The No-Plan Plan

Psalm 37:25  I have been young, and now am old, yet I have not seen the righteous forsaken or his children begging for bread.

Nathan and I have been so blessed by the kindness of family and friends in the past few weeks. We have had countless offers for meals, housing, cars, health care, etc. and we couldn't be more grateful. Since we've been in Atlanta we've done a family holiday in Florida (a few posts about that forthcoming), visited extended family in Mississippi (my first time in that great state), hung out with lots of friends, worked on various projects (me: a book on hospitality, and Nathan: lots of odd jobs around several houses) and of course, looked for full-time work. 

I ain't gonna lie, this time of transition, change, and lots of waiting has been difficult for me. I am a planner, an organizer, a creature of habit. I like my nest nice and neat. I like my space. I like my peace and quiet. I like my routine. I sometimes feel like I'm going bananas between all the uncertainty and the state of my pregnant body in this Atlanta summer heat. Yesterday morning I counted the number of beds we've slept in since July 8th... EIGHT. Eight different beds in two countries and four states in six weeks. 

Since our baby will be here in the not-too-distant future and Nathan and I have no certain plans, we have made a no-plan plan. Here it is:

I will go back to California on September 4th to hunker down and wait for Mikey's arrival. Nathan will follow me on the 18th of September. He has to stay in Atlanta for two extra weeks because he has some PCA presbytery meetings he must attend to be licensed. We'll stay with my parents. I will clean out cupboards and set up shop and satisfy my strong nesting urges. Nathan will continue his job search for full-time church work while doing some short-term work to keep him busy. He is so ready to work doing anything. We'll re-evaluate after the new year. Hopefully by then we will know where God has called us to live, work, and serve in a church. We'll see... I am really beginning to hate that phrase, "We'll see," but that's all I can say.

In the mean time, I am learning hard lessons about my idolatry problem with the concept of home. Home is not California. It is not Atlanta. It is not wherever we are going next. It is in heaven with Jesus, and I'll be going there so very soon! Keeping that perspective is essential to my contentment. When I am restless and unsettled in my spirit, I am essentially saying to God, "You are not good and generous." But he IS. All the time! I just need to remind myself of that 50 million times a day.

Our friends from Durham were in a similar situation several weeks ago (they are now nicely settled in Africa), but I found this comment from Alex so encouraging: "Homeless is the way to be! With a retirement plan in the New Creation, who would want a home here? Maybe a temporary lodge would be nice though. Go well in the Lord, Alex."

Please be in prayer for us to have godly attitudes, wisdom to make lots of decisions, a strong marriage, and healthy bodies (Nathan, me, and Mikey too!). 

I am typing this post from our friends' dining room table. Thanks so much for your hospitality Justin and Julie!

Justin, Julie, and their enormous lap dog, Amos

What a gorgeous, peaceful room!

So that's it. I'll keep you posted on some other fun stuff we've been up to lately in the next few days.