supposed to be. Things are still in boxes in the garage and everything is not exactly like we want it, but we feel so at home here.
Another major change in my life has occurred, one I would have never seen coming. I'm now learning the family business at The Denture Lab, working for my father-in-law. This nurse is no longer a nurse, but instead a dental technician in training! Ha! Who'd have ever thought I'd learn to make dentures. :) I honestly love it.
The days and weeks quickly turned into months. It feels as though time has been let loose, like a child who's finally been told they can unwrap their Christmas presents. It's difficult to describe, but it feels as though I'm sitting back watching my life change before my eyes but not really participating in it. "Dreamlike" is the best word I can think of to describe it. I've been having to remind myself that this is really happening. Every day we've been back home has gone by in a flurried whirlwind of activity. From moving day till now, the days have just ran together for me. There's been something major going on just about every time I find a minute to sit down and catch my breath. November birthdays, Christmas, and the New Year have all zoomed before my eyes. I've seen winter hit with a fury that has finally let go, and now Spring is all around us. I am utterly amazed at how quickly time has flown by. The girls have grown so much since leaving Greenville. All three of them are in new shoe and dress sizes. I can't keep up!
With life seemingly flipped all topsy turvy, I'm reminded of something I used to enjoy doing as a child. I'd lay on the couch with my head dangling off the side and look at everything around me upside down. Things took on a new appearance when viewed from a different perspective. For just a moment I was out of the rut of the everyday norm. With my blond wisps of hair flopped around my ears, my cheeks turning pink, and my head starting to feel dizzy and heavy, I'd take in the room around me. The light fixture turned into a weird looking table. The ceiling became a bumpy floor. Chairs and tables suddenly defied gravity. It was so cool! (there wasn't much to occupy my time as an only child. I did what I could.) :) But now I kind of see life that way. Our world can be turned upside down and things still be positive, especially when we live in faith by putting our trust in the One who created it in the first place. The next time you get thrown a curveball in life and you start to feel the pressures of change, go flip your head upside down somewhere and find a cool table like I did. It will make you feel better, I promise! Take another look from a different perspective.
Not to sound cliche', but the saying is really true; the more things change, the more they stay the same. We may not see some things coming ahead of time, or we may actually be prepared for it and watch it happen without shock. We may feel a sense of change without knowing the full reason. Whatever the situation, whatever my past or present course, whatever mysteries may lie ahead around the next bend, I rest in the knowledge that my God's got this. Whoever said the following knew what they were talking about, "I may not know what tomorrow holds, but I'm glad I know who holds tomorrow."
