Process

Now that my husband and I finally agree about moving, what is the Process by which we can make this change happen? How did Abraham do it in the Bible? I made a note to reread the story of Abraham’s journey out of Ur. I have a feeling Ur was a little like Westchester County, New York. As I began to seriously contemplate moving out of a house that I had lived in a very long time there were a lot of things to do.

First and foremost, I wanted to make sure that I was going to make this move as a godly Christian woman ought to. That means that prayer was essential and sincerely seeking God’s path out of this place the goal. Honesty, patience, and other Christian virtues need to predominate my Process. 

I have seen many a sensible friend become absolutely unhinged in the process of buying or selling their home. Their emotions were up and down with every new development in their real estate process. They spent huge amounts of time angry and stressed out. Angry with their real estate agent, the prospective buyer or even about the weather. I know that the best way to avoid this is by keeping God central to the Process. Didn’t Abraham? 

But would we seriously move out of Westchester County without considering an inter-county move first? The reason that I say that is because we love our church very much. We love our Pastor, and the stalwart group of christian soldiers that make up that group of remnant believers. There are many special people there that I would pack and take along with me if I could.

So, we started to look for homes that were in close proximity to our church. Since our church is located further away from New York City than our current house, we were hoping that the house prices would reflect that. But, all the normal rules of Westchester County real estate have changed since Wuhan took Manhattan.      

Throngs of people desperate to escape the virus and its’ aftermath left the island of Manhattan and its’ neighbor Brooklyn and made a beeline straight for Westchester County and its’ environs. The market was hot, hot, hot. Prices soared amid this panic. There were a number of cases of people who bought houses sight unseen after a video tour of the house. 

Lines of socially distant people cued up for homes that were on the market. With their masks, hand-sanitizers and bank letters in hand they were ready for business. As a result, many bidding wars ensued making for insane money being spent on mere hovels on busy streets. It instantly became a sellers market and people who thought they would never unload their distressed properties suddenly found that they were in the money. Fortunes were being made for retirees who had not saved a dime and felt rewarded for this bad behavior.

I poured out my heart to God everyday in prayer as we started our relocation process. I told our Heavenly Father that I wanted the plans that he had for us. I wanted the place that He wanted for us. And, I wanted to acknowledge Him continually as we went on this journey. I was afraid of change but, I wanted to be more like Abraham. Now the Lord had said to Abram: “Get out of your country, from your family and from your father’s house, to a land that I will show you- Genesis 12:1.

I remember the thoughts that I have had over the years, as I examined Abraham’s story. I wondered how someone could have the kind of faith that would allow them to leave everything that they knew and go to a destination that they did not yet know. Did I have that kind of faith? How do we make godly decisions as we look for a new home? 

We became acquainted with the various real estate portals. I would identify various properties that I liked or that I thought that my husband would like. We would then discuss the pros and cons of each property. This clarified what things we were both looking for and culminated in our property wish list.      

During this time of house hunting,, many changes were occurring in the State of New York. The talk of tax increases were constant. The philosophy behind increasing taxes in one of the most taxed counties in the United States seemed punitive. Punitive towards those who had worked hard, saved money and bought homes. It seemed hostile to those who had worked and struggled to build this county and make it thrive. 

But, the tide had turned and people in this county now endorsed this Marxist personal property downgrade. As a result, houses in my county are over-priced, with a hefty and ever-growing tax bill. That does not even include the increased regulations on every facet of owning a Westchester home that result in constant permit payments and inspections for the most ridiculous things.  

Then, there is the spiritual element. Westchester County, is now Manhattan north. The encroaching Babylon has made life very difficult for believers in this County. I have seen more and more people hostile to the things of God then ever before.This is mission territory. However, since the events of the pandemic have unfolded, a hard-heartedness seems to have overtaken the area. 

When the people of Westchester County were faced with their own mortality they became like a pack of rats. It was and still is not pretty. Our Lord taught us, that we would know people by the fruit they produced in their life. With that standard in mind, it is pretty clear that Christian values are dead here. Is that what Ur was like when Abraham left it?  I have often wondered. After leaving Ur, Abraham camped outside of the cities of Sodom and Gomorrah. He somehow managed to escape the evil vortex that entrapped his nephew Lot and his family by keeping close to God and far away from sin. 

