Day 2

I gave a lot of thought to what to share today. I realized that my thankfulness spans a wide range from the mundane, like my bed, to the sublime, even the divine. But I realized I kept coming back to really simple things. Or simple things that are only simple until you don't have them.
 
So today I am thankful that despite the uncertainty of this extended "visit," Kristen and I have always had a roof over our heads. Most of us don't think about whether we will have someplace to live next week or next month. It's not something I have thought a whole lot about for most of my life either, until the past year.  (I will admit there were a few times in my younger -- much younger -- days that I took housing a bit too much for granted and ended up in a pickle. And there was that time in grad school when I rented a teeny attic room that leaked.)    

Not only do we typically take the fact of having a home for granted, we also think of it as due to our own hard work and perhaps in some ways something we are entitled to. Nothing could be further from what I have experienced in this season. We have lived in three different places over the last year and a half, and each one has been due to the thoughtfulness, kindness, and generosity of others. I can honestly say I have been humbled and truly, truly grateful for those who have opened their hearts and homes to us in such special ways. Whether poolhouse, basement conversion, or missionary apartment, all these places have been, in one way or another, gifts to us. I will admit that I am not completely without stress about our housing situation; there is still a lot of uncertainty about the future. But as I look back over these months and see how each home opened to us and how the needed funds have come in, I know I need to let go of the worry and let the thankfulness flow in.