What is normal
What is normal? I have been asking myself that a lot lately. Since turning 40 this year, the thought of normal and how that applies to my life is so at the forefront of my mind.
I grew up in a middle class, Christian home and went to Christian schools from elementary through college. I was an A student who never really got into trouble. I became a teacher, got married, moved back to my home town and had two kids. All so very normal things to do!
A few years ago, Matt and I started having these philosophical discussions, mainly after watching International House Hunters J, about whether we were living our lives to the fullest….whether we were truly living as God had intended us to. We both felt this pull to travel the world and see what other things God had in store for us as individuals, as a couple and as a family. We could no longer deny this feeling of wanting to live extraordinary lives even if only for a short time.
Now I am not saying that normal is bad. In fact, normal feels very blessed to me. As I am writing this, we have been away for over a month and some really great days have been really normal. I have cooked normal meals, the boys have had normal bedtimes, there was a normal quiet to the house (whichever house we were in) of me just reading and Matt typing away as he caught up on business work. And I have to tell you, it felt really, really good.
This journey that we dreamt about, saved for, and planned for has always felt like God’s hand was in it. So many things have come together and happened just when we needed them to, for God to not have been part of it. And we knew that we could not reach the end of our lives without trying this crazy idea of living abroad and seeing what the world has to offer.
The encouragement that we have had from family, close friends and even Facebook friends has not only blown us away but humbled us. People have sent us cards, private messages, FB posts, songs, texts, emails, phone calls, and most importantly have prayed for us. With all of this support, we just thank God for the blessing of the people in our lives who with maybe not even knowing it, have now become a part of this adventure with us and we are beyond grateful.
So embrace normal because it is so good. But if there comes a time in your life that God puts a thought into your heart to do or become abnormal for Him…listen…pray…seek guidance…and then become extraordinary!!
“I don’t want to get to the end of my life and find that I just lived the length of it. I want to have lived the width of it as well.”
Love, Steph