“Just pretend you are moving to Africa”

Over the past few weeks, I have had a new perspective on common conversations with friends. Some worried about jobs or relationships, others searching for answers dealing with things in their past. When listening and attempting to give advice, I try to describe the clarity I have had while considering teaching abroad. I have a hard time describing all that I am going through, and just how I see my life relating to their issue. So I say, “Just pretend you are moving to Africa.”

This time has been blessed with healing and peace in many parts of my life. I believe there are two reasons for this:

1. I have the mindset of leaving. This creates a need for closure and healing in relationships. It’s like moving to a new house; you clean up, reorganize, decide what you want to carry with you to the next place, and purge all that is left. I have reconsidered priorities in my life.

2. In addition to a change in mindset, I am experiencing the blessings that come from obedience.

I have never felt so “blessed” in my life, even though I am leaving all the “comforts” of my life (including most of my favorite high-heeled shoes). This made me wonder what it is that I consider a “blessing” in the first place? While I never really believed that shoes were a blessing, I know that I have been more focused on the details, like shoes, rather than on our Creator and the giver of all true blessings.

God has called us to be obedient, but He has also given us His Son, so that we may receive grace, when we are disobedient. So, I think that a “blessing” is any gift from God. Even difficult circumstances can be “blessings” – it may just take a little more time to see how.

So...whenever life seems difficult, don’t limit yourself to the options right in front of you. “Just pretend you are moving to Africa,” and listen to how God wants you to respond.