Change is tough.
In a few short weeks, we'll uproot ourselves from what has been a wondrous experience in Chattanooga and delve once more into the unknown. We'll move to Columbus, Ohio and start a new chapter. It's tempting to say we'll start over, but that isn't true. We carry with us the wisdom, the stories and the relationships we have gained here in Chattanooga. These last six and a half years are a part of us, and they come, too. I think we are better for them, but there are, honestly, some moments I would like to forget. There are, as there always are, things I wish had not happened. And there are moments that I will carry in the depths of my heart forever.
Change is tough.
But it is so very necessary. Change stretches us, challenges us, makes us wonder if the ground beneath our feet will ever stop moving, for our very hearts often quake with change. It's so tempting to stay, but to shy away from the future into which we believe we are being called is not the wise choice. To remain in the cocoon when a new day is dawning may be safe in the moment, but it is folly for the future. There are certainly predators that lurk beyond, but there is a world, a life that calls us forward, and I would not dare miss the beauty and the opportunity that awaits because we are too comfortable to move.
Change is tough.
There is much that is good here. I do not welcome the turbulence that comes to our life or the buffeting that we have brought upon the lives of others affecting by our leaving. I regret that, but I do feel that faithfulness calls us forward, into a new place, and so I tread lightly on my way forward, trying to communicate my gratitude and leaving room for people to react as they will. The people I have told have been incredibly gracious, and I am beyond humbled by their kindness. There are many good people that I will miss here.
Change is tough.
There are days I want to freeze the kids at the stages they are, to keep them at this precious and tender age forever, to shelter them from the storms that surely await as they age, to treasure their youth and innocence and delight. But it's not fair to deny them change, and I would selfishly suffocate their future in order to maintain their present age. It's not right, and so I treasure the present and pray for an abundant future for them.
I do the same for our family, for Rachel and myself. Change is surely tough, and it will bring adversity and there will be moments in which we wonder if it was the wisest choice. But I believe we will continue to grow and continue to serve, and the challenge of change will produce growth in us that spills over, that we will continue forward and trust in God to lead wherever God might lead.
In a few short weeks, we'll uproot ourselves from what has been a wondrous experience in Chattanooga and delve once more into the unknown. We'll move to Columbus, Ohio and start a new chapter. It's tempting to say we'll start over, but that isn't true. We carry with us the wisdom, the stories and the relationships we have gained here in Chattanooga. These last six and a half years are a part of us, and they come, too. I think we are better for them, but there are, honestly, some moments I would like to forget. There are, as there always are, things I wish had not happened. And there are moments that I will carry in the depths of my heart forever.
Change is tough.
But it is so very necessary. Change stretches us, challenges us, makes us wonder if the ground beneath our feet will ever stop moving, for our very hearts often quake with change. It's so tempting to stay, but to shy away from the future into which we believe we are being called is not the wise choice. To remain in the cocoon when a new day is dawning may be safe in the moment, but it is folly for the future. There are certainly predators that lurk beyond, but there is a world, a life that calls us forward, and I would not dare miss the beauty and the opportunity that awaits because we are too comfortable to move.
Change is tough.
There is much that is good here. I do not welcome the turbulence that comes to our life or the buffeting that we have brought upon the lives of others affecting by our leaving. I regret that, but I do feel that faithfulness calls us forward, into a new place, and so I tread lightly on my way forward, trying to communicate my gratitude and leaving room for people to react as they will. The people I have told have been incredibly gracious, and I am beyond humbled by their kindness. There are many good people that I will miss here.
Change is tough.
There are days I want to freeze the kids at the stages they are, to keep them at this precious and tender age forever, to shelter them from the storms that surely await as they age, to treasure their youth and innocence and delight. But it's not fair to deny them change, and I would selfishly suffocate their future in order to maintain their present age. It's not right, and so I treasure the present and pray for an abundant future for them.
I do the same for our family, for Rachel and myself. Change is surely tough, and it will bring adversity and there will be moments in which we wonder if it was the wisest choice. But I believe we will continue to grow and continue to serve, and the challenge of change will produce growth in us that spills over, that we will continue forward and trust in God to lead wherever God might lead.