LEAVE

(Katie) I am relishing the quiet of this Saturday morning....sipping on my french press..snuggled up in my favorite chair....reflecting on a wonderful Breakfast Book Club discussion that I just hosted on Donald Miller's book Through Painted Deserts. This morning we read the author's note, which illuminated the themes of leaving, change, and journey.We engaged in a rich discussion over baked oatmeal, as we each reflected on how catalytic the word 'leave' has been in each one of our stories. The seasons remind me that I must keep changing and that I need to continue to be open to be embrace change because it is God's way. 


The following words from Miller's book really struck me this morning:

" I want to keep my soul fertile for the changes, so things keep getting born in me, so things keep dying when it is time to for things to die. I want to keep walking away from the person I was a moment ago, because a mind was made to figure things out, not read the same page recurrently" (p.x).

Last night, James and I had were blessed to hang out with Matt Horn and Kayla. Matt and James knew each other in college and reconnected long distance over this past year, fervently praying with one another. Their friendship is a gift from God and is a David/ Jonathan type of friendship. Matt and Kayla are recently engaged and entering a season of change as they get married and Matt moves to Chicago. Its inspiring to hang out with couples like Matt and Kayla whose lives testify to having hearts that say YES to do whatever God asks. They are hungry to know more of God and this level of hunger requires maintaining a posture of heart that is OPEN to change.

 Its very apparent that God's glory shows up in the presence of change. Abraham and Sarah answered the call to leave, Moses left behind his fear, David left his flock of sheep to battle Goliath and become King, the disciples left their fishing boats to follow Jesus....the Bible is packed full of stories of people who answered the call to leave, embraced the change, and in the process encountered God in a powerful way and were  transformed.

Getting married... moving to Wheaton... starting a new job.... starting graduate school...having James start a new job....joining a new church community......I don't think  I could possibly cram more change into one season! This is very stretching for a control freak, type A like myself. God is constantly inviting me to let go. In the midst of all these changes, God is the only thing that I can cling to and hold onto because everything externally around me is new and changing. 

My prayer is that our souls would remain fertile, that we would be open to answer to call to leave. I want to clarify that the call to leave is not limited to changing locations, but could be a call to leave behind a habit, a way of relating in a friendship, a paradigm in which we understand God.

Leave. Its a beautiful word. So strong and forceful. Its time to change..."to shine out!"