"The Lord had said to Abram, “Go from your country, your people and your father’s household to the land I will show you." Genesis 12:1
A lot of my childhood was spent packing and moving. I was born in a little town called Drumheller, Alberta, Canada. We moved to Calgary for awhile, to Midway, BC, and then to Victoria, Bc.
When I was 6 we toodled off to California. My brother had asthma and the doctors recommended a dry, hot climate. In California we lived in 8 different houses, I think. Where we lived depended on whether my dad had a good job or a bad one.
I loved moving. It was so exciting to live in different houses. Sometimes I had my own bedroom, other times I shared a room with my older sister. I'm sure my poor mom wasn't happy about all the moves.
I thought of this tonight when I was reading about Abraham. God asked him to move from Ur, a major city of the day, and then Haren and go to a land he had never seen, Caanan. God said he would give this land to Abraham and his descendants.
I wonder how hard that was for Abe and Sarah, his wife. Did Sarah complain about losing all her friends? And she probably never saw her family again. But it says they went in faith, believing and trusting in God.
There was one move I went through as an adult that frightened me. My husband and I had lived in small towns and cities after we married. We didn't want to raise our two girls in a big, bad city. But years later one of our daughters lived in one, Vancouver, BC. She had two boys who were very upset about the daycare they had to go to before and after school. We had a chance to move there and we did so I could babysit the boys.
When we got there I looked up at the tall skyscrapers and wondered what I had gotten myself into. A couple of million people lived there and they all seemed to be walking downtown as we drove by. Taxies, buses, bikes, the homeless, beggers and the police were everywhere! To be honest, I felt terrfied. I thought, "I can't believe I'm going to live here!"
We were there for 5 years, and as I've looked back I've realized those were the happiest years of my life. I came to love that city and all the crazy people in it. I loved being with my grandsons. We had so many good times; did so many fun things. We lived two blocks from the ocean and four blocks from Stanley Park, a gorgeous place. I went for long, peaceful walks every day while the boys were in school.
So, what's the point of this looong narrative on moving? Only this, if God asks you to go somewhere and you are scared stiff, go anyway. You won't regret it.
