TENNESSEE

As many of you probably know, I just returned from a two week visit with our oldest son and his family who live just east of Nashville, in the great state of Tennessee.  I had the stark revelation a few months back… that no matter how hard I tried… I couldn’t seem to see a future for me in Oklahoma.  I realized that I had lost the vision and enthusiasm with all the plans I had made for my home and property here in Oklahoma… and after some time of prayer and self-searching, I finally came to the understanding that this house was simply a very needed (at the time after losing my wife) place holder for the new chapter and season that I was entering into in my life.

I also became aware of the fact that I sorely missed the tall trees and mountains of both northern California and North Carolina.  As wonderful as Oklahoma is with its great people, abundance of churches and strong conservative values, it is quite FLAT out here!  And so… the impending high school graduation of our oldest granddaughter presented the perfect opportunity for a great adventure!

I had mentioned in previous blogs that the first tell-tale sign that I had noticed concerning a subtle change that was going on with my wife back in the early 2000’s, was the gradual loss of her confidence.  But you know… she wasn’t the only one to experience that loss.

Once we received that first somewhat scrambled negative report from her original three brain scans in 2007, I became focused and driven to do whatever I needed to do for her… and I pretty much did that for the next eleven years of her life.  But when she went home to be with the Lord in 2018, I suddenly lost my purpose for all that focus and drive… and I found that my own confidence had begun to wane!

I seemed to be okay around town… for that was one of the reasons I decided to move to Oklahoma.  Besides having most of my kids here, I was already familiar with the area, as I had attended Bible College here.   But that old love that I had for taking road trips and exploring new areas seemed to have gone away in a poof of smoke!

They do say though, that with the passing of time comes healing and I have seen that evolution in me over the 3 plus years since Piper’s passing.  With the revelations about my current status in life and the ever-increasing desires for needed change… a road trip to Tennessee was not only looking to be the thing to do… but also the thing that I NEEDED to do!  It would also give me an opportunity to scope out the area and see if a possible move to Tennessee was to seriously consider!

Driving by myself, across a few states to get to my son’s home in Tennessee sounded possible and all the mental pictures of the majestic scenery along the way tickled my sense of adventure… and besides, it was only a little over an eight-hour trip away… I could easily do that… drive southeast down the Muskogee Turnpike, get on interstate 40 East and go straight… piece of cake… Right?

 And well… you know it was!  Both ways in fact!

As it turned out… My son and his family had been planning a week-long celebration at Disney World following their oldest daughter’s graduation.*  So the plan was for me to house sit their home along with their incredibly cute Goldendoodle puppy and 7 chickens out back… and spend time with them both before and after their trip to Florida.

So, I had two days before they left and two days after they returned to spend with them and get personal tours of different towns and historic sites that seem to surround them on every side!  For a history nut like me… It was like being in paradise!

As per my normal process, I had already done a ton of research on the area and had focused my attention on the neighboring town of Lebanon, some 15 minutes east of Mt Juliet where my son lives.  It is a small town that dates back to 1801 with a population of around 38K.  It boasts an historic and quaint downtown square, complete with a statue of a Civil War general who lived in the town and a restored pioneer cabin.  It is also surrounded by specialty shops including an old guitar shop, a hole-in-the-wall used books store and an old-fashioned candy and ice cream shop.

Therefore, besides wrangling the chickens and collecting their daily assortment of fresh eggs and walking the dog, I spent the week the kids were on vacation taking daily excursions into Lebanon and explored a good majority of the neighborhoods and surrounding areas of the town.

A personalization of Romans 5:5 from The Passion Translation tells us that:

“Our EXPECTAIONS (of God and His Word) are not disappointing fantasies, because (through them) we can now experience the endless love of God cascading into our hearts through the Holy Spirit who lives in us!” 

I was EXPECTING great things from my trip to Tennessee… and you know… I was not disappointed… even though it took me a few days and multiple trips into Lebanon before I found some neighborhoods with smaller homes with the size of property that fit into my potential plans.  And granted, it is a little more expensive there than in Oklahoma… but I continue to EXPECT that God will keep to His Word and: "shall supply all my need according to his riches in glory by Christ Jesus.” (Philippians 4:19 KJV - personalized)

So yeah!  I am excited about my future.  I loved the rolling hills, tall pines and mountains that I saw and am highly EXPECTANT of what God has in store for me. I am EXPECTING His Word of promise to come true in my life!

How About You?  What are you EXPECTING… and are you EXPECTING it to come true in your life?  Hummmm… just think about it!

Have a great week, and as you do… Keep EXPECTING God’s BEST in your life!

 

*Their younger daughter was also graduating from the 8^th grade… so it was a dual graduation vacation!