In July of 2015, my wife, son and I tearfully said goodbye to friends, family, and most of all, my daughter. My wife, son and I made a trek from the Hoosier Heartland of Pendleton, Indiana to the Sonoran Desert and Scottsdale, Arizona. It was our first big move for my family. Neither my wife nor I lived more than one hundred miles from our birthplaces. Why on earth would we do such a thing? There was one big reason why we did this.
Why we didn’t do this
We didn’t do it because We wanted to leave anyone or anything. We loved our workplaces, the people in them, our friends and family. In effect, our lives were comfortably good.
We didn’t do it because we had it planned. This wasn’t in our dreams until my wife received a call about this position.
We didn’t do it because we had things all figured out. In fact, we still don’t have it figured out. I am working freelance while I determine what is my next career move. We still have a trailer in Indiana loaded with all our stuff. We lost a vehicle along the way. Well, we didn’t lose it, but it decided it didn’t want to go any further. Do you know those old movies where a guy stumbles over a cow skull in the desert? I picture someone doing that to my old van right now.
So why did we do this?
My wife and I did this because we felt called to the children’s ministry at McDowell Mountain Community Church. There are three times when I’ve felt so sure about something:
- When I felt called to use my writing and drawing skills to educate and inspire children.
- When I knew Paula was to become Mrs. Spear
- When I felt my wife wasn’t supposed to go back to school for a teaching degree (much to her ire). That led to her becoming the children’s pastor for North Anderson Church of God.
I can’t explain a calling, except that it’s a powerful feeling. So now we’ve traded cornfields for cacti, meadows for mountains and grassy lawns for mesquite trees. I’m excited to see what the future holds!
4 replies on “Why on Earth would we move from Indiana to Arizona?”
I hope for many, many blessings concerning your new home! They Holy Spirit
moves us sometimes, and it’s not till quite a while later we look back and
see it made perfect sense. May God continue to guide you and your
family in His service!
Thank you very much. It’s a journey, and one well worth it!
Kevin-Curious how the move and adjustment went. I currently live in Pendleton, IN. During my only trip to AZ, I fell in love with the warmth, sun, and scenery. Contemplating a move and investigating jobs, but we are looking for more south than you-maybe Chandler or San Tan Valley area. Advice or regrets you would like to pass along?
I would say my one regret is I didn’t have a plan when we got out here. Thankfully, my wife has a great job with a wonderful church. But I had no idea how hard it would be to just move into an area and have very few connections. Tempe, Chandler, and Gilbert are great areas with booming companies. My one piece of advice is to network as soon as possible and have interviews ready before you arrive here. Otherwise, I would heartily recommend it.