Earlier this week, we moved out of the place we have called “home” for the past three years while attending seminary. It also marks the end of our time at seminary…for now. Maybe indefinitely, but at least for the time being, we just need to trust that this is where the Lord wants us to be.
Oh how I wish things had ended differently. I wish our departure was on different terms rather than something that was forced upon us. But whether by choice or by force, I know that this is not the end. I am choosing to see this as an opportunity for us to move on to new beginnings.
There are so many things in life that leave us battered and bruised. Scars from our past that we wish we could leave behind and never be reminded of. Hurts and disappointments that leave us raw and broken.
As we pulled out of the driveway, leaving behind the life we have known for the past three years, I initially felt like Naomi when she entered into her hometown and told everyone to call her Mara because the Lord had made her life very bitter (Ruth 1:20).
But then I was reminded of what the Apostle Paul says in Philippians 3:13-14
…but I focus on this one thing: Forgetting the past and looking forward to what lies ahead, I press on to reach the end of the race and receive the heavenly prize for which God, through Christ Jesus, is calling us.
The things we have been through will inevitably be a part of the legacy we leave behind. We can either let our past define us or let it refine us. We can see our current situation as the end or as a new beginning to better days ahead.
So here’s to moving on to new beginnings!