365 Days…and Counting.

So…I wanted to write this post a couple of weeks ago, but it just hasn’t been feasible. Warning: it’s a tad long.

It’s been a little more than 365 days ago now that I officially made the move from West Palm Beach back “Home” (Central Florida). Because I feel that I’ve learned so much and experienced so much in the past year, I wanted to take a little bit of time to reflect on where I’ve been and where God’s brought me (literally and figuratively).

October 17, 2008 marked the beginning of this part of my journey. And the following are random lessons learned and experiences had that may not have been possible at this time in my life if I hadn’t listened to God’s quiet voice saying, “It’s time to go ‘home’ now.”

In the last year, I have…

• Had the opportunity to live life on a daily basis with my sister, brother-in-law and nephew for about nine months. And, now have the opportunity to live with two of my best friends.
• Been able to visit my parents without tons of planning and preparation. One hour drives are much easier to make at the last minute than three hour drives.
• Learned to trust God for the “simplest” of provisions…namely, a roof over my head and food to eat.
• Learned to make difficult decisions that defy my human understanding, but that honor God.
• Come to firmly believe that I have all that I need through my relationship with God in Jesus. No amount of friends, mentors, money or alleged circumstantial stability can provide what I need.
• Become a little entrepreneur, launching Two Florida Girls with my sister and doing odd freelance jobs for various non-profit and ministry organizations. I never thought the word “entrepreneur” and my name could ever be in the same sentence!
• Finished my Master’s Degree in Organizational Leadership from Palm Beach Atlantic University and joined the first-ever Orlando Campus cohort, meeting 7 incredible leaders who I now call friends.
• Learned (over and over and over again…and then some more…and do you see a theme here? Think God might be trying to help me grasp something?!) about the process of transition and change at a time that it was most applicable to my life. Thanks, Moses. Thanks, Israelites. Thanks, Dr. Holder.
• Taken steps so far outside of my comfort zone, just because God asked me to.
• Seen God provide me with more than I can begin to lay claim to. Without gainful employment for a year, I’m not sure how I still have a cell phone, health insurance, car insurance and gas money. Praise God for His provision!
• Begun to accept and recognize God’s moving in my circumstances…even when I don’t understand. Even when I thought I “needed” a certain job or position.
• Been available for my family at a time where it has been most needed…because I accepted God’s moving of my circumstances.
• Been able to attend Bible Study Fellowship with Kati, Paul and now, Cadence. What a blessing!
• Found new opportunities to serve. My favorite is my weekly position in Guest Services at Give Kids The World.
• Experienced the early moments of Cadence’s life, and been able to watch her grow so much already.
• Been able to spoil Paul and Cadence even more than I could have from three hours away!
• Completed my first 5K and am signed up for number 2 in December!
• Realized that I do have multiple “jobs”…I’m just not being paid monetarily for all of them.
• Truly begun to live and understand one of my favorite quotes…”Jesus never measured His life by how or where He was of the greatest use. God places His saints where they will bring the most glory to Him, and we are totally incapable of judging where that may be.” -Oswald Chambers

Sorry…I told you it was long. And, that’s not even all of it…just the highlights!

But, praise God that He continues to work in my life and the lives of those closest to me. I can honestly say, the last year hasn’t been easy and there’s still more adjusting and settling to be done, but I know that God is faithful. He is good. His plan is perfect. And, He knows what He’s doing.

Thanks for reading.