our two shekels: Our Last Night in Our First Place

So this Friday will be our last night in our first place. It will be bittersweet…much like the rest of this week has been. Our goodbyes officially began last weekend and have managed to linger all throughout the week. Each day marks a new goodbye. Let’s just say this week will be quite the emotional one. To take it back a step, we also said farewell to the rest of the interns, The Mathii, The Wimberly’s , the Hamm’s and Ryno. After a sad “so long,” our sweet friends the Pugh’s, took us out to a lovely dinner at The Melting Pot (it was a first time experience for all of us…and it was WONDERFUL!) Thanks, Pughs!

Last weekend we made our way to Chelsea for marine brother’s goodbye. We had a get together to see him off and were able to spend some sweet time with him. It will be a while before we see him next, but who knows, maybe he will end up on our side of the world sometime in the next few years : ) He means a lot to us !

This weekend, Jeremy and Amanda, and Matt and Jenny came to visit! The Douthits were also in town getting things ready for Jess's big move, and the Ling family came down on Sunday for our commissioning service...needless to say it was a great weekend, spending time with our wonderful family! We are blessed!

Sunday we bid adieu to our Lakeview family. It was a dreaded day. It was a difficult day. But God gave us grace, and we are so blessed to have labored alongside those folks for the past 5 years. We look forward to continuing to labor alongside them- in a different context. So many have poured into us and invested so much of their lives in us. We are grateful. We praise the Lord. As my wonderful husband put it, were it not for the belief that there is greater glory to be won for our King in us parting than in us staying, we would not be leaving. But we trust Him, and look forward to the day when we will worship with those folks unhindered around the throne of our Lord for all eternity. Then, “Will our passions all be love, and all our powers be praise.”

This Friday we will spend our last night in our first place. It will be sad, but thankfully, though E203 Lakewood Commons will remain in Auburn, our home will not.

So what will our time look like until we depart on July 17, you may ask? (Or you may not ask, but I will tell you either way: ) ) We will be spending a week or so in Chelsea getting some Ling love, and then we will venture on up to Huntsville for some Douthit love, from where we will leave on July 17. {Aside} July 17 will be the day after our first anniversary…this time last year we were boarding a plane to Ireland for our honeymoon…this July 17 consists of a one-way ticket. Pray for these next few weeks, they will be difficult, but they will be sweet:)

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