The Beginning of Our New Journey

My husband is a pastor. That means you move out of your comfort zone and into the unknown. This is what happened to us at the beginning of June 2010. However, the process started the previous October when my husband sent out applications to nearly 15 churches to be their next senior pastor. There was a common thread between all but one – they were in locations we would feel comfortable moving to. The remaining one was in northern Minnesota. A place we had never been, and, honestly, I had never heard of. A short couple of months later, my husband was contacted by that church in Minnesota. Within a month, we were flying up there to do the formal interview and for my husband to preach to them. A week later, he received the call, a unanimous decision by the congregation, to be the next senior pastor of this church in the north that is out of our comfort zone. Funny how God works like that! We were very excited, though. Thus started the journey of two southerners to the Northland.

However, it wasn't that easy. I was starting my final semester in grad school all about the same time. The church graciously allowed us to push back my husband's start date until after I graduated that May. It was a grueling final semester, but I finished and with honors!

Then, our new journey began. We boxed up a three bedroom house in one week and had it loaded onto the biggest moving truck you can rent. It was truly a bittersweet time. We had spent the first five years of our marriage in Missouri where we both attended grad school (I should note that we are both originally from Georgia). We left behind many wonderful memories, family members, and friends. I probably cried for the first two hours of our trip to our new home. But, we were starting the next phase of our lives and that was exciting.

To make the journey even more out of our comfort zone, move-in day was cold and wet. It was June, and we were used to warmth and sunshine. Supposedly, we had a great view of Lake Superior from our new townhouse, but for three weeks straight we could not see it due to the dense fog. Also, my husband jumped right into work. In fact, his first Sunday leading worship and preaching was two days after move-in. Those first few weeks were rough and lonely. I missed my old way of life that was familiar – familiar faces, familiar places, familiar weather, etc. But, then the fog cleared, the sun came out, and it started to warm up. The view of the lake was spectacular. I got out and explore our new, unfamiliar city, which is beautiful. We frequently commented that there was an island feel because of the expanse of the lake. I got to know the members of the congregation better. Life was getting a little easier for this southerner.

A lot has happened since we moved. Most importantly, we will be celebrating a year of living in the Northland this June with the birth of our first child, a son. Once again, funny how God works things out! We couldn't be more thrilled, but with that comes fears and anxiety as we continue on our new journey.