I’m sitting here… it’s early Sunday morning. And my mind has just been wandering back to the days when I lived in England. It’s been almost a year and a half since I last left… that’s hard to believe.

Looking back, I have changed so much since then. I miss those days. Living there was such a big part of who I am today… It was hard not to live there and wonder why I couldn’t be back in the States. Why was I living some 4000 miles away from where I was born? Why was I living in a culture that was so hugely different from the one I was raised in?

I never really understood why people thought it was so awesome that I lived in England or France. They were home to me… there was nothing all that special about them. Looking back, a year and a half down the road, I see that I couldn’t have been more wrong. I had the opportunity to live 13 years of my life in a place where most people never even get the chance to go to. I had the chance to grow up in three different cultures, not to mention see some 25 others from trips that I went on with my dad or my family. How many people get that amazing opportunity in their lives? Please don’t think I am being proud or boastful… sitting here now, I am just reflecting on the amazing blessings that God was giving me when I could care less about where I lived.

How often do I do that? How often do we take for granted where we live… and the opportunities that God places in front of us? I know I did a lot… and I still do. It’s easy to think, “I wish I was there right now” …or “If only I was with them right now.”

Don’t take for granted where God has you right now. Don’t overlook the blessings and opportunities He has placed before you by wishing the days away.. or by wishing yourself away.