“I will sing of the Lord’s unfailing love forever! Young and old will hear of your faithfulness.” Psalm 89:1
I wanted to take some time to share with you the ways the Lord has been faithful since calling me here to Georgia. My prayer is that this encourages you as much as I have been encouraged lately.
A Place to Lay My Head
When I found out I was moving to Georgia a month before I was supposed to be there, I wondered how I would find a place to live on such short notice. Through a community page, the Lord provided a couch to sleep on. I ended up sleeping on that couch for almost four weeks. I am so thankful to Brandy for her hospitality and opening her home to me. I’m also thankful to her other roommates who allowed me to take over their space for a few weeks. I’m lucky to call all of them friends now.
A House to Call Home
The Lord gave me a room to rent in a picturesque home that is close to the office and in my admittedly tight budget. I live with a couple who work at Adventures and their adorable one year old son.
Earlier this year I told my friends in Omaha that I wouldn’t be living with them because I felt like the Lord wanted me to live with a family. I had no idea that family would be in Gainesville Georgia, but once again the Lord’s will be done.
A Bed To Sleep On
When I moved out of my parents house, I decided it was time to invest in bedroom furniture and upgrade to a queen sized bed. Little did I know that two months later I would be moving to Georgia, and my beautiful new furniture would not fit into my little Chevy Cobalt.
I had come to terms with the fact that I would be sleeping on my sleeping pad from the World Race until further notice. I was confident that the Lord would eventually provide a bed (probably back to a twin size) in my price range, but that I would be prayerfully waiting for a while.
The day before I moved into my new house, my future roommate texted me and asked if I mentioned that I didn’t have a bed. They happened to have a QUEEN sized bedroom set in their basement that they are willing to “rent” to me for the price of babysitting their son.
SOLD.
Jesus is so good to me.
A Job and a Passion
I knew beyond a shadow of a doubt that I was called to my role as an Admissions Advisor at Adventures in Missions (otherwise I would have chickened out of moving a long time ago). But I had no idea how perfect of a fit this job would be for me. I get to use my administrative, project management skill set to equip and empower future missionaries for life on the field. The Lord has given me the gift of administration, and that is the role I get to play in building the Kingdom of God.
Just yesterday I spoke with a young woman who was full of wisdom, but needed a little encouragement to walk in obedience to what she knew the Lord was asking her to do. I hung up that phone full of the Spirit and more confirmation that I am doing exactly what I’m supposed to be doing.
An Introvert Becomes an Extrovert
I spent my first day in Gainesville crying in a bedroom that wasn’t mine, and then crying in a Starbucks full of people. A lot of that was due to the realization that I don’t know anyone here. Sure there are some people from my squad, but I didn’t have anyone who really knows me, and that was terrifying.
I am a strong introvert by every definition of the word. Meeting new people and building relationships from scratch was never easy for me. It’s hard for me to stay in the small talk space when all I want is to go deep with people. So I went to the Lord and asked him to allow me to be an extrovert in this season of building new community. And what d’ya know…He did it!
I have gone to bonfires and Halloween parties, lunch with new friends and made small talk with random people in the office. I spent a few days in a house full of 50+ people for a work retreat that I helped plan. I choose to spend my evenings with my roommates instead of alone in my room like I normally would. Not because I felt I had to, but because I want to. I still recharge best by myself, but my desire to be around people has grown exponentially since I moved here. I can confidently say that is not me, but the Spirit empowering me to build community in this new place I call home.
In the days leading up to this move, I was scared out of my mind. I cried the minute I left my parents house after saying goodbye to my family. I was anxious and tense the whole drive down. Moving to Georgia felt like the biggest, scariest, hardest thing I have ever done (including the World Race). I never knew what it meant to be courageous despite your fear. But the words of Annie F. Downs explains it perfectly:
“When God tells you to be brave, he will make it work. It won’t be perfect. It won’t be easy. But it will be your story and your best story.” – Annie F. Downs, Let’s All Be Brave: Living Life With Everything You Have
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