That Four Letter Word

I'm homeless at the moment.  Well, maybe I am not literally homeless.  Okay, I am in transition.  In other words, God has called my husband and I to a new ministry back in Arkansas.  Yep girlfriends, I am experiencing that four letter word that every minister's wife has a love/hate relationship with-MOVE.

When that four letter word was first uttered early in the fall, my first reaction was to tell God and my husband "absolutely not!" We were slowing getting our house refloored, my parents were not well, and I just did not want to move again.  However, over the next few months, God worked on my heart and started revealing that this move was part of His plan for us. 

Girlfriends, moving is a tough experience.  No amount of chocolate in the world can soothe the heartbreak of leaving people who become your "family".  When you see congregations through births, baptisms, a natural disaster, and deaths, you become connected.  However, I do not want to end this post on a down note.  As much as I hate that four letter word, a move can be an exciting time as well.

First, a move is God's way of stretching your faith.  When the pulpit committee makes first contact, you really have to listen to what God is saying.  You have to put aside your own selfishness and seek His desires.  In other words, a move draws you closer to the Father.

Second, a move opens doors to a new part of your ministry.  Think back on some of your own moves.  Can you connect the dots of how a move opened a doorway to a new path that you might have missed if you did not follow God's will?  For example, if I had not moved to Nashville, I would never have met Lana Rose at the state convention office, been able to work on some of the ministry teams through the state convention, or be honored to be a Prime Rib blogger.  I would have never met many of you across the state who are chocoholics like me!  Oh, my life would be so empty if God had not moved us to Tennesee.

Third (and don't laugh), a move allows you to clear out the junk.  It is the one time when we go through closets, drawers, boxes, shelves, the garage and dejunk.  Goodwill, Salvation Army, and the garbage collector become our best friends during the moving process. 

So you see, girlfriends, a move does not always have to be a dreaded four lettered word.  We do not have to like it but we should welcome it.  Besides, Christians never really should say goodbye because this is just our temporary home.