…for I have learned in whatever situation I am to be content. I know how to be brought low, and I know how to abound. In any and every circumstance, I have learned the secret of facing plenty and hunger, abundance and need. I can do all things through him who gives me strength. ~Phil. 4:11b-13

This is my new backyard. Actually, this is half of my new backyard. I really can’t tell you how much I love it. Four years ago, while I was pregnant with Ethan, I sat in a backyard much like this one wishing that one day I could have such a peaceful place to sit and watch my kids. I never imagined that place actually existed in Oklahoma.

In our new house, God answered this whispered prayer of my heart four years ago in such a powerful way. For the last three mornings I’ve gotten up to spend time with him looking out over these trees in their early morning splendor. Peace.

Is God’s yes always so pleasant to live in? No. These seasons of peace sometimes last a while and sometimes they are very brief. Just a year ago I was living in a cave of an apartment. A. Cave. Only the sliding glass door gave light to the main part of the apartment which was tinier than my dinning room is now. The said sliding glass door looked out on to a street and across the street was an office plex district. Not. Peaceful. I actually grew pretty depressed at times living in that cave.

But, I’m just as sure that the cave apartment was God’s “Yes!” for our family then as this house and backyard are God’s “Yes!” for us now. There were some lessons I needed to learn in the cave, there were friends I needed to connect with again, and there was change that needed to happen inside me.

Both places were God’s “Yes! This is my will for you.” The key when we’re living in God’s yes is to remember that it’s all temporary. The cave was temporary and this oasis is temporary. I could be here 20 years or I could be here 20 months. I don’t know. After all the moving we’ve done in the last 19 months, I fervently pray it’s the former, but I just don’t know.

Just like I did in the cave, though, I need to learn the lessons, connect with the people, and pray for the growth he has for me here. He doesn’t pour out blessings for us to just horde them any more than he pours out pain and hard times for us to wallow in them. Instead he expects us to fill up on him in both places and give what he gives us to others. Sometimes that takes awhile, especially in the hard times, and that’s okay.

Wherever you are today, remember that it’s temporary. The hard times will pass. He promises. And the good times won’t last forever. I know there will be tears here. I know there will be times, possibly soon, when this place is equally hard to live in due to other circumstances. This reminder isn’t to place fear in us, but to remind us to seek him in both places and pass on what we learn to others in order to further His work here on earth.