The Ambiguous Life Lesson

Before we transferred out of state with my husband’s job, my mom gave me two words of wisdom that have never left my heart. Stay in your faith community and unpack every box! I had no idea how valuable those words would be in my life still today. Seeing the moving trucks show up, the idea of unpacking every box seemed so overwhelming at the time, I had no idea that I had it all wrong. It wasn’t only unpacking every box in a literal since, it was more about unpacking every box so I could be present in the moment and embrace all that God had planned for me there.

When faced with the unknown and the unfamiliar, it can be difficult to stay present in the moment and trust God’s plan. It’s so much easier to rely on the familiar and the comfortable and find security. Moving forward in life when we are constantly holding on to the past is nearly impossible. I was a slow learner. It took me a year to surrender. I could have missed out on some of the best years of our family’s lives together if I hadn't.

God puts exactly the right people in front of us at exactly the right time. It’s all part of His plan, even if we don’t see the bigger picture yet. Living in the moment with who is in front of us; new friends, new family, new community, new everything! It can be a very daunting and confusing time in our lives. If God wills it, He has a plan. I had to be willing to lay down my walls and be vulnerable. I had to unpack the boxes that held my thoughts and ideals and give God the chance to help me grow.

I learned a whole new way of trusting in Him. I began to allow Him to guide me every day. I began to see the beauty in the person right in front of me and God’s plan for them in my life. They weren’t there for me to change them, they were there to change me. I learned to own and embrace that! Thank you, Jesus, for never giving up on me! Thank you for changing our family tree through your goodness.

Those that know me, know that I love the saying God’s Got This! It took me unpacking every box, loving the unfamiliar, trusting in the uncomfortable, persevering through the daunting newness and laying down my walls for good. I let go of my own desires of comfort and accepted the newness around me, the fresh journey closer to Him. As a family, we learned to trust in His plan for us, for each other. No matter what was in front of us, no matter where we were, every box had to be unpacked, and we had to be ready to listen!

My prayer for you today is that as you enter the unfamiliarity of life, that you breathe, unpack every box, and know without uncertainty that God will be with you through it all. I pray you grow through the beauty of the new, and that you become the beauty to others. May your boxes always be unpacked and the new ones never sealed.

Together in prayer. Hand in hand.