And again, a post from pre-leaving . . . . .
Sunday we were at our home church here, actually the first time in a long while as we have been busy traveling to other churches for storytelling and taking rest days at home. I spent almost the whole service crying. The beauty of the people there, their total joy in the Lord and the sense that I will miss this all so much all combined to leave me a teary mess.
The church prayed over us and our journey back and prayed for us to preach the gospel well in America - Amen! They presented us with a handmade mat. The time was pretty wonderful for me.
This week I feel a lot of sadness and a bit of anxiety about heading back to America. I am fielding lots of tears and questions from Naomi and Quinn along with a lot of appropriate joy and anticipation. Quinn ( a total techno guy) has been asking lots of questions about power (you mean the power is on ALL the TIME, mommy? Does it ever go below 13?) He knows exactly what numbers to watch for on our solar display and how to turn the inverter on and off to save the power - - they’re pretty amazed to think we don’t need to worry about any of that in America. They’re sad to think about missing out on life here. As Naomi put it “life in America is kinda boring, here something really exciting happens EVERYDAY! And really it’s true. Though I think our time in America will be anything but boring as we travel up and down the coast and see so many of you.
In the midst of normal sadness about missing out on team life, CSB life, ministry in general and lot of friendships, there is the additional sadness of the instability of life here. I am so aware of the fragility of life in this place and the real possibility that some of our friends could die while we’re gone. Adding to that the impossibility of communication from afar with our local friends and it’s a bit hard to head out. But today was a wonderful day of packing, cleaning and taking care of a million little details while our kids and workers just soaked in the time with each other. God is aware of my heart, hears my tears and is making a way for us wherever we are.