The Move, Part 2

I hope that last few days have given everyone a chance to read the first blog about our move and thank you to the many people who messaged me and shared with me how the blog was meaningful to them in some way.  It has definitely been a learning experience for us and I hope that our sharing our story and experiences can continue to be a blessing to others in their various journeys in life.

So, I left off with our drive away from Pennsylvania and towards Kentucky and all the love that both surrounded and carried us forward from our old home toward our new one.  Luke was driving the UHaul with Hannah and I had Naomi and Caleb in the minivan.  That meant I was rather alone with my thoughts for about 8 hours on the road; a daunting experience for someone who doesn't really like the whole idea of being alone and processing and whatnot.  Fortunately, one of the ladies from church had given me a cd that morning full of some of my most favorite worship songs.  I must have listened to and sang with that cd four or five times on our way to Kentucky.  The one song that reverberated in my soul was "You Never Let Go" performed by Matt Redman. 
Even though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, your perfect love is casting out fear
And even when I'm caught in the middle of the storms of this life, I won't turn back, I know you are near

And I will fear no evil for my God is with me
And if my God is with me,whom then shall I fear? Whom then shall I fear?

Oh no, You never let go through the calm and through the storm
Oh no, You never let go in every high and every low
Oh no, You never let go, Lord, You never let go of me

Not that I felt like I was going to the valley of death, don't get me wrong.  I had peace in my heart that God was leading us to Kentucky.  But I am not real great with the "unknown" and there was so much "unknown" in front of us.  If I let myself focus on that, I was easily captured by thoughts of worry, doubt and fear.  So this song became for me as I drove a reminder that what is unknown to me was known by the One who loved me and called me and He would never let go so I had nothing to fear.

The ride was long... and hot.. and we arrived late... and I was frazzled and then, we finally pulled into Kalas Village.  As I drove towards the end of the road I knew we lived on, my eyes were taking in address numbers trying to find 1007, the home that would be ours.  Turns out, it didn't matter if I saw the numbers because standing on what would be our porch were about 10 able-bodied volunteers ready to help us unload a UHaul and begin our life in Wilmore.  And the porch belonged to a house located at the end of a unit, next to the woods with a huge yard in front of it and yards on the side and back of it.  It was the perfect house for this mountain girl who was willing to live without trees but secretly dreading the thought of it.

Remember all that love we experienced as we left our home in Pennsylvania?  Well guess what; somehow it found its way down to Kentucky.  I knew that we would have help unloading the truck, but I didn't know the unloading included a great deal of warm welcome, furniture set-up, dinner delivery and a lot of laughter.  I knew that the girls would find friends here, but I didn't realize that within an hour of being here, they'd be out riding bikes until bedtime that night with a posse of new friends that accepted them in as quickly as our new neighbors had.  I knew what our house looked like from floor plans on line, but had no idea that within two days a house would be transformed into a home and that the same spirit of rest and peace we so loved in our old home would indwell this one.  I knew that Duane and Doreen, my in-laws, were coming down to help us get settled, but did not realize what a blessing it would be to my soul to have family here as we arrived and how much their love, support and presence meant to my heart (and we got to see Jennifer and Chad, Luke's sister and her husband, on Friday to boot!).  I knew that God was with us, but He showed me again in the lives of His people that He never lets go.

We are still adjusting to life here.  It's a little strange to me to have people around all the time even though I am very much a people person.  It's weird to know I can walk pretty much anywhere (store, bank, PO, friends, etc) and it is very odd to have my children out riding bikes and bringing friends over and going over to friends' houses all day long.  Whenever my phone signals a text, it's usually another Mom updating me on where my kid is or finding out if their kid is here, which is great but much different from where we lived before.  On Friday night we had a potluck with our new neighbors; neighbors that hale from Sudan, Nigeria, China, South Korea, the Philippines and such far-flung places as Michigan, Tennessee and Alabama.  The food was eclectic and delicious and the fellowship sweet and welcoming.  We ended that night with S'mores and a bonfire, tired kids and happy parents and a sense of belonging and community that assured us that indeed, He never lets go.  

I can already tell that this place, this community is going to leave a lasting impression on our life (ARISE volunteers, that term should sound very familiar to you!)  We've already felt the love of Christ manifest here and we've already begun to find our place.  I'm sure as I read this blog post four years from now as we are packing up to move and following God on the next step of our journey, I will smile at how naive I sound and marvel at how much we learned and gained and gave and served while living here but for now, I just smile because I know that God is with us and, as I may have mentioned before, He never lets go.