It’s not suppose to take 9 months to move. To have a baby yes, but not to move. And yet, that is exactly what happened with the preparation of our across state lines move beginning early in May and finally coming to completion in mid-January. There were all sorts of ups and downs and u-turns to be had in the journey. There were so many moments where I could not see beyond what that day held, which I found to be insanely nerve racking.
But it is done now, thankfully, and despite the fact that I had to throw out the plan I did have multiple times. I had to switch gears, change directions, and even lay my expectations down way more than I liked. I could have saved myself a lot of stress and overwhelm by accepting that I couldn’t see beyond the day. I could have walked it out with more peace by not trying to control every detail and outcome. So, I realize there is a lesson to be learned in all of this:
We can spend so much time fussing about the should’ve, would’ve, could haves of our journeys that we miss out on the beauty of what God is working out for us right now. We also miss out with our worries and doubts about the future, with the plans, back up plans and back up back up plans. We cause ourselves a lot of unnecessary angst and turmoil by constantly trying to figure out tomorrow and skipping over today.
I don’t know about you but I am ready to get over the what ifs of both yesterday and tomorrow so that I can embrace the now. Don’t get me wrong, planning can be a good thing, it’s our strangle hold on our plans that often robs us of peace and joy, purpose and hope.
So what does it look like to embrace the now?
It looks like taking things in stride when the plan goes awry.
It looks like hitting the pause button on our reactions (or over reactions in my case) when the unwanted, unwelcomed, and unexpected interruptions force us to rethink our day.
It looks like finding a new path and embarking on adventures when obstacles present themselves rather than giving up.
It looks like leaning in and being present in the moments others want to share with us instead of seeing them as intrusions on our time.
It looks like giving ourselves permission to slow down and grieve our losses when life is hard.
It looks a lot like trusting God when our expectations are not met, knowing that He is a good Father, and believing that whatever He has for us is meant for our good and His glory, even when it doesn’t fit into our plans.
We cannot undo the past nor can we assure the outcomes of tomorrow. All we can do is control our choices moment by moment. I encourage you to embrace the now in every part of your day and enjoy the peace you discover as you do.
What can you do to become better at embracing the now?
(Need a reminder? Downloadable prints of Embrace the Now are available for order. Purchase the water colored version by clicking here or the black and white version by clicking here.)
