Anticipating Transition

Change is hard. Even if you are transitioning into something wonderful and exciting, change can be tough on everyone. Nate and I both seem to struggle with patience when a big transition is approaching...the closer it gets, the more we have trouble waiting for the transition to be here and finally happen.

There are many times in life where are are forced to be patient as we wait for a major transition. I was thinking back recently on the weeks before our wedding, the final weeks before moving to Austria, the last few weeks before Ellie was born, and so on... All of those times, it was so difficult at the end to live in the moment, rather than let impatience win out and lack contentment. Even when a difficult transition is approaching, I often just want to get the change over with and start figuring life out in my new reality, rather than continuing to wait.

This last week has been presenting a similar challenge. We are enjoying our time in CT, but as the flight back to Austria approaches, it feels as if time has slowed down, and it is hard to wait for this next big change to occur. After 7 months of life away from home, we are ready to begin settling back in to life in Vienna and that makes it hard to be content where we are at. We will surely miss many things about the U.S., especially time with friends and family (and easy, free babysitting!), but we forget to be thankful for the blessings of our current reality when we are too focused on the next step.

Can you imagine what it must have been like for Jesus to go through life, anticipating the sacrifice he would need to make at the end? He didn't even begin his ministry until age 30 (talk about patience right there!) and all that time, he knew that he would need to suffer and die a gruesome death. If I were him, I would have just agonized over the waiting and wanted to get it over with. Naturally, Jesus is the ultimate example to us of patience in the face of waiting and transition. He depended on the Lord, even when he struggled with his emotions about the coming sacrifice and death. He regularly retreated to be alone. When he ministered to people, he was focused on them and living in the moment, rather than rushing through so he could move on to the next thing.

May we live our lives in the moment, as Jesus did, right where God has placed us now, being patient as we wait for each new stage and transition!