Just a few weeks ago, we packed up the last of our items, loaded them on a moving truck, and headed across the country on another move. This will be the third major move (meaning to another state more than ten hours away) I have made since I got married almost seven years ago. I had quite of lot of time as I was driving to become quite philosophical about moving.
Moving is never that hard on me, except for the last service in my home church and when we actually pull away from the place where we have made our home, in which case the tears usually come pretty easily. Looking back on the different moves, I can now identify the emotions that were flooding through me each time we pulled away from our home.
When Jon and I moved to Wyoming from Lousisana, we actually had to move twice; once out of our little apartment and once six weeks later out of my mom's house. When we drove away from the apartment, I think I cried the most I have ever cried over a move. Although it was very small, old apartment, it was our very first "home." It was there that I learned that home is where you and your family are. When I married Jon two years earlier, one of my friends remarked that she knew I would be fine with married life, but she didn't know how I would handle being away from my parents home and farm that I loved so much. And I must admit the I was homesick for the farm for months. But when I finally told someone I was going home, and meant my apartment that I shared with Jon, I knew that I had learned what home really is. So as Jon and I left that apartment for the last time, I cried in the sadness of leaving our first home, knowing we would never go back in, and believing it would never be as nice as we had fixed it up to be.
Six weeks later, when we left my mom's farm to venture off to Wyoming, I cried because of the fear of the unknown. We were leaving all of our family and friends and everything familiar to try out the wide open spaces of Wyoming. We were leaving safety and security to try all sorts of new things, including a new school for me, a new job for Jon, buying our first house and land, driving through snow, buying and selling a rental property, and so many others.
We made so many mistakes there, mostly because of not truly listening (and maybe not truly asking) to God's direction. So when we finally sold our house and drove away from Wyoming on our second move across the country with a clean slate - no debt but neither any gain - it was with a wave of relief. There were few tears, mostly shed for the few friends we made, but we were wiser and determined not to make the same mistakes in Ohio.
I'm still not sure what emotions I felt about moving from Ohio to Japan this third time. Indeed, I am still overcome with emotion and tears because I am still in limbo between the two places visiting family here in Louisiana, while Jon is already in Japan preparing for the arrival of our 10 month old son and myself. I know there is sadness in leaving the many, many close friends and church family we made while there. There are no regrets, though; and I know that we grew more in our walk with God, finances, social avenues, and marriage in the past 20 months than we have in the past five years and longer.
And beneath the sadness and swarm of emotions there is some excitement bubbling up. One because we are moving to a tropical island - yay! - but also I know God has something awesome for us there. There is a reason He allowed us to grow so much; there is work to be done and a race to run for Him. We are fullfilling our calling and there is nothing more exciting or truly fullfilling than being in the will of the Master.
And let us not be weary in well doing: for in due season we shall reap, if we faint not.
-Galations 6:9
