Reflections

I wanted take a bit and reflect on our time here in HBG. It has now been 3 ½ very busy months, and I can honestly say I haven’t been bored yet. I have missed certain people from NC, but overall, I have done much better than the kids have, adjusting to the move. Perhaps it is because I have moved so many times before, or because I strongly feel this is where the Lord God has called us to be at this point in time.

I never had any intention of leaving the Youngsville/Wake Forest area. From the time we drove thru town in the summer of 1996, it felt like coming home…although I had never been there before. From our rental home in Smithfield, NC, I had laid a map on the big oval oak dining room table that mom had given us, and felt God leading my eyes to the little town of Youngsville, just past the Wake County line. I clearly remember saying, “But God, it’s a little far out in the country, away from Sandy’s work site in Raleigh”, but the urge was strong, so we took a weekend to drive through the town, up 1A, past the Seminary, east on Wait Street to 98 and into Youngsville…and I fell in love. Like I said, it felt like home, so we began our house search there, and purchased a home exactly where God showed me on the map. It’s easier to see God’s hand from this side of 15 years later, but He was clearly moving.

As time went on, my mom and dad and Sandy’s brother and wife both purchased homes in the area too, and we all went on to become active members and receivers of His grace and blessings while at Faith Baptist Church. It was pretty small when we found it by way of the ladies at Lighthouse Homeschool Association. Although I surely didn’t intend to ever go to a Baptist church, as I was looking for another Pentecostal type church, God certainly led us there and used that Faithful flock of Christians to mold and grow my family in Christ. I am ever so thankful for the 15 years we had there, especially as I see the benefits that bestowing truth upon young children has on their life…knowledge that will last a lifetime, even if they choose to wander away for a while…they are never far from the loving hand of their heavenly Father…and He continues to be patient and kind to every one of us…forgiving us when we fail, and motivating us to learn from our mistakes and help others as they pass through similar waters.

I treasure the years that my family had to homeschool and help out with Anchor Soul each year. Each child helped in their own way, and saw what it means to come together as the body of Christ, to Glorify the Lord, even through a holiday as dark as Halloween. God can truly use anything, and I know our lives, among with thousands of others, were impacted for the better because of FBC’s faithfulness in creating that production each year.

Of course there also are the multitudes of Godly men and women we met, none perfect, but all striving to honor God with their lives, and to grow in Christ. And teachers like Jeff Lickliter who taught me so very much over our 10 years in SS class, in his twisted-humorous way J  Yes, I am playing favorites…and to have had the chance to know Michael Liter, to get a glimpse of his incredible, artistic mind at work…well, I truly do feel blessed. I pray his children are as creatively inspired as he is for they will have a dynamic future serving God with that type of talent. Having the Pastors who gave such clear truths from the Bible, along with the pool of Professors from the Seminary, teaching Sunday School each week and the occasional sermons…that church is surely blessed! There are so many others there, so many people who give their all to serve the body of Christ…I love it and miss it…but it was time…not that I ever saw it coming…but God knew it was time to move this family elsewhere…because there is work to do for him here in HBG. It is easy to want to continue to bask in all that Faith offers, and then there is a time to go out where God sends you, and serve him as he leads each day…not necessarily knowing what the purpose is, not understanding the call completely yet, but trusting that He has brought us here, and if we are faithful to step forward each day…he will guide each of those steps..and prayerfully, we all will bring glory to Him where we are at.

This is why I think I am dealing well thus far, moving far from what I considered my “forever home” of NC. Although I can not yet see the “Big Picture” of what God is doing, I certainly see Him moving, and want to remain faithful to Him, no matter what it looks like from this side of heaven.

I am learning much since being here, learning how to really pray, and praise God for who He is, not what he provides for me…I am learning to trust Him with the upbringing of the children, the blessings that he has allowed me to raise for Him. I never intended to stop homeschooling, since He called me to do it back in 1994 while Lacee was only 3. However, God can use ANYTHING for His purposes, and I believe from the bottom of my heart, He can use public school too, to raise Godly children for Him and his purposes. Since this is what I feel he has led me to do, in this season, I will trust Him in this too. And I pray for them more, ALL of them, than I ever have before, while we all were under the same roof each day. I miss my girls terribly, miss talking witth them each night, miss the laughter and the tears, and just being there for each other…but also know that this too must come, as they mature, and go on to living their own lives. It seems to sneak up on ya…they are there, day by day, then they are gone, taking care of themselves, and living their own life. Because of this, I pray more, and I LOVE THEM NOW MORE THAN EVER!

Time drags on so slowly it seems, as the daily grind goes on, but when it is over…it is surely over, and you wonder where the time went. I am so very thankful that I did the best I could to show my kids the Truth of Christ in the years we had, so that now I can let go, knowing God has them in His hands, wherever they are and wherever they go… I know He is faithful to bring them to completion in Christ.

“For I am confident of this very thing, that He who began a good work in you will perfect it until the day of Christ Jesus”. Phil. 1:6