Me, My Thoughts, and I: Bloom Where You're Planted

We have it on a little plaque in our kitchen...

"Bloom where you're planted."

Today, April 4, back in 2005 Darren, Grace & I (along with my mom) arrived at our new house in Greenville, MS. It was a new beginning for my new little family. We were excited & nervous, scared & anxious. It was all new... new town, new house, new job, new friends, new church family, new routine. We would be 10 hours from our old home, family & friends in Victoria, TX and 8 1/2 hours from Darren's family in Richmond, TX. That's tough with a 8 month old baby. However, we were ready for this new journey. It was clear God had his hand in it & we were trusting him for what lay ahead.

We soon became a "family". I believe a special thing happens when you live away from family & friends. You really learn to depend on each other, for that is all you have until you meet new people. We were lucky because it didn't take too long to settle in, meet people & find a new church home. Darren settled into his new job & I (with the help of my mom that first week) began to make our new house into a home. Greenville truly became our home. However, I must make a note that you may take the Texans out of Texas, but you will NEVER take Texas out of the Texans!! Okay, now I can move on!! ;)

We celebrated many milestones in our new home in Greenville. Grace took her first steps there. We marked her growth on the door frame of her closet every 6 months. We celebrated birthdays, Christmases, & every other holiday there. Luke joined our family 2 years later. Many fun times & many fun memories took place for our little family.

Fast forward nearly 5 years. Now it's fall of 2009...Darren & I are both feeling a certain discontent. What is it? Why were we feeling like something wasn't right? We knew God had placed us in Greenville, but we missed "home". We missed our families. Each time our parents left the kids would cry...that wears on you after a while. It seemed to get harder & harder to be away from "home". You would think after nearly 5 years we would be used to it. Nope, it wasn't that way for us. In December of 2009, we made a spur of the moment trip to see Darren's mom & dad in Richmond, TX. His mom didn't seem to be doing very well health-wise & so off we went to surprise her with a weekend visit. We drove straight through...not a fun task with a 2 year old & a 5 year old. We had a great visit, but as we were leaving it hit Darren hard. We both began to pray that we could be relocated back to Texas if it was what God had in store for us.

At the time I was in the middle of studying the book of Genesis for Community Bible Study. God was in the process of teaching me much about Abraham & Sarai (Sarah). It seems there were many similarities between Sarai & me. I was learning that God was writing the script & that I need to allow that because his plans would prevail no matter what. I can't tell you how many times I wrote "God's plans will prevail no matter what." in the margin of my CBS notebook! Darren & I both changed our prayer from "move us back to Texas" to "we want to be where you want us to be. If it's here in Greenville then we are going to need some help, but if it's somewhere else let us know. Our desire is to be back in Texas, but we want to be where you want us...we need your help to bloom where you have planted us." We specifically told him that we were going to trust him. That was hard because in our heart of hearts we wanted to move back to Texas. We still struggled, but God didn't. He was in control all along. We were trusting him, but still feeling that all too familiar feeling of discontent.

Then, one morning while doing my daily Bible study for CBS I ran across this quote...

"God often makes our nests less comfortable in order to move us into a new place."

Whoa, what?! I just sat there reading it over & over & over again. It was as if the person writing our commentary for the book of Genesis was speaking right to me...as if God was whispering in my ear. I just cried. This was what I was feeling. My nest... my home... the one I loved, was becoming less & less comfortable. It doesn't make sense because it was a lovely home, we had created many memories in that home. We had made many great friends...friends who soon became like family to us, yet we were growing less & less comfortable. However, after reading that one simple quote I understood. I knew it was okay for me to be growing "less comfortable" in my nest. God was at work. He was making it ever so clear to me.

Many things began to line up. Little did we know, that indeed he had new plans in store for us. Not only did God have something new in store for us, but it was back in Texas! We had a peace like none other with this new journey. It was a peace just like the one we felt when we moved to Greenville 5 years earlier.

In mid January, Darren was contacted about a position at a station in Beaumont, TX. The unique thing about this station is that it is where Darren got his start in the television business 10 years earlier. By the beginning of February, he accepted the new position & by mid February we were putting our house on the market & preparing to move. The kids & I were going to stay for Grace to finish out her kindergarten year, however, that just didn't work out. We needed to be together, as a family, starting this new journey. So, on April 5, 2010, we loaded up the car & moved our not so little family to Beaumont, TX.

Did you catch that? April 5, 2010...5 years & 1 day later than when we first moved to Greenville! Wow!! I didn't realize the dates were almost dead on until just a few days ago as I was reflecting on all that has taken place this last year. It made me smile. God knew all along. He knew the dates by memory...years before any of it took place.

All I can do is smile at where God has taken us together as a family, where we are now, & the places that he has still in store for us. If I can simply remember to let go & allow him to be in control then it would be a heck of a lot easier! Plus, I need to allow him to let me...

"Bloom where I'm planted."

Our little family in April 2005...