“Not that I have already obtained all this, or have already arrived at my goal, but I press on to take hold of that for which Christ Jesus took hold of me. Brothers and sisters, I do not consider myself yet to have taken hold of it. But one thing I do: Forgetting what is behind and straining toward what is ahead, I press on toward the goal to win the prize for which God has called me heavenward in Christ Jesus.”
Philippians 3:12-14
After 5 months in our new home, we’ve settled into somewhat of a rhythm, although every day seems to bring something unexpected or out of the ordinary!
We’ve started to wonder when things will settle down and finally feel normal. However, the more we think about it, the more we realize that we are chasing after something that we probably don’t even want. When has God ever called any of us to live a normal life? Instead, he tells us in Romans 12:2 “Do not conform to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind.”
We’re all probably familiar with the phrase “new normal;” it’s like we get a restart option on so much of our previous lives.
For us here, it’s even more magnified as we start over in a new country, learning a new language and culture. We have all been given the gift of re-setting and re-prioritizing, yet it’s still a struggle to balance how much of the world’s normal we allow in, as we live in this world but are not of it.
There’s often tension, but what a beautiful invitation to lay it all down at the Father’s feet and ask Him what He would have us pick back up, and what really needs to be let go.
We might not ever understand all the “why’s” but we do know, and have full confidence in, the faithfulness of God!
He has brought us this far and He’s not going to leave us now! We are reminded of Hebrews11:1—“Now faith is confidence in what we hope for and assurance about what we do not see.”
We walk on in obedience and full of faith, knowing that God is good, that He is for us and not against us, and that even in our questioning and wanderings, He is working it all for His Glory.
Some of our new normals…
- We are in winter which means—rainy season
- I was able to attend a local wedding, complete with matching outfits
- S turned 13 and we have a new team member living with us
- We finished another phase of language and will have a new teacher
We’d love to hear about your new normals—send us an email (by clicking our names below) and pictures if you can. 😊
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