Life is so fascinating.
Life is so FRUSTRATING. Life is so confusing. Life is so… lifey.
When do I call myself a true Minnesotan? Is it when I dip into proper Norwegian slang while talking with people about baked goods? Done. Is it when I have to go full Eskimo gear to take the kids to the bus stop? Check. Is it when my kids are settled into their new schools? Got it.
Things are rolling. The transition has not been without its bumps, but that was to be expected. As (most of) you know, we made the leap from the Picture Perfect American Life (House? Check. Husband? Check. Kids? Check. Full time job? Check. Wifey at home for the most part? Check. 401k? Check. Pretty photos of FUN TIMES on facebook? Check.) to start a new journey, filled with much more uncertainly, but also much more TIME to be a family and invest in our passions.
We relocated from our home of five years in England to the heart of the city of Minneapolis. We paid a year’s worth of rent without actually seeing the house first, closed our eyes, and leapt. We knew going into it that the leap could mean some pretty incredible lessons for our kids in following your passions, but that it could also mean some pretty incredible lessons for our kids on not giving up something steady when you have it.
Here we are over five months later. So what’s happening with the Rinas’?
Well, the church we were planning on being a part of hit some bumps and, I believe, made the right call to sit tight and wait for God’s prompting instead of forcing it. That took us from the ‘have a church right away’ crew and plopped us into the ‘church finding’ crew, which if you have been there, you know it’s difficult. Church is a personal thing. It’s a personal thing steeped in community. It’s a balance of finding what works for YOU and also works for your HUSBAND and also works for your KIDS, while simultaneously working well for the COMMUNITY AT LARGE. It’s hopping from one building full of nice people to another building full of nice people, and trying to decide if the level of niceness and the level of worship band and the level of sermon speaking all met in that sweet spot in your soul. And then if not, it’s trying again the next week, consistently being the new family with lots of nice but not a lot of real coming at them. And that is no fault to any of the church goers, it’s just a fact of church hopping. People tend to react negatively if upon meeting you they are exposed to all of the cobwebs in your closet before they know your kids names. I know from experience. (Totally had a therapy session with one of the kid’s teachers yesterday at Parent/Teacher conferences… and I am not ashamed to say that as she was telling me about what she tells Alex when she feels lonely that I may have been sucking it up life water during a drought. And possibly tearing up… Totally not awkward. But also, maybe a little.)
We met a lot of great people at a lot of great churches, but it’s only been recently that I believe we may have found our church home. And the relief that comes with that is palpable. I will not cover up that one of the HUGE factors in our decision was the fact that Isaac is happy in their nursery during the service, because as lovely as the other churches were, as a parent, you can only be so in tune with the body of Christ with a tired, cranky and unhappy 2 year old doing his best to leave the confines of the pew and bounce his echo off of the ceiling. And as a parent I think it’s ok that that be a HUGE factor in deciding what to call your church home. Because for the most part, Paul and I would come home from church more frustrated and tired and a little bit more empty than what we were when we got there. And after an upheaval like our move has been, where we said goodbye to our church family where we had some VERY deep roots… that takes a while to heal. And it takes the right community to get it started.
All in all, the move has been hard, but maybe not as hard as I had expected… or perhaps it’s just hard in all the wrong areas… Paul and I are both still searching for our People here, and are in prayer that we find them soon. We are still trying to decide which way to face in terms of our impending move at the end of this summer. Where do you go when you can go anywhere? How do you decide where to put forth your effort for God’s Kingdom? Do you choose a quiet life in a slow town? Or do you choose to stay in the city, where life will most certainly not slow down?
The leap that we took, from our quiet All-American Life, to the life of a certain type of nomad… It’s the pin in our journey together as a family. Things will fall one way or another at the end of this summer. Decisions will be made, paths will be chosen. And so until that time, we will find peace in the little moments we get that would have been impossible in our American Life. We will sit and wait. We will hold our ears to the tracks, and listen for the whisper of Him who has formed us for such a time as this.
Because with Him, who knows what is just around the corner.
