Jeremiah 29:11

"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." Jeremiah 29:11

I've know this verse and have quoted it nearly all my life. It was one of the very first verses I memorized as a Chum in the Awana program at my church. I've clutched it near and dear to my heart when things haven't been going right and certainly during our many moves through the years, but never have those words come more alive to me than recently. As most of you know, we just moved to Florida. The reasons we moved are many - to be closer to my son, grandson and daughter-in-law, we were losing our home in Tennessee because Oliver lost his job over 2 years ago and hasn't been able to find anything, our savings is depleted, the doctors at Vanderbilt have told me there is nothing more they can do for me and are saying this is probably my last year at life, etc. We prayed hard before we made the move and we are absolutely sure that this was what God wanted us to do - yet we weren't sure how we were going to pull it off. We had to have several garage sales and finally sold our storage building to be able to pay for the move. Our credit cards are maxed out because, basically, we've had to live off of them for over 2 years. My health insurance has run out and I've been denied social security disability - the first time because I didn't have the diagnosis I do now and this time because they say I haven't worked enough quarters recently enough to qualify. We are literally having to live off of Oliver's social security check, and that certainly does not go far.

We're used to being frugal, we have been all our lives, so that has been the easiest part in all this. The hardest part was letting go of the friendships we made in Tennessee and the people who hold such a special place in our hearts. We knew the move was inevitable but I honestly thought that when the time came, it was going to be because God was sending me down here to die. It all made "sense" to me. My family would be together to help each other grieve. If others wanted to come down, there is an airport close by (which we didn't have in TN). I always dreamed of living in Florida - ever since my first visit here back in 1975 when I went to Ft. Lauderdale and then up to Orlando. I thought God was just granting me my last wish to be near my family before I die.

As bleak as things were looking, I figured the time had come. My body was not cooperating and I rarely left my broken recliner, let alone home. I'd manage to drag myself to church on Sunday and occasionally a trip to Walmart - just to get out. I'd gotten pretty good at not letting the stress of the situation(s) we were facing get the best of me, because it would only make my breathing harder. Before we left Tennessee, I have to admit, I felt defeated. I felt like I gave it one helluva shot, but lost in the end. I didn't have the energy or desire to even fight anymore. In many ways, I had just given up - not necessarily on life itself, but certainly on any quality of life.

Moving day came and we had quite the turnout to help us. Dan drove up from Florida to take a trailer full back with his Explorer and we had a bunch of men from church and Teen Challenge to help load the truck. Well, we thought it would only be one truck but then we had to get a second small truck because of the amount of items we couldn't stack. Mercifully God came through for us on that too... We needed another driver. Dan had already left with the trailer because he needed to get back home. My friend Cathy was going to be riding in the car with me so that I didn't have to make the trip alone. We had thought about me driving the other truck and Cathy taking my car but she didn't feel comfortable driving alone, especially since she had no idea where she was going, and me driving the truck was being way to optimistic on my part. So we prayed and then our friend Dan volunteered to give up his Labor Day weekend and drive the truck down on Saturday with his wife, Jessica, and the kids following behind in their car. We left late on Thursday and stopped for the night outside Montgomery, AL. I was glad we had talked Oliver into stopping as well. He had a flat tire on the way down and that was after an already long day loading the trucks, cleaning the house before we left (as best as we could - our good friend Bama went in a week later and spit-polished everything for us, bless her heart) and then meeting traffic along the way. We finished the drive on Friday and just unloaded the beds, etc. so that we could sleep here Friday night. On Saturday morning, Dan had set up for some men to help us unload. Of course it was while a tropical depression was moving through and they had to unload in the rain but it wasn't too bad. They were able to line the truck up with the back patio, which is covered, and it was a direct shot into the house. The only had a little dripping between the truck and the roof to deal with. I had to helplessly stand by and watch - with the hardest part of my day being to stay out of the way with my oxygen tubing so that I didn't trip anyone.

Everything with the move itself went fine. For some reason I just knew when I first walked into this house that this was where we were supposed to live. It was dirty, a bit run-down, and everybody had thought I had lost my mind when I said that I loved it. They attributed it to my constant lack of good oxygenated blood getting to my brain but everyone wanted "Momma to be happy". I was not only happy, but actually excited. I welcomed the challenge and I could just see such potential in this old house and thought all it needed was some vision and some TLC - something I still had plenty of.

