I'm moving back to England!

So, I've got an exciting wee life update for ya!! I'm moving back to Derby!!
I know that just last week I was talking about simply going back for a visit but sometimes God really does work in weird and wonderful ways and can throw you a curve ball you really weren't expecting.

Recently I had been feeling that my time in Belfast was coming to an end but I just didn't know what the next step was going to be. I was praying lots and asking God to direct me and at first I thought that maybe going over just to visit Derby would help things become a little clearer, however, a few complications started cropping up just like the original plan for Sam to visit Belfast, and it didn't look as though this trip would be as easy as I originally thought.

I then got to thinking "why don't I just move back instead?"
Initially I thought this was just going to be an automatic no from God because I didn't have anything figured out yet; no job, no house, no nothing.

Oh, but how silly of me it was to think that, for it is not I that needs to have everything figured out. Honestly, you would have thought that after 15-ish years of being a Christian I would have learnt this by now; that God goes before us in everything that we do and lays out the paths that we should take...duh.

So anyway, after having this crazy idea of just moving back I'm taking time to really discern what God wants me to do and I'm also kind of joking around with Sam telling him to keep reading the bible I got him for Valentine's day so that he can find my 'answer'.

Now here's where the story gets exciting (to me anyway)! One night at about 5am I get a message from Sam explaining that he thinks he's found my answer. Even though I'm still half asleep my heart starts racing and I sit up in bed intrigued. He starts by saying that he was reading through my notebook filled with bible verses that I had sent him along with the bible and he came across the verse "Nothing can stop God's plan for your life" - Isaiah 14:27. He then went on to say that he believes this is one of those situations in life where there isn't necessarily a right or wrong choice; whatever decision I make about moving back will be right. If God has a plan for me then the choice that I make won't be wrong because he has already laid out the road before me and now it's just up to me whether I choose to go now or later.

The wonderful and crazy thing about all of this is that Sam isn't even a Christian (yet haha)! But I wholeheartedly believe that what he said was a message from God because he explained that when he read the verse from Isaiah it was strange as he had a bit of a 'eureka' moment and felt a sudden rush of elation!
What also convinced me was that when I was reading the messages from Sam I felt a sense of peace just like what I talked about in my last post about sometimes discerning the decisions of God through feelings of peace and calm.

Since receiving that message from Sam as well as praying on it myself and seeking guidance from my mum, I have decided that I'm going to make the move back to Derby at the end of March! I believe that God has opportunities ready for me when I get there and it really wouldn't have made a difference to his plan whether I were to go now, next month or in 6 months time.

Yes, I'm moving without a job but I'm not scared anymore. I'm trusting in the word that I received from a friend about making finding a church my priority and that everything will begin to fall into place after that as long as I keep listening to God.

With regards to the image of the 3/4 built bridge that I mentioned in my last post, it now appears in my head as a fully constructed bridge with intertwined trees as the railings. It's funny because this image actually appeared to me just a little while before Sam messaged me about my 'answer'. Coincidence? I think not!

"For I know the plans I have for you," declares the Lord, "plans to prosper you and not harm you, plans to give you hope and a future." - Jeremiah 29:11

Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding; in all your ways submit to him and he will make straight your paths. - Proverbs 3:5-6

- S xo