Today I board a plane to go and look for the next place that God has for us.  House hunting!

I’m going on a plane, but I feel like my life has been much like a train ride.

The view out the window is constantly changing and sometimes things and time seem to flash by.  There used to be a panicky feeling that I couldn’t hang onto each moment, each quick shift in the scenery.  It was going too fast.  There were times when I just wanted the train to stop.  To let me off so I could enjoy the loveliness of just one place for a time.

But the Conductor informed me that the ticket I was given was a deliberate and thoughtful choice.  It allowed not only lovely (though sometimes seemingly fleeting) changes of scenery, but the opportunity to meet so many interesting passengers along the way.  Chances to share stories back and forth.  New people to sit by and listen to.

And then it began to become clear.  The scenery was not the point of the journey.  Though beautiful, it was temporary and could change in seconds.  The purpose of the journey is the people I encounter with each new stop.  If the scenery didn’t change, there would be people I would never meet.  Each stop along the way allows new passengers to come aboard!

This type of journey is not for everyone.  But for reasons only my Conductor fully knows, it is exactly right for me.

So, as I board a plane to San Francisco today, I will go with eyes wide open to take in the beauty of new scenery, but more importantly, to keep my heart wide open for the people that will join my journey there….

(P.S.  If you are reading this, it’s because Jesus gave me the sweet joy of encountering you in my journey, at one of the beautiful stops along the way!  Thank you for riding this train with me!!!!)

Jeremiah 29:11 – “For I know the plans I have for you,” declares the LORD, “plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future.”