In this house

Christmas has just past and I am wasting a perfectly good evening sitting on the floor of my parents Chicago home. I should be in the city being shown around by my UIC student brother. But instead I find myself in a tummy ache induced heap on the living room floor. My beloved husband is also wasting the evening playing Xbox games, but then again he probably wouldn’t call that “wasting” an evening. We did find the motivation to bundle up, pile into my father’s car and drive around for an hour admiring both outrageously huge houses and the pretty lights gracing their oversized entryways and roofs. I wondered who in the world would want to live in such gigantic structures. Surely there are better ways to spend a million dollars! We figured they all must be families of 10 kids or more, seeming how no ordinary 2.5 child family could possible fill much less find each other in a house the size of Rhode Island.

 

The drive reminded me of how beautiful Downers Grove really is and how sad I am that my parents are moving back to Houston. I know they must leave and I completely understand and agree that it is for the best. But saying goodbye to the place I came to really know my Lord is hard. If my parents hadn’t taken the decision to move here ten years ago would I be the same person I am today? I know that Jesus pursues us no matter where we are, but by moving to IL many of the distractions keeping me from Him were stripped away and his voice came through loud and clear. It was here, in this house that I lay on the floor and begged Jesus to take over my life, to be my source and direction. In this house I learned to love His written word and recognise His voice. In this house He planted in me concern for the poor. Of course I am sad to see my parents leave. I pray that one day soon the walls of this house will again witness the Spirit change and complete a lonely teenager searching for meaning.

 

Anisha