Peace that passes

I have SO missed blogging the last several weeks.  For those of you who come on here to check every day (there are a few of you!) I’m sorry you’ve seen nothing new for… too long!  But I appreciate that you keep coming back every day to check.  What faithful lurkers I have! 😉

It’s strange to me, whenever we cross the border back into Mexico, the myriad of feelings that I go through.  It actually starts long before we cross the border.  The sad part of the equation begins when I have to start saying goodbye to our friends, family, and mountains.  I keep thinking that eventually, saying goodbye will get easier.  So far, it definitely has not.  So far, I hate saying goodbye to my family just as much as I did 5 yrs ago.  In fact, when we said goodbye to our church family in Denver a few weeks ago I thought “this may actually be getting harder!”  So why do we do it? 

I remember when I was a little girl, traveling to Southern California with my mom.  As soon as we would step onto the beach she would sigh and smile, sometimes saying something about “home sweet home.”  She grew up there, and California is a part of who she is deep down inside.  I loved seeing that smile on her face and would think “why don’t we just move here?”  It took me a few years to realize that my dad’s company couldn’t just be picked up and moved!  My mom has always been an avid supporter of my dad… something I’ve always admired… and she’s made it clear for as long as I can remember that she would follow him to the ends of the earth.  Or Colorado, in this case.  I remind myself of this when I wonder why I have such a hard time leaving Colorado.  I remind myself that it’s in my blood, but not necessarily where I am meant to be… at least for now.

As we head South for the border, I start asking God to remind me why.  It doesn’t take long before I realize that He is sending an extra helping of peace my way.  And when I think of some of my favorite Bible verses, many of them are about peace!  I have always LOVED Isaiah 26:3 “You will keep him in perfect peace whose mind is stayed upon You because he trusts in You.”  I always find the opposite to be true, as well.  When I let myself get caught up in the day’s drama, or dwell on the hard parts of being a missionary, peace is almost impossible to find.

Then there’s John 14:27.  Phil 4:7.  John 16:33.  Jer 29:11.  ALL about this peace that is beyond our understanding.  A peace that He gives when we follow His leading… however ridiculous it might seem to us or anyone else around us.

Tonight, as I crawl into bed in a hotel 10 hrs South of the border, I’ve never been more grateful for peace.