On moving day, I really thought I would be emotional leaving my "dream house" behind and all the hopes and dreams that I had there. I was leaving behind good friends and a place that I loved. I actually went through the house and prayed blessings over the next people that live there. I truly hope they, whoever they are, will be happy there for many, many years. It's a beautiful house in a wonderful area. I thought I'd be in tears, but I wasn't. I even stopped at the end of the street before making the turn where I would never see the house again and mentioned to Cathy that I was surprised that I wasn't upset. At first we both thought it was because I was just too exhausted but it wasn't that. I had a peace about it. In my mind I thought I was leaving and heading to Florida to live out what little I had left of my life but there was something in my spirit that gave me such peace. We had sold our second car so that we could buy new recliners down here, knowing that we both spend a lot of time in them. We got a great deal at La-Z-Boy's two for one sale and they are extremely comfortable. Funny thing is that we haven't spent much time in them at all.

We've worked hard on this house to make it "ours". We only have one room, the office, left to paint and then the whole house is done. We've puttered in the yard and planted a few items but we know we'll be planting more. Oliver has been working so very hard, between painting and cleaning up the yard. The landlords came by to give us the receipt for our rent and literally had tears in their eyes. They said it was the best this house has looked in years. This was her parent's house, so she has an emotional attachment to it and he has invested so much into it, that he is happy to see his investment being taken care of. It's been a win-win situation.

Each day I seem to push myself a little harder and do a little bit more than the day before. We've taken plenty of "breaks" and headed out exploring our new area. We've been to the beach a couple of times and we've only missed one of Eli's soccer games - because Oliver was busy and lost track of time and I fell sound asleep in the above-mentioned recliner. While I'm still on oxygen 24/7, it seems I have been able to walk a little farther and do a little more each day. Instead of becoming weaker like the doctors predicted, I have become stronger. Instead of feeling all alone in a new area, we have met some wonderful people in our new church and we just know they will be friends for life. Speaking of our new church, we LOVE it. It's a "happening" church and so very involved in the community and we're fiiting right in. God knew what He was doing.

None of the facts have changed - we're still broke with far too many bills than income, they will be auctioning off the house in TN the end of the month (and hopefully someone will be blessed with it) and we don't know how that will all end up, I still have Pulmonary Fibrosis which has slowed me down but not knocked me out as predicted, etc. but life has taken a surprisingly upward turn. We're having fun. We're laughing and smiling and LIVING. It's been a joy, not a chore, to work on this house and the surrounding property. It's been wonderful seeing the vision of what it could be come together and to feel so at home here, it's like we've been here for years. It was tempting not to make the move though. The last week we were there, we got the call that we did qualify for the "Save my TN Home" program and they would have paid our mortgage for the next year. It was tempting, but we knew that even in a year from now, we'd be in no better shape to afford that house. The bank wouldn't work with us now and we'd be further in the hole a year from now. Plus if we accepted the payout, we'd be locked in there for at least 5 years or have to repay all of it. That wouldn't have been fair to Oliver. Besides, we really felt strongly that God wanted us down here.

As the days and weeks go by, we're finding out just how much God wanted us down here. It wasn't like what we thought it was going to be. It's been beyond our wildest dreams. We've hooked up to a wonderful church and, dare I say, we're excited about plugging in and getting involved there. It's like this church was handmade for us. Their beliefs in reaching out to the community and just the people are so in-tuned to how we are, it's way beyond coincidence. We love the community. There is so much to do here at little or no cost. We can ride down by the beach and look at the beautiful water whenever we want. Charlie is having a blast here. He has a huge yard to run around in and a playmate when Eli comes over. We haven't seen Eli as much as we'd like because they're so busy with school, work, sports and church - but that's ok. We're forging lives for ourselves and it's been wonderful. I look forward to getting up in the morning and seeing what God has planned for me each day. We have a peace that somehow things will work out even though we have no idea how. We're not stressing or worrying about it. Each night I lay my head down on my pillow and I thank God that today I have a roof over my head, the electric is paid so that I can watch tv and play on my computer, the water is paid so that I can take a shower, we have food in the house so that we won't go hungry, and we're both still alive and breathing. Today is a good day. But more than all that, I know that tomorrow will be too. His word tells me that I have a "hope and a future" and more than anytime in my life - I believe it. Life is good, but actually living life is even better - and I thank God that He has promised me just that. Have a great day y'all and be sure to thank God for it. ((hugs))