There’s a phrase in real estate: “Location, location, location.” A little out-of-date house can become more valuable when it sits in a desirable neighborhood. Location is the major factor. 

The places where Jan and I have lived increased in significance, but for a more important reason than just location. Our many moves to homes in cities, three states, and two overseas moves made us particularly sensitive to spiritual environments. Hearing a word from the Lord became key. Transitions, small and large, shook out personal assumptions. Preferences carried far less weight.

In 1994, we were faced with making a big decision that would upend the trajectory of our family. We wrestled with making such a big change and how it would affect those we cared about deeply. To obey God meant it is was going to cost others. It would upset their plans and hopes.

We wrestled with needing to “land” in the right location. A lot was at stake and we could not afford to get it wrong. One morning, in the middle of my mental tug-of-war, I heard the Lord say: “I have not called you to a place. I’ve called you to my Presence.”

I was reminded of what I had spoken to the Lord some years before from a passage in Exodus 33:15. Like Moses, I told Him, “I won’t go without your Presence.” I knew He was always with me, but I was telling Him that He was Lord. I was following Him, not the other way around. That reminder filled me with peace.

Location will always be highly important. But top priority on our list is to wait on Peace Himself. Unless we hear from Him, Jan and I won’t make a move. We exchange our fear of making a wrong decision for His love. When time is up and we have to make a decision, we follow the greatest peace.