The first two suitcases — containing some things we won’t be needing until after we get resettled sometime next year — have made it safely to our home country, courtesy of two colleagues who were here last week for meetings.
I SO dislike this part of the moving process. Inevitable. Necessary. And yet another tug on my heart as reality hits home. Yes, this chapter of our lives is slowly closing. Another — yet unknown — chapter awaits us.
In going through stuff to send with our colleagues I came across a prayer I wrote and then shared at our local church several years ago. “Ironic” how apropos it is to us now …
Father, we come before You today
with grateful hearts …
Thank you …
– for these individuals we are honoring today
[those who were moving]
– for the many and varied ways they have served You
in this part of the world and here in our church
– for the lives that have been impacted by theirs
– for the relationships that have been forged
by doing life together
– that although this chapter of their life stories
is about to close
another is soon to be written …
During this time of transition …
give them grace
with others and with themselves
as they
– face unknowns
– make countless decisions
– get overwhelmed
with the myriad of details
involved in change
– desire to leave here well
AND
enter this next phase of their lives well.
Help them as they re-settle
in their passport country
and deal with the ambiguity of
– knowing the language…
and yet feeling out of sync
– of not being sure where “home” is.
May this in-between time
remind them
that their true home is with You.
Provide friends for them
and a church home where they can belong
and build a new sense of community.
Give them safety in their travels
and good times reconnecting
with family and friends.
We also come before You
on behalf of those of us who remain here
and sometimes feel more acutely the absence
of those who have left.
– Help us, as well as those leaving,
as we grieve the emptiness
that results when transitions occur.
– Help us to acknowledge that no one
can ever replace those relationships.
– Help us to not build walls of protection
around our hearts —
but to be open to new people
You may be wanting us to get to know.
May we not lose sight of who You are …
– Jehovah Jirah: the Lord will provide
– Jehovah Shalom: the Lord is peace
– Elohim: the Lord Most High,
stronger and mightier
than anyone or anything we may face
– El Roi: the strong One who sees,
which is a reminder that
we are never alone,
even when feeling lonely
– the Good Shepherd, the One who gently leads
– Abba Father
Thank you, Lord,
for how rich we are because of the people
You have brought into our lives!
Amen!
Yep. That prayer from seven years ago is still valid today … and even more so for my husband and myself now that we are the ones preparing to move in six months.
We are the ones needing to give each other — and ourselves — grace.
We are the ones making countless decisions and occasionally getting overwhelmed with the myriad of details.
We are the ones who want to leave here well… AND enter the next phase of our lives well.
And most importantly, we are the ones whose lives are richer because of all those who have come across our paths these past years.
It is because of God’s sustaining goodness and the countless people we’ve rubbed shoulders with that we’ve been able to have joy in the journey of this thing called “Life!” and will continue to do so as we face the future — whatever it may hold!
Joy in the Journey 