Every Friday I join a community of bloggers for Five Minute Friday. One word prompt, five minutes. Unedited. The prompt this week is … City.
I grew up in The Bronx – a city. I had a wonderful childhood and never expected to leave, but God had other plans for my life. I hopped buses and walked among the crowds each day as I went to work.
My husband came from Massachusetts and it was with great relief that our first apartment did not seem very rural. There were sidewalks and I could easily walk wherever I needed to go.
When we bought our first home, we moved a bit further north, no sidewalks but it was just what was needed at that point in our lives.
Our next move took us to a little more spacious property. We still had neighbors but also plenty of woods behind us.
As silly as it sounds, our home is my refuge. It is where I watch the sun come up over our yard every morning. The birds, and the wild life which visits every now and again, have all brought delight and joy to our family.
It is where we have made memories, enjoyed good times, come together through the challenges and seen God grow our family.
At one time I truly thought I would never be able to live away from the city. The journey of life has shown me otherwise.
God, in His wisdom and goodness, knew exactly where I needed to live
in each and every stage of life.
And I do not miss the city at all!
“And He made from one man every nation of mankind to live on all the face of the earth, having determined their appointed times and the boundaries of their habitation.”
(Acts 17:26, NASB)
“He brought me forth also into a broad place; He rescued me, because He delighted in me.” (Psalm 18:19, NASB)
Photo by David Mancini on Unsplash
Today I am joining …
This idea of home and place seems to hold much more power than I ever gave it credit for, especially in my transient 20s. So special to hear your story, Joanne, thank you!
Love that story, Joanne. I am a stranger to city living, but it’s always a great adventure to explore and try to function there.
Have learned that home is wherever love resides. My wife, born in Chicago and raised in a tightknit Italian-American suburb probably never saw herself living on a ranch in the Red River Valley. Yet, this is the place where God called her to her ministry. We never know what God has planned for us until He leads us where He wants us.
Though I used to gladly roam
through the world in work and play,
I have not now left my home
in many a cancer-riven day,
but this is in no way a burden
and even less a kind of prison,
for each day I become more certain
that the life I lived, so driven
pushed me further from God’s grace,
replacing Him with sound and speed,
and now, confined to this one place,
I have found that what I need
is to watch this gentle land
and hold my Saviour’s nail-scarred hand.
Not at all silly that your home is your refuge! That is how it should be, I think. It is a wonderful thing to see how God directs us around to where He knows we can nourish our hearts and souls best — which could be the city, the suburbs, or the country. For me, it’s the country! Love my stars and crickets and pumpkin patch!
Our home is my refuge too, Joanne, and I’m thankful that God leads us and gives us the grace to live wherever He calls us.
I’m a country girl currently living on the edge of the city. We have a neighborhood on one side and a pasture full of cows on the other side. I agree with your assessment, “God, in His wisdom and goodness, knew exactly where I needed to live in each and every stage of life.”
Such a wonderful truth – that our home is our refuge. Our haven – wherever it might be! (even in the middle of the noisy city, I suppose!! Or this concrete, congested suburb that I call home!)
HE always knows what we need and when!
So interesting how God slowly takes us to a new and better place.
Your home brings to mind “sanctuary,” too. Sounds lovely! I hope to one day have a home where I can see the peaceful sunsets. But wherever God leads me on this journey, I trust that I will find peace in God’s presence. Thank you, Joanne! (Karen, FMF #5)
I don’t think it’s silly at all to think of our homes as a refuge. That’s how I like mine to be as well. I’ve found that I like inbetween areas–not big cities (I’ve lived in Atlanta and Houston) but not way out in the country, either.
Beautiful post, Joanne.
(Back in the day, before my odyssey, I lived in Queens, NY–not so far from where you grew up.)
Not silly at all to see your home as your refuge! God is wise and He knows where we will thrive in all our stages of life.