17 months. That's how long we've lived in France now. That's how long we've been away from the States. In that amount of time we've lived in Massy, Marseille, and Nice. We've been to Germany twice, Morocco and Italy once. For 10 months of it we lived within a 35 meters squared space. For 9 of that 10 months I was pregnant with our little girl. I gave birth in France. We've studied French. Justin has studied for the GRE and is now studying business. Our son has started school for the first time, and it's in French. We potty trained in France. We've celebrated two Christmases and two Thanksgivings in France. My little girl, who is now 7 months old, has always lived in France. She is a French baby. Henry turned 2 and 3 in France. Justin turned 30. I will turn 30 in France. It's been a year and a half of milestones.
When you see the number '17 months' it doesn't seem like a lot of time. There are plenty of longer periods of time. However, when I reflect on what has happened in that amount of time I am overwhelmed. How are we still standing? How have we survived the insanity?
I can honestly, and with no spirit of 'super-Christian' in me say, only by the grace and mercy of God. Before my life overseas I would say something like that and think I knew what I was talking about. I was as sincere as I could be, but the truth is I had the grace of God and my ingrained knowledge of how to do life among my people working for me too. I don't have that here. I won't have it in the next phase of our lives. So, by the grace of God, and only by the grace of God, do we walk this road.
I don't know that it would be possible to know how desperate and how absolutely essential the Lord is in my life if I hadn't left home and stayed away for this amount of time. I had to get away and really have nothing else to be forced to put all my hope in Him. When I did, I found that treasure in the field. Now that I've found it, I don't want to lose it.
17 months is really just the beginning isn't it? I am so glad to have the treasure of the gospel. I imagine I will have to find it again once I get too comfortable. I pray I always will because it is worth selling all I have and losing all I am to find it.
Amen sister!
ReplyDeleteRefiners fire...my heart's one desire.
The other day I was at the gym and I stopped. I am at a gym. In Germany. People all around me are speaking German. I hate going to gyms and I did not grow up in Germany. This is not a dream and it's weird sometimes (both that I actually go to a gym now and that I live in Germany, ha!). It's also weird to me that I have had to deal with medical issues here and had to learn the German words to handle these issues...and I don't know their English counterparts. There is actually a part of my life I can better articulate in German than in English. This leaves us with Weird:3, Normal:0. I'm so glad God meets us in the weird parts of life; it seems to be where I get to know him best.
this is such an encouragement to me. im so glad to have such a dear friend who has gone before me and is always one step ahead! thanks for this post. cant wait to see what ill be saying 17 months in...
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