Well people, it's official...

After 17 years of living in the desert and 8 years since I’ve had my own place, I would like to announce that I am officially a homeowner! What?! I know. Crazy, crazy, crazy. About as crazy as this last year has been. 

I had no idea that when I left for a trip at the beginning of last year that a pandemic would begin, or that I wouldn’t come back for 6 months, or that my roommates, starting a career in health care, would realize their need to be closer to family. So after 8 years of “Confidently Wandering," moving 500+ times, through countless cities and 10 countries... living with friends and family, and shoving my things into warehouses, sheds, garages, and truck beds, I am officially a homeowner! This also happened to come right after my 40th Birthday ;) so it seems like an absolutely fitting way to step into this new season of my life!

In 2012 I prayed a prayer that would change my life forever. After experiencing the restlessness of an ever-consistent American life, even as a missionary, I prayed to God, “Teach me to live with less, knowing I am gaining so much more.”

About a year later, that prayer led me to step away from the job that I had been in for nearly a decade. Only a few months later, outside of my control, I moved out of my home and found myself without a job, a house, or health insurance. I thought, “Is this what following You looks like God?” 

Since that day, however, I have never found myself without a place to lay my head. God has provided Every single step of the way. I have slept in tour busses, empty apartments, friend's kid's bedrooms, hammocks in the Amazon, Honduras, and Brazil, cots in México, and houses in Guatemala, Uganda, the Dominican Republic, etc. The location is always changing, but His provision is ALWAYS the same.

This journey has been humbling, challenging, and at times as though it was stripping me of all that I wanted to hold onto. However, most importantly, it has given me strength. It has taught me confidence in the Lord that I never knew before. It taught me the value of a home; even after building homes for others for over 13 years. It has taught me what it means to "learn to be content in every circumstance," even when I wanted desperately to jump back to comfort and security and grab onto anything that would bring me peace, despite my circumstances not allowing it. So I prayed that God would teach me what Paul had learned in Philippians, "... I have learned to be content whatever the circumstances. I know what it is to be in need, and I know what it is to have plenty. I have learned the secret of being content in any and every situation, whether well fed or hungry, whether living in plenty or in want. I can do all this through him who gives me strength." I was fully aware that I was falling short of that contentment and simply wanted out of my situation. However, now, stepping into this new season of my life, I feel like God is showing me that I am actually much further along on my journey to find contentment in all circumstances than I realized. Contentment is not necessarily being okay with not having what you need, rather, it is trusting that an ever-faithful God will always provide. 

Therefore I am trusting the same as I step into this new journey in my life. I thank God abundantly for this home that He has provided and for all those that have let me share life with them along the way. Thank you for giving me a place to rest as I followed where God was leading me. This literally would not have been possible without you. For as long as God allows me to stay in this place, I pray that this home would bring rest to the weary traveler and peace and community for those that pass through. I pray that this house would provide what others have given me. May this home be a place that brings God glory as we all continue to Wander Confidently. Much Love, Brittany