I know we won’t be renters for forever.

Or maybe we will.

Either way, I want to be thankful. Thankful for this time that we are enjoying and learning about the money God has given us and how He wants us to use it.

I also want to be thankful for the lesson He keeps having to remind me about: My identity should not be in anything but Christ.

A little over a year ago, I was without a job for nine months.  While part of my unemployment was by choice, there was still a longing for something to say when people asked me “So, what do you do for a living?”.

Through that season, God revealed to me my pride, and how I had put alot of self-worth into what I did for a living.

And sometimes I find myself slowly slipping back to that place, but instead of boasting that I’m employed, I want to shout say, I’m a homeowner.

So instead, for now I’ll choose to say proudly, I’m a renter, not because I’m prideful, but because I want to show gratitude that God has given us this place to call home and a beautiful community that surrounds us.

Living in a rental means that you’re probably living in less space than you would if you owned a home.

While our little place is more than enough space for the two of us, I love that we’re forced not to have too much excess {I can see G rolling his eyes at my ceramic animal collection now:)}  And even though we don’t plan on renting forever, I’m thankful this season is helping us keep things simple and defined to what we really love.

Hopefully, this is a lesson will keep reminding ourselves of daily, even when we have enough space for all my animal friends.

When you’re living in a rental, you may not always be able to change things.  While it can be frustrating to not have my particular aesthetic playing throughout my home, it forces me to be creative with what I can work with – the layout of our furniture, the colors that we bring with our decor, and other ways I try to make our home feel just like that – a home.

Over the last few months I’ve started to key into what I really love, things like open spaces and natural light, and things I may not love so much, specifically tile floor and dark walls.

Use the time that you’ve been given to learn what you like!