pack less. be more.

This is a tagline for a backpacking company that encourages their people to travel light. I'm hoping to carry this 'lightweight' slogan into my life in the next month as we begin packing for our year in China. Lots of people have been asking me what I'll bring with me, and what I will leave here. My answer to this question mostly comes from the attitudes and expectations I will leave behind, rather than deciding between my black heels or black flip flops. I happily invite simplicity into my plans for moving. I scrutinize the word 'need' and what it really means to me. I actually anticipate the challenges of my life over there because I'm forced to discover so many new and amazing ways to live...sans all the 'stuff'. I continue to remind myself of the reasons we are moving...and that alone helps me re-focus on what truly needs to fit into my suitcase.

Having said that, I still might pack a pair of heels for good measure ;)

familiar different little big

April is here and that means May is next, followed by June....so what, huh? In a normal year, that's no big deal, but this is no normal year because on June 1st we start our new chapter. Most days it feels like a strangely familiar 'new' chapter except with a few more pages. Every once in a while, though, it seems like a completely different book....like the days when you walk potential renters through your house, or erase the monthly income line from your june forecasted family budget or handout prayer cards to friends with your name next to the phrase, "Serving in China".

This is just a step and this is familiar. This is big and this is different.

Is it really possible to feel all those things at once? absolutely. Honestly, this whole time could be really scary if not for the confidence that we are doing our best to follow a God who loves us and has incredible plans for us. Thankfully,that knowledge can wipe away fear and turn it into freedom and excitement which happens to be where we are living these days.