I am learning a ton about contentment these days. I am learning to rest in all that God has given me and trust that He will continue to provide for my future. Provide everything. Direction. Divine appointments. Open doors. Clear paths. People and relationships. Ways to maintain those relationships when you're far away from them. (Thank You Jesus for Skype!) Well-known fact about me: I am a hopeless romantic and dreamer. I am glad about it and hate it all at once. I love it because dreaming keeps me moving forward in many ways, it keeps me desiring things that are better and deeper in my life. So it wont let me settle. On the other hand, I hate it because I am always dreaming and thinking up new crazy ideas, I am constantly busy keeping myself in check so that I don't miss what God is up to right NOW. Not to mention that some dreams are completely idealistic and unrealistic...
It's hard sometimes because life is like a catch 22 in a lot of ways. For me at least. I want to be adventurous and just kinda go wherever whenever without ties. But I also love the idea and comfort of having roots and ties and really being involved in a community. I love adventure but miss the familiar. I could probably give you more examples of how I can want two things at the same time, and the thing that I don't have NOW seems like it will fill out life better.
One huge lesson I am learning along with contentment is that where ever God has you, life is still life. Just to put somewhat at ease those of you who have said you're super jealous of me or think the life of somebody living in another country is 100% complete excitement, romance and adventure: News Flash - It's NOT, because NOTHING IS. Of course there are those aspects, but it's not all the time. Things get pretty normal and every-day like sometimes. Households still share colds. (We're all a little sniffel-ly these days...) Friends and family still come over to have dinner or help out with things around the house. You still have to figure out how in the world you are going to fit a stable, routine exercise and quiet time into your days. You might make fun of and banter back and forth with each other over silly little things.... (Picture this: Pat randomly singing in his high squeaky voice "Call Me Maybe." ...as were walking around Miami Airport, no less...) And surprise, surprise *drum roll please* dishes and clothes still gotta get washed sometime. All these things are just part of every day life and doing things around people you love. But when you have the chance to do new things, meet new people and experience life outside of your comfort zone...it's a cool thing and the monotony is broken up. But life, even when one of your greatest desires is being lived out (traveling, meeting new people, experiencing new things and cultures) it's not all romance. It's real life, and real life can be routine....but there's also a comfort in that. (And, honestly you should probably be at least somewhat jealous of me, cause my life may be completely crazy and full of change right now....but it's pretty cool too. :))
One huge lesson I am learning along with contentment is that where ever God has you, life is still life. Just to put somewhat at ease those of you who have said you're super jealous of me or think the life of somebody living in another country is 100% complete excitement, romance and adventure: News Flash - It's NOT, because NOTHING IS. Of course there are those aspects, but it's not all the time. Things get pretty normal and every-day like sometimes. Households still share colds. (We're all a little sniffel-ly these days...) Friends and family still come over to have dinner or help out with things around the house. You still have to figure out how in the world you are going to fit a stable, routine exercise and quiet time into your days. You might make fun of and banter back and forth with each other over silly little things.... (Picture this: Pat randomly singing in his high squeaky voice "Call Me Maybe." ...as were walking around Miami Airport, no less...) And surprise, surprise *drum roll please* dishes and clothes still gotta get washed sometime. All these things are just part of every day life and doing things around people you love. But when you have the chance to do new things, meet new people and experience life outside of your comfort zone...it's a cool thing and the monotony is broken up. But life, even when one of your greatest desires is being lived out (traveling, meeting new people, experiencing new things and cultures) it's not all romance. It's real life, and real life can be routine....but there's also a comfort in that. (And, honestly you should probably be at least somewhat jealous of me, cause my life may be completely crazy and full of change right now....but it's pretty cool too. :))
The cool thing is that God has always had me right where He wanted me. He is my Sovereign Father who LOVES me and knows the way that my life will work out best for me. He knows when to bring adventure, school, a man, motherhood, a career and whatever else He may or may not plan for me to have in my life. So I guess apparently sometimes it takes almost 25 years and a move across the world to really process that you cannot have it all at once, and God gives different blessings at different times. So what I am learning is to rejoice and soak up the blessings now because one day, they may not fit into the rest of His plans for me. I am learning that it's part of my sin nature to always want what I don't have, so I might as well rejoice in what I do and use the gifts I have now fully and intentionally. Because, nothing lasts forever. It might possibly last a life time, but not forever. And you never know when God is going to direct your life in a whole different way. So in this season that has a ton of change, fluid motion and uncertainty I am just learning to trust. I am learning to quit asking questions and worrying about tomorrow because I AM is right HERE! Not there. The present is where I will find Him, so the present is where He calls me!
So because Jeremiah 29:11 is a very real promise in my life, its my desire to explore over the next year how to be intentional about life. About being content. About being loving, and about representing Christ well in what I do. This year my question isn't so much asking God to show me who I am or what He has planned for me. It's more about asking God to show me who He is, who I am in light of who He is, and how the way He made me can give Him the most glory. I have so much I am planning to learn and dig into this year and I am trying to just be a sponge and soak everything around me up. I am in such a random stage in life, but I am learning and growing so much already only in this first month. I Guess I could sum up the whole blog like this:
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