What We Have

Our journey continues, having nothing to do with our physical location. As spring approaches, new things continue to develop and grow around us and in us.  

 For example...
We have a Turkish roommate! His name is Uluch, and he is a great friend of Austin's from his previous time living in Izmir. He's an awesome roommate, and complements us both so well.

We have kittens we are quickly becoming cats, and are currently in some weird obsession/love stage with Austin, following him around the house everywhere meowing and wanting to be held by him or lay on him. I'm trying not to be jealous... ; )

We have natural gas!! Hot water for showers, gas for cooking, it's a wonderful luxury now and we are SO thankful!

We have 2 American couples coming to visit in the next few weeks, and Austin's dad/family coming to visit shortly after!

And we have had a fresh deposit of joy and playfulness in our lives, with our French friends having stayed with us for the past 4 days!

As a result of that, I have a slight desire to live in France someday, especially as a significant proportion of the coolest people we've met on this trip are French or live in French. Hmmm....

With so many new things coming into our lives, it can be easy to forget about the internal journey we are on, and it can be tempting to just distract myself, to not reflect on what is happening inside, right now.

There are times when we feel incredibly blessed.
There are times when we feel lost.
There are times when we feel hopeful and energized.
There are times when we feel discouraged and lethargic.

It is a wonderful and painful blessing when God allows things that are already present in your heart to be exposed by circumstances, by reality. The popular example is a man who reacts in anger to someone provoking him, and telling God about it, "God that man was so terrible, he MADE me so angry!" And the Lord responds, "Son, it wasn't that man who MADE you angry-he just revealed the anger that was already in your heart." The true condition of our hearts is exposed in the moment of difficulty and trial; it's not the external stimulant that causes the reaction, but the reaction that is born out of what is in us.

This season is revealing what is in us. The good, the bad, the ugly; the flowers, and the weeds.

For me (Kindra) I am learning how quickly I give up. I give up fighting for things I know to be right or needed, I give up on trying new things, I give up on learning new things, I give up on trying to connect with people, and I give up trying to connect with God. Quickly, with very little resistance. Throughout my life I've learned that when I fight, I lose. I can't win, and when I try, it just hurts those around me (especially myself) and creates unneeded drama. I am learning that these are all LIES, and it is hugely important for me to learn how to fight well. Fight for our marriage, fight for friendships, fight for people's relationships with God, fight for life.

Our French friends spent the past 4 days or so with us after returning from their Turkish travels, and it's easy to say that we haven't laughed so hard, over such a long period of time, possibly ever! We played games like tag, hide and seek-ish (French version, it's way better!), and all sorts of variations every day. Aaaaaand 2 nights....1 in a big park for 2 hours, and 1 in our apartment for several hours, in the dark, with plenty of shrieking and pranks. Friendship is truly one of the greatest and most powerful gifts God has given us, and it is something to be cherished and protected.

When we have times like that, we are reminded that there is unbelievable JOY to be had and FUN to be experienced. We have been reminded that really, we are most ourselves, most thriving, when we are childlike, not allowing the anxieties responsibilities and cares of life to stifle the life that is desperately trying to breathe through us.

To help us continue in the spirit of play, fun, enjoyment, laughter and new things, we've made an ADVENTURE LIST! It has about 20 things to do in the area that we'd really love to experience, and we have a goal of doing as many things on that list as possible. It's been a great motivator for us, and I totally recommend it to anyone wanting to encourage more innovation and new things in your life. =)

With only a short 4 weeks or so left before we travel with Austin's dad/family, we want to make the most of the remaining time we have here, and give Father all the room in our lives to do what He wants.

I pray you are having a meaningful and intimate internal journey with God of your own, and that He is showing you beautiful truths about yourself and Him.