God seems to love changing his mind.

Remember what happened in Genesis?

GOD: Abraham, kill your firstborn, Isaac.
ABE: Okay!
GOD: Abraham, don’t kill your firstborn, Isacc.
ABE: Okay!
ISAAC: What just happened?!

Or what happened in 1 Samuel?

GOD: Saul will be king.
SAUL: Aw, yis.
GOD: David will be king.
SAUL: What just happened?!

Or even in the Gospels?

GOD: Jesus, you will die.
JESUS: Got it.
GOD: Jesus, you will live.
JESUS: I like this plan.
EVERYONE: What just happened?!

Please note that I don’t say these things to be sacreligious, but look up at my tagline and it includes “most holy irreverence.” I’m a Christian, but I love to laugh.

Why am I talking about this?

Five months ago, I left my twenty-eight-year Midwest home and traveled to Denver because God told me to go on an adventure.

Last week, God told me to pack up and go to Twin Falls, Idaho.

What just happened?!

It seemed to make no sense. We JUST got here. The whole point was to be on our own in a place only God could support us. Now God is telling us–quite vehemently–to get thee gone to Idaho, where my parents are now living. So…back to square one?

And yet I can’t deny it. My wife and I hit a crisis of faith on July 31st due to our circumstances. August 1st, my Mom came to visit. Knowing nothing of our situation, she offered the perfect solution. Why? “God’s been telling me and your father that this is what you should do.”

My parents have an incredible connection with God and my mother has the gift of prophecy (she could tell when I was doing something I shouldn’t have been, but couldn’t tell the winning lottery numbers, dagnabbit), so if they say they’ve heard from God, you listen! Then my younger brother also gave a random encouragement that fit our situation. Then my wife just happened upon a Bible verse that fit perfectly.

But it seemed too perfect, too easy. God calls us to be strong, not comfortable, after all. So we sat down to hear it from God himself. Three seconds into my prayer time, God essentially said, “Look, do you want this golden opportunity or not?”

It’s so crazy that it just might be sane.

Despite all the rough times we’ve had, I never felt like we made a mistake coming to Denver. It got us out and on our own, sharpening our faith.

But more than that, since all their kids had moved so far west (my brother is in Utah), my parents had no reason to stay in St. Louis and my dad’s job was starting to stink. Suddenly one opened up in Idaho and they could move without fear.

The only hangup was my aging Granddad. However, he decided to sell his house and move to Minnesota to be with my aunt. Her daughter, my cousin, called me one day with some serious woes. I felt God telling her to follow our example to Colorado. She agreed in part because Granddad coming made things crowded, and now she’s following God out west.

Back to my parents. Falling in love with Twin Falls, Idaho, my parents bragged about how nice the place was and told us plenty about it, showing us pictures, and even suggesting a certain house.

Enter our crisis of faith. Suddenly all those praises are fitting our situation perfectly. Suddenly that three-bedroom house is more affordable than my one-bedroom apartment (Denver is so, so expensive). And since my cousin is coming to Denver, she may be able to take over my wife’s job, allowing her a better income than she is currently expecting.

This all happened in a matter of five days, and I haven’t given all the details. It’s like dumping out a puzzle and having all the pieces land in perfect order.

So not quite flip-flopping.

I said before that it seems God changes his mind, but the truth is his plans aren’t as permanent as we think sometimes. God never intended for Abraham to kill Isaac; he just wanted Abraham to demonstrate his faith for his sake and for everyone who read his story.

God made Saul king, but it was conditional upon his being a good one. Saul failed, so God removed the privilege. And we all know Jesus died specifically so he could rise again.

As for me, my coming to Denver seems to have been for my spiritual benefit as well as the catalyst for my parents, my Granddad, and my cousin. But it’s true God never said we’d live here forever, or even very long.

Frankly, I’m glad. I hate to malign Denver, but we just can’t see a future here. Twin Falls seems more promising for our specific needs.

However, I need to be sure not to grow my roots too deep. God’s plans may yet have some surprises. After all, this Earth is not my home. I’m just passing through.