Good Timing

A common question I get these days is about how I'm feeling. This move will happen very quickly, and seems quite sudden to most people. I think they're expecting me to answer with overwhelmed, shocked or stressed. I'm really not.

I'm feeling nothing but excitement.

We've been planning this move for the past year now. This time last year, I expected a move to DC over the summer and began my research. I already know all of the details about our future housing, the process for shipping, and the various school options. And I had a certain faith that we were following the right course.

So, when we moved to Shenzhen over the summer rather than to D.C., my faith shook a bit. Moving was simple - none of us really expected to face another fall in Shanghai anyway. But moving inside China? Missing the chance on the Foreign Service?

It is strange to me that I will have only lived in Shenzhen for 7 months, because I came to feel at home here very quickly. I have many close friends and a strong support system, which established itself amazingly fast. A number of friends of strong Christian faith have walked alongside us, having only met me in this journey a few months ago. So, I will remember Shenzhen as a hot and welcoming place, where I questioned God's plan.

People constantly had to remind me that God has a plan for each of our lives, and that if we are diligently trying to follow that plan than we can't be straying too far from it. When I felt as if we were chasing a pipe dream and God had no plans for us whatsoever, people would remind me of Bible verses and bring me back in. Most recently, Ryan spoke about God's perfect timing in his sermon on Sunday. He talked about Judas handing Christ over for judgment and eventual death, and how this was no "gotcha" moment. God hadn't been suckered into this Everything - the good and the bad - falls into His plan. If I can believe that for something so horrible, I can believe it for a few months in southern China.

A few months where a number of good things have happened. I've helped begin a Bible study which clearly met the needs of a growing number of women. Lilly joined a kindergarten classroom with a wonderful group of children and a truly amazing teacher. Amanda's class has been the perfect place for our kindergartener this year. Dave stepped into a role outside of Uncle H--, as he consulted full-time for one client. As such, submitting his resignation has no real impact on many people inside his organization.

And our timing continues to be neat and tidy. My parents happen to be arriving here in a few weeks, and leaving a few days before we plan to take off. They will be a tremendous help, and I'm already thankful they will come. We hope to leave on the first day of Spring Break, making a nice clean break for both of the girls. We will arrive in D.C. just as one family of good friends will move away, but we will still live close to many other friends. Openings have just become available at an amazing preschool nearby, and a large enough apartment may be a possibility in the housing we have selected.

I must admit, the timing seems perfect.