And Your Heart Will Lead You Home

I’m back home and like all good things, my month long Sabbatical has come to an end.
I must say that I was totally dreading driving 1500 miles by myself. But with God as my co-pilot I’m home safe and sound.

It’s amazing how putting on some praise music while stuck in a traffic jam can change your demeanor. Instead of grumbling I just praised God, knowing he was in control.

As I drove home the lyrics of “Your Heart Will Lead You Home” sung by Kenny Loggins in the “Tigger Movie” kept going thru my head. I was sad leaving everything I had grown to love all over again, behind.
Sunny days and starry nights and lazy afternoons
You’re counting castles in the clouds and humming little tunes

But somehow right before your eyes the summer fades away
Everything is different, everything has changed
A few years ago I was torn between continuing to live in Florida and feeling like God was calling me to go back home to Michigan, When God finally gave my heart peace about the decision to move back home, the lyrics brought me comfort.There’ll come a day when you’re loosing your way, and you don’t know where you belong
They say that home is where the heart is so follow your heart
and know that you can’t go wrong
If you feel lost and on your own and far from home you’re never alone you know
Just think of your friends the ones who care
They all will be waiting there with love to share
And your heart will lead you home.
When I would sing the song it helped me to concentrate on all the things I loved that I would be going back to. It was a hard thing to do because I knew how many wonderful people I was leaving behind.

The old cliché that says “you can never go home again,” scared me. I knew I wasn’t the same person any longer. In the year I spent in Florida, God had grown me in so many ways. I was going back to be with the same people in the same places, and I wondered how the new me would fit in. How would I ever be able to survive without a friend like Jackie that I could talk to for hours about anything; a friend that shared the same passion for Christ?

We serve such a faithful God; I should have known that he would provide for my spiritual needs. Back at home he brought new people into my life to fill the void. My life in Michigan was full and I was content doing all the things God gave me to do.

But a part of my heart longed for the things of the past.

I felt Gods approval for a trip back to the place where I had come to know and love Him in a new way, but as I prepared to leave and go back to Florida, my mind began to wonder what I would find. Would my friend Jackie be so involved in her new life that she wouldn’t have time, or worse yet have no desire to renew our friendship?

My trip back to Florida would end up being a blessing for both of us. It was as though I had never left. Jackie and I spent many precious hours together and it was as though time had stood still waiting for my return.

Funny how a photograph can take you back in timeTo places and embraces, that you thought you'd left behind
They're trying to remind you, that you're not the only onethat no one is an island, when all is said and done
God is so awesome and he knows my heart like no one else. He did so much to orchestrate my stay into a memorable event.

He provided a worship service each week that seemed tailored just for me. I had drawn so much pleasure from listening to the entire First Baptist Choir when I was a regular, but 3 particular singers stood out in my memory. During my visit, every week one of those special singers performed solo.

My Bible Study Class was as warm and welcoming as I had remembered, and He provided the chance to share a special lunch with all of them.

He brought our friends Jeanne and Barb for a visit to relax and reconnect, and He ministered to both of their hearts in a special way.

Each trip to the beach left me in awe, and I felt God’s presence so strongly as I walked the beach and watched the sun set into the immenseness of the Gulf of Mexico.

But most of all God gave me a wonderful blessing by allowing me to return to renew and strengthen the two greatest friendships I have ever known; my friendship with Jackie, and my friendship with HIM.

I am so thankful to God for this special time.

As I placed my suitcase into the car yesterday morning and began the last leg of the trip back home, I heard God’s voice reminding me that for the time being I am living right where he intends me to be. His still small voice sang in my ear,
"Just think of your friends the ones who care,
they all will be waiting there with love to share…
And your heart will lead you home."