“For I know the plans I have for you,” declares the LORD, “plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future.” -Jeremiah 29:11 “Bring out the boxes, we’re moving again!” I did not expect this phrase to pass from my Dad’s lips anymore. Fresh from Iraq, my father should not have received new orders to report to Washington D.C. in August. After all, that only gave my family two months to find a new place to live in a state that we were not familiar with. Needless to say, I was very unhappy.
Being in a military family, I am no stranger to moving. Even so, this particular move was most unwanted on my part because I had just finished my first year of high school, I was becoming more involved with my church and my amazing youth group, and I had the best friends that a girl could have. Life was better than it had ever been for me. A single phrase shattered it all.
After the bomb dropped, I could not understand why God would take all of this away from me when I had been deprived of this kind of connection with a community all my life. I pleaded with Him to fix everything, to make it impossible for us, to go. When my prayers weren’t answered in the way I hoped and expected, I decided I wasn’t going to turn to my Heavenly Father anymore.
Eventually I had to accept the fact that I would be going with my family, despite my own declarations of independence. Who knew that the journey I was about to embark on forever changed me and my relationship with the Lord.
It didn’t take me long to realize that I was going to need God’s help to become adjusted to my new home. I still did not feel the connection that I had had with Him before, but nevertheless I asked for help. The thing is, I thought that this connection was only possible because I attended a great church and a thriving youth group in my old town, but God showed me that I didn’t need this to have a strong relationship with Him. Before, I relied heavily on others’ interpretations of the Bible and I rarely went to the Word on my own and just read. I had to start doing this when we moved to D.C. Bible studies and youth group were virtually impossible to get to due to their placement in the week so God showed me what I could do on my own. 
Being the melodramatic teenager that I was, I thought my life was over when we moved to Washington. Amazingly enough, it was the beginning of a beautiful relationship. Not only did God show me how much I needed Him, but He also showed me his undying love and faithfulness. God provided for me in so many ways during my time in D.C., even when I didn’t deserve it. No matter what happens, I believe that God will always be there for me and make every milestone in my life, good or bad, a way to grow closer to Him.
