A time for everything
There is a time for everything,
and a season for every activity under heaven:
a time to be born and a time to die,
a time to plant and a time to uproot…
He has made everything beautiful in its time.
Ecclesiastics 3:1-2, 11
Miranda Harris once showed me this poem, scrawled in the front cover of her Bible:
Willingly transplanted,
I still suffered the shock of new soil.
But I have discovered that
Rooted in Christ
I can grow in any place
This poem put into words the hearts of Peter and Miranda’s move from the first A Rocha site in Portugal to new and uncharted territory in southern France in 1997. After a year of transplant shock, recovery, and, now, re-planting, I find no better words explain my heart.
However willing the change, the shock of new soil is often very real. The process of transplanting to a new place and new job was hard last fall. Through the faithful friendship of my A Rocha coworkers, prayer, and a healing visit back home, I found my place in the A Rocha France community. My roots grew deeper as I thrived in my new season of life, and transition gave way to joy in meaningful relationships and work.
Now, a new season is on the horizon. Once again, I willingly uproot and transplant, this time to Harrisburg, Pennsylvania. I am happy to have a place to live and to be in the same time-zone as friends and family. The job search continues, and the season is young. But the past year with A Rocha has taught me that “rooted in Christ, I can grow in any place.”
