Letting Go

by James

My family is beginning to recover from the physical and emotional pains of the past 48 hours. Leaving our home in Alaska with only a kiddie train of suitcases was hard. I'll be honest, we left a trail of destruction in our rearview mirror that I am trying not to think about as family in Alaska picks up the pieces and we launch ourselves into orbit. It was rough. There was a point the night before we left that I found my wife diligently packing suitcases that ringed around our living room. Everything looked so beautiful and ready to go. And then I turned the corner into our dining room where we had been storing things to take with us, and I realized the number of things that we were going to have to leave behind. After already cutting the clutter, and then donating, and then doing a painful first pass giving away items that were too large or too heavy. Then doing a second pass. Then doing a third pass. Here we were five or six hard choices into the process having to leave very treasured items behind because they simply didn't fit. I saw small boxes with things I knew were very precious to each of my girls, and I turned and looked at our suitcases and duffles and I knew how painful the next day would be.

We didn't sleep. I laid in bed that night staring up at the ceiling and mentally letting go of nearly every precious item I had packed in my portion of the suitcases. And still, the next day was filled with painful tears as the final act of letting go took place.

But it is all stuff. And the pain of letting go of it just proves how important it was to do. This is still only a first step in the journey. I'm so proud of my children though, through it all, even in tears... you would have been proud of them too.

But now that part is over. And we already feel lighter.

We are staying as guests in a beautiful home just outside of Dallas, Texas. My children know Texas as the place where you go where strangers love you and I'm very thankful for that. I can hear them right now, laughing together in a bedroom that is not their own. Places stay behind. But the joy that made those places special we take with us.

This afternoon we will go to the first day of the Global Missions Conference. This is a three-day lectureship organized by the Sunset International Bible Institute and hosted here in Dallas. Many of our longtime friends will be there, and we are excited to see them. We are also seeking wisdom and encouragement as we set off on a mission of our own elsewhere on the globe, in Albania. And we are praying that we will make some good connections with missions-minded families that can partner in our work.

We have about a week and a half still before we take the next leg of our journey and jump the ocean to Albania. We are leaving that week open to visit some important mentors and make some face-to-face contact with various people that are considering supporting our work.

We feel very good about how things are going. It is obvious, in big and small ways, that God is going before us. Everything is so covered in love and encouragement and we feel so blessed.

Thank you all so much for the part you are playing in this. I feel like I am carrying you all along with me.

Bonnie Bu