Unexpected Moves

News

Feb 15

This week we’re staying at a house we’ve rented in Wellman, IA. We came up as a family for a week of fellowship and to make sure the house is ready to move into. Our plans are to move here as soon as our house sells in Pikeville, TN.

We have already gotten a taste of Iowa winter weather with –16 degrees some nights and snow packed roads. Even as I sit here typing, the snow is blowing outside my window.

We are all are eager to get the move behind us and to start a new life here, though it seems like a tall mountain to climb. The church here has been very supportive and helpful in making this transition as easy as possible.

I can’t help but think of the men and women who are living life as usual and suddenly one day they are arrested and locked away from society. There is no time to sell a house, pay a few bills, or even say goodbye. Many are arrested while away from home, and someone has to call their wife or husband to tell them that they are in jail. Children wonder when daddy or mommy is coming home. Just as smokers don’t expect to get lung cancer, most law breakers don’t plan on going to jail; yet arrest is the consequence of sin and crime for about 30,000 people in our country every day!

As I ponder that kind of move, our move seems very easy—the changes are doable; the future looks bright and promising. Even the cold and blowing snow don’t seem so bad. One day soon, the sun will shine through. We still have each other and the freedom to do mostly as we please. So we will choose to serve God each day with thanksgiving, even during the hard times.

Pray for us as we wait and plan for our move, but especially remember the thousands in our country who are facing “unexpected moves” today. It’s impossible to imagine all the heartbreak that’s represented by the men and women facing the result of their choices today.

—Darold Gingerich