I once heard a sermon given by Francis Schaeffer in which he counseled his listeners that if they were ever faced with two options, and one would lead to better pay, more fame, and greater recognition, while the other led to poverty and obscurity, we should choose the lesser and more humble of the two.

Why?

Francis Schaeffer based this statement on James 4:10: “Humble yourself in the sight of the Lord, and He will lift you up.”

Francis Schaeffer, of course, enjoyed much fame and popularity. He was a well-known author, and people traveled from all over the world to meet him and learn from him at  L’Abri in Switzerland. I wondered then, and I still wonder now: Did Schaeffer follow his own advice? Or was this just the advice he was offering now, after he had achieved world-wide recognition and fame?

It often seems to me that the only ones who say this are those who are already famous. Who are already published. Who have already “arrived.” They preach it at conferences where they have been asked to speak. They tell it to radio audiences.

I cannot help but wonder, “Did they choose the way of weakness to get where they are at? Did they follow the path of poverty? Did they humble themselves, and let God lift them up?”

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My wife’s name is “Wendy” which means “wanderer.”

So I blame her…

In our thirteen years of marriage, we have moved 12 times. Or is it 13 now? Who can keep count?

And no, we are not a military family. And no, we didn’t use a moving company. We did all the packing and unpacking ourselves, which is no small feat, especially since my books and her teaching materials fill over half a Ryder moving van all by themselves.

In all of those moves, we have learned a few things.

1. Don’t be a book lover or marry someone who loves books. It just makes moving more difficult. The number of books a person owns is a deal-breaker in love and marriage.
2. When nearing a move, stockpile cardboard boxes. They are worth their weight in gold. To help with this, become best friends with the Grocery Store manager, as he can help you score lots of big banana boxes.
3. Make friends with lots of weight-lifters. In a few of my moves, my only friends were weakling seminarians like me. Most of us have bad backs and cannot help you move.
4. Remember that just as there is a sock heaven, there is a movers heaven also. When you move, things that you had in your previous will somehow magically disappear during the move. You will empty every box in the new place, and the item will not be in any of them. Where did it go? Movers heaven.
5. Your new home will have “quirks.” In one place we moved into, the bathtub was filled with black sludge. In another, two hours after we got there and started unpacking, the city inspector showed up and condemned the house, so we had to pack everything back up and go get a hotel while we figured out what to do next. When these things happen, just laugh and enjoy the ride.

Those are some of the lighthearted things we have learned in our moves. Below are some of the more serious ones.
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