Rural Women Rock

This post is going to be a little bit different than my usual ones.  Normally, I like to hide in my posts.  I like to tell stories of my fabulous husband or my adorable kids.  I like to be the one who writes and takes pictures.  However, I've been feeling God call me to step out of my comfort zone lately.  I guess there is something about being out in the open, transparent that makes me depend on Him more.  So, I signed up to be featured on a blog  called Rural Women Rock (www.ruralwomenrock.blogspot.com).  The post below is my story of how God called my family to the prairie.

Growing up in suburbia, I never imagined myself being where I am today.  If someone would have told me that I would marry a rancher's son turned pastor and live in the middle of the prairie, I would have laughed.  Why?  I had no idea what rural was all about.  Instead, I was going to be a successful lawyer with a big house and fancy car in the burbs.  I guess God had different plans for me because here I am, 100 miles from the nearest McDonald's (this is an important fact when you have kids), married to a wonderful man and the mother of two really sweet, kind and fun children. 

I have to admit that I am not one of those gals who love everything about living in a rural place.  I do NOT love driving 100 miles to have a baby, especially when my labor goes fast and we get stuck behind a tractor.  I REALLY do not love small town politics and I absolutely, HATE being in the spotlight.  I'd rather blend in and be a number.  About 99.9% of my wardrobe is black because I like to avoid standing out in a crowd. 

But, these things are minor compared to what I have gained from rural life.  I have been given opportunities to become bolder and stand up for myself, because in a small town, you can't just avoid the people you don't like, you have to ultimately work out your differences and for me, this means learning to not be someone else's doormat.

I love knowing and caring for each person in my church.  My husband and I often comment how much it means to be a part of the lives of those in our church.  We are privileged to walk alongside of them.  I have been one of the first people to know when a young couple is expecting a child they thought they could not have, and I have been one of the first to know when a dear saint of our church family has passed away.  The relationships we have been able to form have blessed us beyond measure and they have shaped us to be more like Christ.   In essence, I love the relationships that being a part of a rural community has given me.  It wasn't until I moved to a small, rural town that I fully understood the bond that comes with this type of community.  I am so thankful for it. 

Most of all, I love wide open skies and seeing just a glimpse of God's magnitude in the prairie sunsets.  I moved to the prairie as a freshman in college, not knowing a soul.  I had only been to ND one other time in my life and that was for the college tour.  On weekends, when all of my friends would return home and home was too far for me, I spent hours by myself looking out onto the prairie landscape, talking to God.  The wide open fields and the insanely beautiful sunsets reminds me that I am a part of something much bigger than my own little selfish life.

So, fellow rural women, this is my story.  Actually, it is God's story.  Because God called me, I live on the prairie.  He has given me the gift of growing closer to Him through lessons and experiences that only a rural place could provide.  Yes, Rural Woman, You Rock.  I am proud to be among such a strong group of women.  But, I am even prouder to serve the One who has called me to such a unique landscape. 

Thank you for reading my story.  It is now time for me to crawl back into my comfort zone of anonymity!  Blessings to you all!