Life is crazy! Busy busy busy! Or is it just my mind that's so busy?
We are those people that like to stay busy though and then we are exhausted! Then we sit still for a week and are bored… Oh the struggle. 😉
It’s only been five months for us leaving home and the missing family has fully settled in. The questions from the kids of when we’re going “home” and when we can see so and so again…it gets to us. It has made Chris and I question our “why” and what we are actually doing with life. Are we ruining our kids? Are we awful parents for taking them away from all they knew? This feels like a dream sometimes. It feels like we are just on a long vacation and need to be planning our back home life so we can give the kids the answers to their many questions.
So this is where our contentment comes in. We knew going into this that this lifestyle wasn’t going to be a forever thing for us, probably not even a 5 year plan. We find ourselves searching…searching for what is next for us. Why is that? We JUST began this! I have come to a couple conclusions.
Discontentment and fear.
In today’s culture we are spoiled (some may call it lucky) to have so many things at our fingertips but at the same time I think that poses a great difficulty for us, especially raising little ones. Honestly though, I think learning how to be content has always been a challenge for Chris and I. As I have mentioned before, we are big dreamers and some say that’s a wonderful trait to have, but finding the balance of our big dreams or goals and being happy with where we currently are is one we are still battling.
Chris and I teach and preach to be grateful, to work hard for what you want. To be thankful for challenges because that’s when we learn and grow the most. We talk to the kids about this all the time!
Being content on the road has its own struggles because we are constantly chasing adventure. People are always asking where we are, what are we up to, what’s the next big thing for us? What’s been our favorite thing or place so far?
Don’t get me wrong, it’s been amazing being able to share our journey through social media and this blog and tell stories to friends and family. But we find ourselves chasing “the next great thing” and searching for the greatest activity in every city, which leaves us bored in our day-to-day life.
In comes the discontent. In comes boredom. In comes spending unnecessary money. In comes social media scrolling envy. In comes the enemy into our mind.
I write to tell you that we are still your average American family just doing our best amidst the chaos. In between the ventures, we do day to day life. We clean more than we’d like to, we read books and watch tv and tell stories around the kitchen table and we are still learning that that’s okay. All of our day’s aren’t full of adventure and excitement just because we are in a new city.
The hope is to give our kids experiences they will always remember, of course.
But our hope is also to teach them what family life looks like and how to work as a team. To teach them how to be independent, to show them the different types of cultures and beliefs in our country and to teach them to lean on God instead of their own understanding. Lastly, we didn’t know it 6 months ago, but to teach them, as well as learn it ourselves, to simply be content with where God places you.
Not looking so much to the next adventure, to the next vacation you want to plan, to the next pay grade at work, but to be grateful in the moment. Easier said than done, for sure.
The second struggle is one we all battle – fear.
F – FALSE
E – EVIDENCE
A – APPEARING
R – REAL
The enemy sneaks into our weaknesses and tells us lies. Our minds start to believe those lies. It affects our daily decisions and attitudes. A cycle that can suck you in and sink you if you allow it.
I’m sure this could be said in a much more professional manner, but that’s not me. So here it goes. When we make major decisions, I think we run on more adrenaline than we think. Our bodies go in to survival mode and your stress levels sky rocket. I’m sure most times it’s obvious that we are under pressure and stress, but when your body is in survival mode you deal with things differently. Once you start to slow down your busyness and your distractions, your body has to deal with the actual things and then you realize you’re getting OLD!! Haha all jokes aside, you realize you just went through some stuff and it’s time to deal.
I think my family was all running on an adrenaline rush for the last five months. I think we are settling into this life and fear has totally set in about our life and our future. I’d like to believe that these are normal feelings after making such a drastic life-change, so that’s what we’re going with!
At this point, we are recognizing the fear when it trickles in and are starting to give it the boot for each other. We recognize that it’s impossible and not what we want anyway, to stay busy all the time just to keep curbing our inner fears. We completely recognize that missing home is normal, but really, it’s our people that we miss (not the house) – so it’s fixable!
I don’t think discontentment and fear have ever been at the forefront of my thoughts like it has been recently, but after talking it out and praying about it – I have to believe that we are doing the right thing. We knew this wasn’t going to be an easy change and were up for the challenge. We know that we have an amazing support system back in Michigan and when we are done adventuring we will put down roots again. In. Due. Time. So that’s what we say.
We got to do this life, in His time, not ours.
We will pivot with joy with every new challenge.
In due time, God will place us just where He wants us next. Enjoy where we are, when we are there and trust the process.
Ugh, I wish doing that was as easy as typing that last sentence!
So. We are determined to kick discontentment and fear to the side and keep enjoying each moment we are given. We are praising God for every morning we see the sun rise, (or hear the rain drops; there’s been a lot of those too!) every single opportunity that arises and every person we meet. Most importantly this week – for every new challenge and emotion we face, we know that when we are in Christ, his love never fails and the victory is ours and for that we will worship!
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