Here I am 2 weeks away from leaving all that I have ever known..... My family will continue to grow, their babies will be born, my sisters and brothers will get married, celebrate birthdays, holidays, and reach milestones together. I will not be there for these moments. My Grandparents will continue to age, this time with them might be the last I have with them. These goodbye's seems so final. My heart will long to be with them! I will miss out on new memories being made here with them.
It hurts.
I am sad for the moments I will miss with them.
We have sold or given away all of our possessions that we have acquired over the years. We own nothing now, except what will fit in the space of a small crate that we will take with us. We have both resigned from our jobs and withdrawn from the Identities that we had in those positions.
We have very little of what matters to this world that we currently live in.
All of this is to answer the question that we most often hear, "Why would you do this?"
I thought today would be the best day to tell you, Good Friday.
Right about the time I am writing this, Jesus was doing something thousands of years ago that has given me the answer to the "Why". He did something that makes all of what we are doing seem pretty easy, simple actually. Many years ago on this day Jesus was accomplishing something that changed my life and made it worth living!
He was leaving behind his family and friends, He was enduring the most gruesome form of torture anyone could think of, his closest friends were deserting him, and betraying him. He was being wrongly accused of crimes that he did not commit. No one was standing up for him, he was enduring this all ALONE. I am sure that he felt abandoned by everyone that he loved. He had all of the power in the world to jump off that cross and retaliate, to save himself. Yet Jesus stayed on that cross suffering. Hurting emotionally and physically. The real question is, why would He do that?
The answer is pretty clear. He wanted me to have a chance to know and experience His Love for me. To be able to spend an eternity enjoying a life of love with him. He thought that I was worth it all! His love for me changed my life, and it is what is changing the world. How could I be so lucky to have a part in this love!
If you do not understand this kind of love, you will never understand why we are going? But if you know the love that God has for you, then you will understand that there is really no sacrifice on our part. knowing the love of Christ transforms me, changes me just simply by believing it. Sure there is pain, but on this road, thanks to Jesus' sacrifice on the cross, I have comfort for the pain, I have hope for the future, I have healing from the broken heart, and I have a purpose. I have found worth in this meaningless life. I will leave my family for a short time so that others may spend an Eternity with theirs. And most of all I will have Love. The kind that never fails, never gives up, and never runs out. This kind of love is powerful, it is life changing, and it is what gives hope to a dying world.
So the reason "Why" is because God is so Good, and nothing in this world provides peace and joy like following Jesus. And if that means following him to the end of the earth, you will find us there; not because we are special people or super Christians or extra Holy, but because God is Good, Perfect, and living a life with him is worth anything we have to offer!
These next steps we take completely in Faith hoping that we can please God with what little we have to offer, and hoping that others may experience this freedom and peace that is found in his love!
Thank you Jesus for your sacrifice and for loving me, help me to love them as you do!
