The Pilgrimage

I am back where it all began.  Traverse City, MI.  We had made plans to come this way on our journey.  Yes, it added 700 miles onto our trip, but no distance would have been too far. It was kind of like a pilgrimage for us.  My family needed this.  I needed this.  And to be perfectly honest, I don’t want to leave.

There is no place on this earth as dear to me as Traverse City, MI.  It is where I first came alive.  It is where I stripped off the façade and began my journey to authenticity.  It is the first place I felt truly accepted.  It is where I experienced true community.  It is where I first learned how to know God and walk with Him.  It is where I became me.

There is a special beauty and comfort that I find here.  On Saturday evening, I was in Elk Rapids, standing on the edge of the Grand Traverse Bay.  It was about 10 pm; and the sun had just set.  Hues of pink, orange, and blue filled the sky.  A cool breeze was blowing, and I closed my eyes, lifted my face to the sky, and wondered to myself, “So why did I leave here again?”

As we reconnected with people, we were not just visiting friends; we are reuniting with family.  And the time has flown by. Two and a half days is simply not enough time.  You see, I actually expected this to be different.  I thought that we would come, catch up with a few friends, talk about old times, share some memories, and realize that as much as we love this place, it is not what it once was.  It would no longer feel like home.  But I was wrong.  I am crying as I think about having to say goodbye to this place and these precious people again.

I could easily settle down here again, except for two things.  First of all, as much as I love this place, we know the dream God has placed upon our hearts. And we know that, for now anyway, our path leads to Idaho.  We cannot lay aside God’s calling simply for the sake of comfort and security.  We must persevere, continue down the road that has been paved for us by God, trusting His heart and His promises.

Secondly, my friends would not let me stop here even if I wanted to.  I have awesome friends, and so many of them have bought in to our dream.  They have supported us, encouraged us, prayed for us, helped us, and they will not let us settle for anything less than God’s best. 

And so today, we will continue on our journey, having been strengthened by our dear friends, and reminded of the wonderful grace of God, and the mighty work that He did in us here.  And I will carry that with me forever.  And I will cry …a lot.  We all will.