For those who don’t know: this summer I left Dallas Christian College, and this past week I accepted a position with the Biblical Institute of Zagreb (Croatia).

So Beth and I are moving to Croatia THIS WEEK. Leaving this Friday, arriving in Zagreb some 18 hours later, via Frankfurt. Beth is staying for a week, and then returning to DFW.  I will be staying in Zagreb until mid-December, and then we’ll make the big move in January.  (Josh is staying here, finishing up his last year at Dallas Christian College.)

The job wasn’t official until this past Tuesday afternoon; that’s right, from accepting the job to leaving for Croatia, TEN DAYS. Does that sound like a whirlwind? It has been.

As you might imagine, there have been some stressful moments as we’re getting ready to make this big move (though fewer than you might expect.) Last night, my mind processed a bit of this with the following dream.

I dreamed I was one of those crazy people who free-fell with a parachute from a weather ballon over the past couple of years, from miles above the earth. (You’ve seen those news stories, haven’t you?  Watch the video, or google “Alan Eustace” or “Felix Baumgartner”.)  In the dream, I was in the capsule on the weather balloon, worrying about passing out, worrying about deploying my chute at the correct height, …

And then I was on the ground in Croatia. I didn’t actually dream about the fall or see the ground rushing toward me. I just dreamed about the preparation, and the result (a safe landing.)

When I awakened this morning, the meaning of the dream immediately came to my mind: GOD’S GOT THIS. Even when it feels out of control, when the ground seems to be rushing toward me at terminal velocity and I’m not sure when I’m supposed to pull the rip cord, God is in control of this thing.

There has been so much confirmation of God’s hand in this, God moving behind it.

• For the last couple of years, God has in several small ways shown us that we weren’t in DFW for the long haul.
  • We tried to buy a house and kept getting outbid.
  • I lost a job that I thought I would have for the rest of my life.
  • In spite of serious, full-time effort at finding jobs after I lost that job, neither of us has been able to secure “permanent” employment.  (Although God has provided plenty of part-time / temporary work, so that our needs and obligations are met.)
• The job in Croatia wasn’t on my radar AT ALL.
• I didn’t even apply for the job in Croatia, I applied for a different job (stateside) with a related institution, but the board looked at my CV and said, “You’re what we need in this other area. You want to move to Croatia?”
• When I asked Beth if she wanted to talk to them about moving to Croatia–I thought her answer would be NO!–she said, “Sure, that makes sense.”
• The board has been incredibly accommodating, giving us everything we need.
• The lease on our apartment expires at just the right time for us to make the big move in January.
• Almost the minute we realized that we needed to sell one of our vehicles–my beloved pickup–someone volunteered to buy it.

And he has provided in a dozen other ways, as well.

Now: this doesn’t mean that we aren’t stressed.  I had a second dream last night, one of those classic insecurity dreams.

In my second dream, I was speaking at a church about the work Croatia and I found myself in the worship service, getting ready to go up, but I was wearing workout clothes.  (If you preach or lecture as part of your job, that’s a classic insecurity dream–being inappropriately dressed for a sermon / presentation.)

The stress (the second dream) is natural.  What’s supernatural is the confidence from the first dream: GOD’S GOT THIS.  And he does.