The Long Road Home....

Trust in Him at all times,

O people;

Pour out your heart before Him,

God is a refuge for us.

Psalm 62:8

When you did awesome things which we did not expect,

You came down, the mountains quaked at Your presence

For from days of old they have not heard or perceived by ear,

Nor has the eye seen a God besides You,

Who acts in behalf of the one who waits for Him.

Isaiah 64:3-4

Behold I will do something new,

Now it will spring forth;

Will you not be aware of it?

I will even make a roadway in the wilderness,

rivers in the desert.

Isaiah 43:19

But this is what I commanded them, saying,

'Obey My voice,

and I will be your God, and you will be My people;

and you will walk in all the way which I commanded you,

that it may be well with you.'

Jeremiah 7:23

But as for me, I shall sing of your strength;

Yes, I shall joyfully sing of Your lovingkindness in the morning,

For you have been my stronghold

and a refuge in the day of my distress.

Psalm 59:16

My lips will shout for joy when I sing

praises to You;

And my soul,

for which You have redeemed.

Psalm 71:23

They shall eagerly utter the memory of

Your abundant goodness,

And will shout joyfully of Your righteousness.

Psalm 145:7

Let the field exult, and all that is in it.

Then all the trees of the forest will sing for joy.

Psalm 96:12

For you will go out with joy

and be led forth with peace;

the mountains will break forth into shouts of joy before you,

and all the trees of the field will clap their hands.

Isaiah 55:12

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I wanted to share a glimpse of our new drive home, and the verses that we have been thinking on while we enjoy it!

On "the long road" home that was our journey this spring/summer, we found ourselves contemplating many things.

Where do we live? What do we do? Where do we go from here?

Interestingly enough, this looked different on any given day, house in town, house in country, house in town, apartment, house in town, rental in the "country". (those of you who had to put up with our near daily hashings - our apologies!)

We won't for a second maintain, or even try to make it look like we rested confidently in Him every moment of every day, surely not!

But you know, the times we questioned whether we were in His will, were the times that we (mostly me!) entertained the notion that because it wasn't easy, surely we were doing something wrong!

Thankfully I have a gracious husband that was kind enough to remind me over and over, that this was a trial and it was for our benefit.

Wrapping my mind around the fact that the Lord was indeed leading us through this for our good took some time. And when I did work through it - it was moment by moment.

I can't even describe the peace that came when we finally realized what He was truly asking.

To wait patiently for Him, His will and His plan to be revealed.

What surprised me the most, was what came after realizing this and the peace that came with it.

I am overwhelmed with His goodness to us. His kindness and gentleness, allowing us to work through (sometimes with much grief!) what He brought our way.

For this time in my life, I have found joy in being RIGHT where He wants me to be. Even if I never see the bigger picture.

It has been said that the safest place to be is in the will of God. And I have found that it is also the place of the most joy.

We are thankful for this summer, for the road He brought us down. For what He taught us, where He is leading, and how He is working.

And the glimmers of His master plan He gives along the road minister to our hearts!