When do I call myself a true Minnesotan? Is it when I dip into proper Norwegian slang while talking with people about baked goods? Done. Is it when I have to go full Eskimo gear to take the kids to the bus stop? Check. Is it when my kids are settled into their new schools? Got it.
Things are rolling. The transition has not been without its bumps, but that was to be expected. As (most of) you know, we made the leap from the Picture Perfect American Life (House? Check. Husband? Check. Kids? Check. Full time job? Check. Wifey at home for the most part? Check. 401k? Check. Pretty photos of FUN TIMES on facebook? Check.) to start a new journey, filled with much more uncertainly, but also much more TIME to be a family and invest in our passions.
We relocated from our home of five years in England to the heart of the city of Minneapolis. We paid a year’s worth of rent without actually seeing the house first, closed our eyes, and leapt. We knew going into it that the leap could mean some pretty incredible lessons for our kids in following your passions, but that it could also mean some pretty incredible lessons for our kids on not giving up something steady when you have it.
Here we are over five months later. So what’s happening with the Rinas’?
Well, the church we were planning on being a part of hit some bumps and, I believe, made the right call to sit tight and wait for God’s prompting instead of forcing it. That took us from the ‘have a church right away’ crew and plopped us into the ‘church finding’ crew, which if you have been there, you know it’s difficult. Church is a personal thing. It’s a personal thing steeped in community. It’s a balance of finding what works for YOU and also works for your HUSBAND and also works for your KIDS, while simultaneously working well for the COMMUNITY AT LARGE. It’s hopping from one building full of nice people to another building full of nice people, and trying to decide if the level of niceness and the level of worship band and the level of sermon speaking all met in that sweet spot in your soul. And then if not, it’s trying again the next week, consistently being the new family with lots of nice but not a lot of real coming at them. And that is no fault to any of the church goers, it’s just a fact of church hopping. People tend to react negatively if upon meeting you they are exposed to all of the cobwebs in your closet before they know your kids names. I know from experience. (Totally had a therapy session with one of the kid’s teachers yesterday at Parent/Teacher conferences… and I am not ashamed to say that as she was telling me about what she tells Alex when she feels lonely that I may have been sucking it up life water during a drought. And possibly tearing up… Totally not awkward. But also, maybe a little.)
We met a lot of great people at a lot of great churches, but it’s only been recently that I believe we may have found our church home. And the relief that comes with that is palpable. I will not cover up that one of the HUGE factors in our decision was the fact that Isaac is happy in their nursery during the service, because as lovely as the other churches were, as a parent, you can only be so in tune with the body of Christ with a tired, cranky and unhappy 2 year old doing his best to leave the confines of the pew and bounce his echo off of the ceiling. And as a parent I think it’s ok that that be a HUGE factor in deciding what to call your church home. Because for the most part, Paul and I would come home from church more frustrated and tired and a little bit more empty than what we were when we got there. And after an upheaval like our move has been, where we said goodbye to our church family where we had some VERY deep roots… that takes a while to heal. And it takes the right community to get it started.
All in all, the move has been hard, but maybe not as hard as I had expected… or perhaps it’s just hard in all the wrong areas… Paul and I are both still searching for our People here, and are in prayer that we find them soon. We are still trying to decide which way to face in terms of our impending move at the end of this summer. Where do you go when you can go anywhere? How do you decide where to put forth your effort for God’s Kingdom? Do you choose a quiet life in a slow town? Or do you choose to stay in the city, where life will most certainly not slow down?
The leap that we took, from our quiet All-American Life, to the life of a certain type of nomad… It’s the pin in our journey together as a family. Things will fall one way or another at the end of this summer. Decisions will be made, paths will be chosen. And so until that time, we will find peace in the little moments we get that would have been impossible in our American Life. We will sit and wait. We will hold our ears to the tracks, and listen for the whisper of Him who has formed us for such a time as this.
Because with Him, who knows what is just around the corner.
Wow, Your entire post I resonated with. I think I will always be a nomad my heart doesn't feel attached to anyone place especially since a piece of my heart has been left in each location with family and friends we have left behind. I pray God give you direction and a peace for Minnesota or somewhere new. You guys will find your people, stay the course. God Bless you honey.
ReplyDeleteLove you Hun!
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