transitions

If I could sum up the last year of my life, I think I would use the word transition. Life has been full of one change after another, whether it’s friendships, schedules, jobs, or my faith. Everything has been in constant change mode. I graduated college, moved to Colorado for the summer, got engaged, moved back to Marion (but not after spending three weeks in four different states), said goodbye to my new fiancé as he left to traverse the world for six months, worked three random jobs, quit two of them to start another full-time position, helped out at a church plant, planned a wedding, said “welcome home” to my fiancé upon his return, and have been trying to figure out the rest of life since :). As soon as something makes sense for more than a few months, it has to change—if it didn’t, it might provide some stability and peace of mind for a moment, and we can’t have that :). I may sound a bit bitter but I’m really not. I’m just reflecting. It can just be a bit overwhelming at times, but I’m learning to deal with it. The transitions aren’t bad…just dynamic…and in order to not fall off the deep end sometimes, you just need to learn to be flexible.

Would it surprise you if I said life is still a rollercoaster at times? I work and spend time with Mark and we’re in the beginning stages of planning our life together. My season of life in Marion is finally ending a year after graduating. My college friends graduated and moved. Other friends are in the prep stages of moving. My season of transition is not ending. It really is just beginning. Mark and I are getting married in TWO AND A HALF WEEKS (insert girly scream here), and we will have a few weeks of randomness where we will be in a couple weddings and prepare for a hike we’d like to take. Then after hiking for a few weeks on the John Muir Trail (JMT) in California, we will take our first real stab at local church ministry as young adult pastors at Heritage Wesleyan Church in Rock Island, IL (www.heritageqc.com). We will be sharing the position, each of us seeking the experience as staff pastors. We are very excited! I hear that the first year of marriage and the first year of ministry each have a steep learning curve…we’re ramping up for an exciting year of learning via experience. It’s time to take the classroom into the church and make all the theory tangible. What will life look like? Only God knows. Will it ever be stable and free from the joys and stresses of transition? I hope not. To live life is to embark on a journey, and that means moving forward. It’s a lesson I’m learning day by day. To stay static and hold onto what is safe and secure would be to hinder growth and the building of the Kingdom. That wouldn’t be life, and last time I checked, life is definitely worth living.