A New Thing



Isaiah 43:19 (The Message)

 "Forget about what's happened; don't keep going over old history. Be alert, be present. I'm about to do something brand-new. It's bursting out! Don't you see it? There it is! I'm making a road through the desert, rivers in the badlands."

I have been completely moved by verses like this one lately.  Something new.  Something brand new.  Justin and I have been searching for what comes next for our family over the past six months.  In September, we moved in with my parents in their home in Murfreesboro.  It turned out to be a Providential move, since my dad had two falls and two knee surgeries in the time we've lived here.  But now, it's time for us to move on.  We miss having a place to call our own.  We miss being "just the three of us."  We decided to stay in Murfreesboro, since Justin gets to work from home three days a week and works in Franklin the other two days.  We were looking at existing homes, but just kept coming up empty-handed as most homes in the price range in which we're looking were going to require updating (more money) and no devoted office space for Justin.  Justin's step-brother, Brian Swain, is our Realtor.  He found a great home that was a new construction in our price range in a neighborhood in a great school district, not far from my parents.  It seemed perfect...backed up to the woods, 1/3 acre, and a quiet subdivision.  We made an offer on the house, but we lost out to another party.  I asked if we couldn't look at other homes in the same neighborhood.  And we found it.  Our house is all brick, sits at the end of a cul-de-sac only one street over from the first house, and because it's not finished, we were able to pick out paint colors, hardware, and many other finishes in the house.  It's going to have a devoted office space for Justin that is separate from the rest of the house and plenty of wonderful living space for our family.  We feel very blessed and hope to move in mid-March.

That brings me to talk about something else.  We have gone back and forth about whether we are doing the right thing, buying this new house.  Justin and I feel strongly that at some point, God's going to do something with us that is much bigger than we can ask or imagine.  We don't know what, where, when, or how, but we have had a deep desire in us to answer YES, no matter what the questions are.  We have considered something BIG like the mission field, and we continue to struggle to say yes to following God's lead in the things that don't seem so big...the everyday stuff.  We're wrestling with maintaining the status quo: an upper middle class American lifestyle, working to keep what we have, a good school for Amber Joy, our commitment to her as parents and what that means, and the possibility of leaving all of this "normalcy" behind one day and doing something outside of our comfort zone.  We have no clear direction on what this means for where our lives go next, so we keep searching...

We have recently found a new church home at Real Life Community Church of the Nazarene.  It is a missional church, a relevant church, and a church full of human beings who are trying to become real Christ followers.  It's not perfect, since no church is, but we are grateful to have found this new community and look forward to growing more in our walk with God as we walk with these fellow believers. 



Justin recently celebrated his 30th birthday and Amber Joy had her 2nd!  I'm also turning 40 this year, so we have some big things to celebrate!  We've planned a beach trip with Justin's family and a beach trip in the early fall with some dear friends.  I'm also going on a mission trip to New Mexico this summer and am excited to serve the Navajo population.  You can find out more about the Good Goers Adventure Based mission trips by clicking here.

So, we go into something new.  We won't forget who's taking us there, and taking us into our future, whatever it holds.

Deuteronomy 6:10-12 (The Message)

"When God, your God, ushers you into the land he promised through your ancestors Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob to give you, you're going to walk into large, bustling cities you didn't build, well-furnished houses you didn't buy, come upon wells you didn't dig, vineyards and olive orchards you didn't plant. When you take it all in and settle down, pleased and content, make sure you don't forget how you got there—God brought you..."



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