In the process of our life, we will often have to step out in faith. But, what is the source of our faith? Is it ourselves alone, popular opinion or is it the Lord, God Almighty? For Abraham, with all the ups and downs, twists and turns of his life, he trusted in the Lord. After he left his home in Ur, Abraham lived in a tent for the rest of his life. When we ask God to bless us in whatever process we happen to be in, we can be certain that God will be with us. We can not be certain that everything will turn out the way that we thought it would, or wished it would. If we trust in God, everything will fall into place no doubt the way it really should.

Change

Blogging about trying to live the Christian life in Westchester County, New York has been cathartic for me. Along with prayer, bible study and fellowship it has allowed me to navigate the tough road of being a Christian in this post-Christian environment. As I chronicled the behaviors and the practices of this anti-Christian bastion of New York State it helped me gain perspective on how to live the Christian life, including trying to reach the lost for Jesus.

Sometimes you have to see the alternative before you understand how good that God really is. New York is a type of Sodom and Gomorrah if not a full-blown recreation of it. Mankind from age to age continually builds and rebuilds the institutions that represent good and evil. These institutions no doubt represent the battle between God and Satan. 

I love the way all along the Bible tells you the epic story of good vs. evil and how we fit into it. God tells us the truth of this life and he shows us a way toward being saved from it. On the spiritual and non-visible level we know that God had a plan from the beginning to vanquish evil (Genesis 3:15-And I will put enmity between thee and the woman, and between thy seed and her seed; it shall bruise thy head, and thou shalt bruise his heel). On the purely physical level we know from a young age that we have freedom to choose a good or a bad action. Our family, community, and nations reflect those chooses.

I know how Noah felt as he built his boat. He saw the evil increase and amid this he was trying to build a safe haven for the things of God. I also think he longed to escape from all the evil around him. There came a time when God told him that it was time to get into that boat and be saved. Noah may not have understood everything going on as he tried to follow God’s will but, as time went on, things became clear. 

It is a funny thing when you see biblical truths unfolding in your own life. I can scarcely believe how the Bible stories have been my story over and over again. Why should I be surprised? Wasn’t it King Solomon, the wise king who said that there is nothing new under the sun? We think or would like to think that our life is so unique. Yet, we live in the sea of humanity where situations continually repeat themselves. 

I find my time in Westchester County readily explainable by comparisons with the story of Lot, or the story of Noah. Because, in those stories we see believer’s lives intruded upon by the deep and scarlet stain of sin which only Jesus can clean. What was it that attracted Lot and his family to the places of Sodom and Gomorrah. His wife could not help but look back. Perhaps, even though it was full of evil goings-on it also had the best food, entertainment and amenities. 

For me, I was searching for the best school systems and quality of life for my family. I thought the best SAT scores and Ivy League admissions rates were worth my move to Westchester. Little did I see what was coming. A school system that would utterly reject as evil the Judeo-Christian ethic and instead turn its’ students into walking/talking Marxist agitators. I found myself fighting battles that were continually going against me. It was clear that people utterly rejected God and had knowingly put other things on the throne that goes to our God. 

Yes, Westchester County was a close commute to New York City making it close to work locations and cultural amenities. I thought New York was the center of the universe until I made Jesus the center of my universe. The attitude that I have ran into in Westchester County is of a people proud of rejecting the institutions and moral values of all that is holy. There is an arrogance that comes along with this attitude. “Then answered all the people, and said, His blood be on us, and on our children”-Matthew 27:25.

After a lifetime of living in New York, I have had enough. Every time that I traveled  to locations with a higher concentration of believers I would ask God if I should move to that location. I always felt that the answer was no. I fervently believed and still do that God had called me to spread the gospel on a daily basis in New York. Yet, as the events of the past year unfolded, I felt that God had finally called me out of this environment. My husband had finally seen this same vision of change and we began to think and contemplate a move. Where would it be? Also, we are not exactly the adventurous types, so stay tuned.