Yeah, but does it move?
I’ve had a pretty transient life, especially as an adult.
I moved to Mississippi just after college to teach in a rural school district. Two addresses and 2 years later, I found myself taking off from Mississippi to Memphis, and a year after that, I was living in Nashville. After four years in Nashville, I spent a year doing overseas missions.
As if you haven’t heard enough already, once back in the States, I went from Ohio to Nashville, and then to Memphis again, where I thought God might have me build my life. COVID-19 hit, and I lost my job, so I moved to Maryland and then Upstate NY in search of housing security and permanent employment. That’s 5 moves across 4 states in only 2 years.
People who don’t know me well probably thought I was a bit out of my mind, that maybe I was running from something, or maybe searching for something. But the real answer is this: I was following God, and He loves to lead us to a harvest (in His timing). I’ve been in Charleston for almost 3 years now, and for the first time I can really remember, I feel like God is giving me space to dream about roots, to grow trees that bear a different kind of fruit.
Heavenly plans don’t always make sense on our earthly paper, but the result is always very good. Each housing detour led me to where I am right now, to this moment in time in this city with these people. Even as I made a difficult decision this week to side with the Spirit instead of my flesh in a specific area of my life, that was another choice to help me walk in the favor of God. I’m in a moment where I believe the great things God has been doing in me and for me all these years will begin to be visible, where the tears I’ve sown will reap a harvest of joy - not just for me, but for those around me. Let’s consider Psalm 126:
1 When the LORD restored the fortunes of Zion,
we were like those who dreamed.
2 Our mouths were filled with laughter,
our tongues with songs of joy.
Then it was said among the nations,
“The LORD has done great things for them.”
3 The LORD has done great things for us,
and we are filled with joy.
4 Restore our fortunes, LORD,
like streams in the Negev.
5 Those who sow with tears
will reap with songs of joy.
6 Those who go out weeping,
carrying seed to sow,
will return with songs of joy,
carrying sheaves with them.
I love how this Psalm speaks so clearly of restoration, but there’s a nuance that grabs my attention. In verse 1, the Psalmist begins by saying, “When the LORD restored the fortunes,” launching into a testimony of God’s faithfulness in the past. In verse 4, the Psalmist carries on by saying, “Restore our fortunes, LORD” - I see this as a prayer of faith for further restoration, to bring fruitfulness and provision, to transform tears into joy.
My pastors have been preaching an incredible series on faith, and one of the anchor scriptures has been, “Now faith is the confidence in what we hope for and the assurance about what we do not see” (Hebrews 11:1). Most of the time, I don’t clearly see why God is leading in one direction or another. I never would have predicted my life as it is today, but in faith, I decided to follow as He moved me from one place to the next. It’s like our pastors have been teaching, faith is more than a feeling - it moves, builds, speaks, sacrifices, and endures. (Listen to the series here - it’s so good).
I am not sure how to put a bow on this. I have no tidy conclusion for you because my story isn’t finished, I’m living it. Your story isn’t finished either, do you believe that? Do you have faith? Does it move? Does it build and sacrifice in the direction God is leading? We worship a God of the past, present, and future - of done, doing, and will do. It’s not easy to live a life of surrender. It takes a great and active faith, but it’s absolutely worth it.
