In 2024, my family and I agreed to me taking a six-month leave of absence from my work. For most people, this would mean staying in your home and your community while you just take time off from work. When you are an expat, things look a little different, as your housing, schooling, visa, etc., are all tied to your employment. So, six months off work is not just time spent at home, it means leaving the place that has been home since you moved there. For our family, we had been living in Romania since November 2020. During that time, our kids had adjusted to the British schooling system, my husband had dipped his toes in working in the North Sea before returning to work rotationally in Australia, and I had taken on a new role at work and part-time study, pursuing a master’s in biblical studies. Then, in 2022, war broke out in the neighboring country, and my church jumped into action, supporting in any way we could. For our family, this meant hosting, volunteering, and serving those displaced by the war. It was a lot of change and growth in a very short period of time, and I am eternally grateful that God put us in a position and place where He could stretch us in ways we did not expect.
This time of stretching and growth came at a cost. I was tired. I was really, really tired. This fatigue was not external. My soul was tired and I needed rest. I needed the type of rest God had designed the Sabbath for: a complete disconnect from all work.
So, towards the end of 2023, I asked my work if they would be willing to let me take time off to spend with my family, continue my studies, and pursue the rest I needed. To be honest, at that point in time, I did not know if I wanted to return to work, but I knew I needed time to process and rest. They said yes, and I jumped into planning a six-month journey for our family. We would pack up our home and leave it in storage in Romania while we set out on a journey to rest and reconnect with friends and family in an unhurried and meaningful way.
We would go to Arizona to spend time with my sister and her family as she welcomed her first baby into the world, a favor I am happy to have returned after all the time and love she gave to our family when I had my first baby. We would also get to spend time with my Nonnie, who turned 96 last month, someone my daughters remember only vaguely from the lunch we got to have with her every three years or so when we would visit prior to this. We would spend two months in Oregon with my parents, grandparents, aunts, uncles, and cousins, giving my daughters perspective and meaningful connection with their U.S. family, something they had not had much of before. We would road trip and spend time at my brother’s place, visiting him in his home for the first time.
We would go to Thailand for a month to train at a Muay Thai gym, learn to dive, and have quality family time together, making memories. Then, we would spend the month of December with our family and friends in West Australia, enjoying the summer month, Christmas, and New Year’s in arguably our favorite place in the world. All of this in the absence of work emails, daily tasks, ongoing bills, and the general worries of life. Our friends and family were more than generous in supporting our travels and plans, they hosted us, cared for us, fed us, and loved us, refilling our souls with that unspeakable joy that comes from meaningful connection.
During all these travels and time away, I read, studied, pondered, and evaluated my life. What was important? What did I want out of life? What sort of legacy and connection was I building within my own immediate family?
After considerable conversation and contemplation, we decided that it would be best for me to return to work and to seek stability for the remainder of our daughters’ education. That stability would provide the foundation for us to pursue our goals in the near term and long term, built on the strength of our stronger-than-ever relationship. So, with that objective in mind, we started that conversation with my work, and they agreed. Although it took a little longer than planned, just over ten months after we set out on our journey to find rest for our souls, we have arrived in our new hometown, excited to plant roots and grow in a different way.
I believe God has been using my life up until this point to germinate the seed of my soul, and now we are ready for roots to grow and for the growth to be meaningful, impactful, and robust. God takes each of us on a journey every day and throughout life. It’s important to be mindful and consider what that journey is teaching us and how it is changing us.
My family’s journey over the past several years (but more specifically, over the past 12 months) has taught me that God is in control. There are so many uncertainties in life, but having community, connection, and capacity allows you to face those uncertainties and challenges with grace and peace. Without the rest and perspective this past year has gifted me, I would not be as confident in knowing that no matter what life throws at me, God is in control, and it will be okay. Sabbath brings that sort of eternal perspective back to our souls and can grant the peace that allows for both growth and joy.
My prayer is that our Sabbath rhythms would not be lost as we enter back into “real life,” but with some intentionality, I believe a weekly Sabbath will be sufficient to maintain our peace so that we don’t get to a point where we need a six-month rest. This past year, we went on a different kind of journey, one that has indelibly changed us for the better and prepared us for the next leg of our adventure.
