"Believe"

 I'm drinking my morning "hug in a cup" (AKA Coffee) from a mug that has a whimsical horse on it and the word "Believe"

The mug I choose for the day is definitely a proclamation of my mood. 

Do your coffee cups speak your mind like mine do?

I have one that says "Live a Life of Purpose" it's simple natural tones; yet the bold white letters speak louder than the muted tones. It's one of my favorite cups, yet today, as we prepare to go look at a local horse property, I'm in the "dreamy" mood.

We are in the thick of researching a relocation. I've been dreaming of this for over 20 years, the dream hasn't silenced so I just keep praying that it falls together. At this point, I'm feeling some turmoil. Should we stay where we are or should we pursue a big move. So we continue to explore our options, by looking at local properties as well as planning future road trips to the locations I've researched. It's a tedius process when there is no "direction" driving the relocation. The dream has grown stronger and God has nudged us along over the years assuring me my prayers will be answered as I align my "wants" to His Will. 

I've been a little discouraged over the last year or so, we are within a few years of the "good timing window" (if there is such a thing) and the thought of uprooting my family for no good reason other than to follow a dream, seems...risky. My husband runs his business here, so we don't have the justified reason to move such as "work relocation" and it will take a lot of trust to take the leap to unknown territory. We've also visited multiple "possibilities" over the last year and none of them feel like "the one" to plant our roots.

The last few days, while working through my Bible study "NO OTHER GODS" by Kelly Minter, I have been reminded of the Israelites who left Egypt, wandering in the wilderness for 40 years and then started almost fantasizing about going back to where they started. Even though God's assurance that He would give them land flowing with milk and honey, there was still doubt. They wanted to go back to what was familiar, even though it was not good for them to be there. (The reference point for that particular study day is Numbers 13 and 14)

I have hope that if I keep praying and keeping "Believing" and keep "hoping" that the Lord will guide us directly into the path of His Will and that my dream is in close parallel to where we are called to serve. 

Process

 I’ve been saying “there is so much to process right now” as my response to so many things. 6 months in to Covid and so much has changed in our world. So much, on a scale of 1-100, I’d say our world is hovering around the 101 mark on the level of unfamiliar! 

Jump forward to a completely different direction and think about a long period of perseverance, “it’s a process” comes to mind.

Two completely different ideas; yet they are connected by one word; Perseverance. 

Something I didn’t think I had for many years. Being an impulsive sort of person doesn’t often leave the fruit of perseverance.

My heart is in a place of processing not what’s happening in the world (to be honest that can be overwhelming) but what’s happening on the level of my heart. 

So much is out of our control, yet, we can learn and grow from any circumstances and with God there alongside us, we know the outcome is promising. 

Process 

Perceptions and how not to Let them get you Down

 When you do things outside of the societal mold, be ready to be perceived differently. 

Perceptions will drive people’s opinions about you and if they don’t take the time to get to know you or your situation, their perceptions will be wrong and often hurtful. 

That’s not a reason not to be extraordinary, it is just an eye opening fact that you won’t be everyone’s cup of tea.

It can be hard to accept, but it’s a reality. 

Moral of the story; Battle against judging others. Take the time to understand those you are forming opinions about. ❤️