February 3, 2019
My house flooded on September 19, 2018. Two feet of water filled the entire house. My back wall came down and the entire yard was underwater, including the pool. We lost many material things that night, but my kids and the dogs were safe. I watched people show up—some who didn’t even know me—to clean up the damage the next three days after it happened. I watched as they tore out walls, threw away furniture, and dragged out mud-covered clothing. Most of the time, I sat at a neighbor’s house with my seven-week-old puppy and my two other dogs because it was overwhelming to be at my house watching as 15 years of my life was thrown in a dumpster. I kept repeating to myself, “It’s just stuff.”
In the four-and-a-half months since the flood, my kids and I have been in a rental. This is a totally new experience for me. I know for most people, this is normal, but it has been a huge adjustment for me. My parents moved into the house where they still live when I was fourteen-months-old. My husband and I lived in a rental for the first few years of our marriage, but I made him promise that when we bought a house of our own, it would be our “forever” home. We had our house built in 2003 and I became pregnant with my first-born a month after we moved into it. It is the only house my children have ever known.
Since the flood, many people have asked if I will move back into my house. It never occurred to me to leave. I was not taught to give up on things when they go bad. I plan to rebuild and make things even better than before. Of course, when dealing with contractors, insurance, and people who have busy lives, things don’t move very quickly. So, here we sit in this house that doesn’t belong to us without our things. We feel like our lives are in a temporary pause. I still get up and go to work and the kids still have school, but it just feels like . . . we’re not home.
Losing Tad and now briefly losing my home has reminded me just how temporary this world is for us. Since I don’t have cable, satellite, or even wi-fi in this temporary abode, I have had a lot more free time on my hands to dive into God’s word. I have been trying to listen carefully to the lessons He is teaching me. He doesn’t cause the bad things to happen in our lives, but He sure can use them for His glory if we are willing and open to what He is teaching.
What gets me through some nights in this house with all of its strange noises is thinking about how when I finally get back into my house, it will be so good. I have an entire notebook of drawings and multiple Pinterest boards with ideas for my improved dwelling. I have paint colors picked out and furniture ordered. I am redesigning the master bathroom and my daughter’s closet. I can imagine it when I close my eyes. I live every day with anticipation for its completion. I can’t wait to go home.
God is doing that for each and every one of us. John 14:3 tells us that Jesus has gone ahead to prepare a place for us and He will come back to get us when everything is ready. Can you image how grand it will be? Jesus has access to the best decorators and contractors. We should live in anticipation every day of our forever home. But instead, we walk around in fear and despair. We get wrapped up in the chaos and disorder of this world. Let’s look past the temporary things of this world and keep our eyes focused on Jesus because . . . we’re not home, yet.
The Sunday Girl 