Transitions

I am in totally new territory. After nearly 40 years, my association with the Air Force is coming to a close & my family is moving to not only a different country, but a different continent. I feel like I should be feeling something different, but I don't feel any different than any other day. There's no fear. No anxiety. No regrets. Nothing negative & I attribute that to my faith in Christ, but also His faithfulness to me. God has been an obvious part of this whole process from even before I was born again. He has been guiding me & preparing me for years. Only recently have I been able to actually see Him working behind the scenes & I have come to realize my only response can be an obedient, "Yes Lord!"

During my prayer time, I was contemplating how different it will be not having my day planned out by Uncle Sam. He's also been telling me how to dress for 2/3 of my life. I began thinking about what my life was like in the federal service compared to what my life will be like in God's service.

In the federal service I had a commander. In God's service, I have the Commander of the LORD's Army, Jesus Christ (Jos 5:15, Rev 19). In the federal service I had rules & regulations to operate from. In God's service, I have commandments & an instruction manual to live by (BIBLE = Basic Instructions Before Leaving Earth). In the federal service I had supervisors & subordinates. In God's service, I have spiritual mentors & disciples & I pray one day soon, students. In the federal service I had a purpose & a mission. In God's service, I will wake up every morning with a purpose & a commission to fulfill (Mat 28:19). In the federal service I was held accountable for my actions. In God's service God Himself will hold me accountable to how many times I said, "Yes" to Him (Rev 20:12). Looking at it in very simplistic terms, my life won't be much different from what God has been training me to live for most of my life. That gives me a lot of comfort through this time of transition. I can keep moving forward & operate in a manner I am accustomed to. Only the environment will change. And, I am looking forward to that too.

I've been on every continent except Australia & Antarctica. I've been in very modern European areas & very austere desert environments. Just as Paul learned in whatever situation to be content (Phil 4:11b), I also can be content in many different environments & cultures. This leaves me free to do whatever God has planned for me.