It's been a year since our family returned from a seven year stretch in Louisville. We took a leap of faith returning to Smyrna, just as we took a leap of faith moving to Louisville. In taking that leap I know I expected God to do for us exactly what He did in Louisville: provide a job and a house within a couple of weeks. God did it before, so of course He would do it again!
Reflecting back on it now, I realize how foolish of a thought that was. As I search Scripture and all of my life I remember that God doesn't do the same thing twice! He is always seeking to stretch and grow His people so that they will be conformed to the likeness of His Son, Jesus Christ.
So we returned to Smyrna, 7 years to the day we left. God's perfect number. We moved in with my parents and settled in. Jim applied for jobs, we looked at houses and... Nothing happened. No job offers, no houses that were right, nothing. It was humbling. We prayed, we cried, we wrestled, but still nothing.
A month after returning, we found out we were expecting our 8th baby! Not only were we expecing child number 8, but he was due in 6 weeks! God's grace and provision through insurance and Jim being home with us was evident through it all. Especially since our precious Isaac spent 10 days in the NICU! By God's grace everything was covered and Jim was able to be with us throughout the whole time. What a blessing!
Finally, in December, Jim was offered a home health nursing job that was almost everything we had prayed for and we took it. But the hours we had expected were not there. So we could not move forward with a house and had to stay with my parents longer. Jim worked whenever he could get hours, but it still was not where we could buy a house.
Again, we waited, prayed and asked for God to provide. In March Jim received full time hours and we were finally able to look at houses and that exact house that God had put in my mind came available! In April we closed on our place in Mableton and finally had a permanent home! How thankful we all were.
It took time but in the last couple of weeks we have finally gotten mostly settled and are finding our rhythms.
In the midst of all of it God has stretched us, grown us and made us more like Jesus. He has revealed more of Himself and our relationships to God and to each other have grown deeper. While the entire transition has been extremely difficult, and at times very painful, we have been made better, by God's Grace, for it. It has strengthened our faith and taught us more about the One True and Living God who is always Faithful and His Word and Promises are always True! God is God and I'm so thankful to serve the One True God and I'm so thankful He has brought us to this place.
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