I’m Rooted and Planted – or Am I?

“Bloom where you are planted” was cross-stitched into a picture and hung in my Gram’s kitchen. My family laughed about it because she wasn’t planted anywhere long enough to bloom. She flipped houses before flipping houses was cool. My grandfather was a true traveling salesman and more than once he returned home on a Friday evening to find a For Salesign in his yard.

I thought it was fun to visit a new home nearly every time I visited her and though I have many of her characteristics that is not one of them. I am known as a Rooter and Planter.

I like to stay long enough to not only bloom where I am planted but to let my roots go down deep.  My husband likes to hypothesize about moving and I cannot begin to engage in the discussions. Much to his chagrin.

I have moved plenty. I moved states twice before I was 11 years old. I moved across the U.S. to go to college and have moved to 4 cities since then. But I didn’t always like it. I cried when moving out of the home where I took my newborns. My husband stared at me like I was a lunatic because we were moving to a bigger home to better fit our growing family.

Yep, you could say I’m change adverse.

Recently, my husband and I decided to make some life changes. The first was a job change. After over 10 years with the same company, he resigned. While I am trilled for the next chapter for him, I cried off and on for two days after his last day. Professionally, the change is a wonderful opportunity for him but the change means not seeing our “work family” as often. Throughout the past 10 plus years, his colleagues and their wives became our friends. We vacationed with them, danced at their weddings and cried at funerals. (If you were there for his “farewell gathering,” that was my line that I let him use.)

The friendships will continue but they will require more effort. The get-togethers won’t be built into our daily work lives. I won’t hear their voices leaking out of Hubby’s work office or see their faces on zoom calls when I pass in the hallway.

Change.

This change will bring a change to how he works. For the first time in over 25 years, he will go to an office everyday. He will get in a car a drive to an office instead of walking across the hallway in our home. I think that will be weirder for me than for him.

And our community will shift.

And I have to make another house a home. But I’m not thinking about that yet.

Why am I telling you this story? I’m not quite sure but I think it is threefold.

First, I think I just need to get the Big Templin Change out there in the universe – from my perspective. Outside of a few friends, I have stayed pretty quite about the change. A few months ago, I wrote two blogs that gave a nod to the change but if you didn’t know, you wouldn’t know. Instead of IYKYK, I guess it was IYDKYWK. You can find those blogs here and here.

Secondly, I want to encourage you that if you are going through change – or need to change something in your life – make sure you are seeking the Lord. I cannot tell you how many HOURS and HOURS my husband and I have prayed about our decision. Or how many hours our family and friends have prayed with and for us. HOURS and HOURS. Knowing we are following the Lord’s leading brings peace in those moments when our flesh says, “Oh no, what are we doing?”

We prayed and he guided us.

We can make our plans, but the Lord determines our steps. Proverbs 16:9

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Many are the plans in a person’s heart, but it is the Lord’s purpose that prevails. Proverbs 19:21

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Plans fail for lack of counsel, but with many advisors they succeed. Proverbs 19:21

We are grateful for all the “advisors” along the way.

Yes, we “Franklined” the crud out of our options – which didn’t exactly clarify our decision. But we prayed and prayed and in the end, had a peace. A knowing.

Lastly, pray for me. My heart is tender though my resolve is strong. I will not only bloom where I am planted next but I will root there!

I pray that from His glorious, unlimited resources He will empower you with inner strength through His Spirit. Then Christ will make his home in your hearts as you trust in him. Your roots will grow down into God’s love and keep you strong. Ephesians 3:16-18

Did you catch that last line? I’m preachin’ to myself now. When I am rooted in the Lord and allow Him to make His home in my heart, my roots will be grow in God’s love and I will be strong. And the verse goes on to talk about how wide, long, deep and wide God’s love is. (Anyone just hear a song in your head?)

How do you handle change? Do you welcome it? Create it? Or do you shy away from change?