Thursday, Aug 30, 2012
I wondered how long it would take. It hit me hard this morning. This new life. The feeling of "what have we gotten ourselves into" ? At first, it didn't seem so different here. I still have the same basic responsibilities....cleaning, cooking, laundry, raising seven kids and trying to keep my man happy. But it is different. It's not "home", at least not yet.
Maybe part of it is living out of suitcases and knowing in just a short while we will move again...only this will be permanent.
Or, maybe it's living cooped up in a small house with seven kids who struggle to find things to do after growing up in a very large house on lots of land with the freedom to do so much.
Or maybe it's that every time we go out, we struggle to understand conversations...because we don't know the language yet. (Although, I must say, after just three lessons, I'm amazed at how much more I pick up from a conversation. Two years in high school and a year in college of Spanish classes are all flooding back to me.)
Or maybe it's having to take my laundry up the street to wash at a friends house, relying on their generosity to meet a basic need. Or for that matter, relying on them to drive us to the grocery store and anywhere else not in walking distance due to still not having a car yet. (Anyone know of anyone that desperately needs a Suburban? We still have two for sale.)
Maybe this is what they call "culture shock". If so, when I really think about it, it's not so bad. A few inconveniences in life. That's all they are. Puts us all a bit out of our comfort zone. But we know why we are here. We know that God has a big purpose for us (even for our kids, whether they like it at the moment or not...they're all a bit mouthy/lacking self-control/rude to family members these days). When you know your doing what God has asked you to do, and there's no doubt. It changes your perspective. Sure I will have many days when I wake up and wonder, "What in the world are we doing, or are we crazy?" But confidence in knowing we could never go back to the awesome life we lived, because we're being obedient to our God, assures us when those doubts or insecurities creep in that God will be sufficient. It may sound trite, but it's true. He is all we need.
P.S. I'm still confident that God is going to bring in our miracle money before the builder tells the workers next week to take a break until money comes in. God always provides & He's always on-time!
I wondered how long it would take. It hit me hard this morning. This new life. The feeling of "what have we gotten ourselves into" ? At first, it didn't seem so different here. I still have the same basic responsibilities....cleaning, cooking, laundry, raising seven kids and trying to keep my man happy. But it is different. It's not "home", at least not yet.
Maybe part of it is living out of suitcases and knowing in just a short while we will move again...only this will be permanent.
Or, maybe it's living cooped up in a small house with seven kids who struggle to find things to do after growing up in a very large house on lots of land with the freedom to do so much.
Or maybe it's that every time we go out, we struggle to understand conversations...because we don't know the language yet. (Although, I must say, after just three lessons, I'm amazed at how much more I pick up from a conversation. Two years in high school and a year in college of Spanish classes are all flooding back to me.)
Or maybe it's having to take my laundry up the street to wash at a friends house, relying on their generosity to meet a basic need. Or for that matter, relying on them to drive us to the grocery store and anywhere else not in walking distance due to still not having a car yet. (Anyone know of anyone that desperately needs a Suburban? We still have two for sale.)
Maybe this is what they call "culture shock". If so, when I really think about it, it's not so bad. A few inconveniences in life. That's all they are. Puts us all a bit out of our comfort zone. But we know why we are here. We know that God has a big purpose for us (even for our kids, whether they like it at the moment or not...they're all a bit mouthy/lacking self-control/rude to family members these days). When you know your doing what God has asked you to do, and there's no doubt. It changes your perspective. Sure I will have many days when I wake up and wonder, "What in the world are we doing, or are we crazy?" But confidence in knowing we could never go back to the awesome life we lived, because we're being obedient to our God, assures us when those doubts or insecurities creep in that God will be sufficient. It may sound trite, but it's true. He is all we need.
P.S. I'm still confident that God is going to bring in our miracle money before the builder tells the workers next week to take a break until money comes in. God always provides & He's always on-time!
We are still praying for you and miss you a lot, but we know you are in the right place.
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