I was struck yesterday morning by the well known verse in Philippians 4: 7 - that we will experience God's peace, far beyond human understanding, if we follow the three simple instructions in vs 6:
1) don't worry about anything
2) pray about everything
3) be thankful for everything you already have.
These four months of searching for a new place to live have felt really long and have sometimes been stressful. I reflected on the fact that I've been doing pretty well on the whole with appropriating God's peace for the journey - during the first three weeks of the month, at least - but then the renewed weight of impending homelessness makes it harder to be at peace during the last week of the month: there are more tears, more questions, as the end of the month approaches.
But I do make a conscious choice not to give in to worry. I do present my concerns to the Lord in prayer. And I do place a value on living a lifestyle of thankfulness, often writing in my journal a list of the things I am grateful for.
Yesterday, as the awareness of "only six days days left in my temporary accommodation" set in, I renewed my focus on those three things... and in the evening, just before bedtime, I got some welcome news: it turns out that guests won't be staying in this house for the whole month of May, but will only arrive after the wedding that is happening here on the 12th. That means that I don't need to move out of this temporary accommodation next weekend, but can stay an extra week and a half if I need to. What a huge relief that was, even if it only adds a few days to the time frame I still have for finding a longer term solution!
This morning, I read the first chapter of the letter to the Galatians. In vs 6, the writer, Paul, alludes to a theme that he will unpack later in the book. The Galatian believers have been turning away from the true gospel of total dependence on God, and have embraced an alternative path that is based on human reasoning, with lots of rules and regulations.
I remembered a sudden thought that had come to me yesterday when I was walking to church: I may not be following a false gospel like the Galatians did, but in my search for a new home, am I limiting myself to things that are "humanly possible," instead of taking risks and expecting God to do things that are completely impossible? Although, in my search for a rental property, I'm enquiring about and visiting places where the rent is equal to my total monthly income, am I believing, for example, that it would be irresponsible for me to go above that threshold? As I consider the fact that buying a home might be the only solution to the current rental crisis, am I believing that this step in impossible for me until our house in Scotland is sold... instead of believing that God could provide in other ways if He chose to?
Those questions gave me a lot to think and pray about. I already feel that I'm living "on the edge" during these months, so it was a wild thought to consider that God might want me to take an even bigger risk in some area.
So, as I renew the search again this week, searching the new property listings online, making phone calls, driving around the region..... my prayer is that I will have renewed sensitivity to what God is saying and to what is on his heart for me.
