Ellen - Ellen Chauvin | Soaked & Sprouting

From Homesick to Home: Stranger

January 22, 2026 by Ellen Leave a Comment

NOTE: This is the blog that started it all. I realized I was a stranger, just like Abraham. I was Longing to Belong in the aftermath of my Mama’s death. Writing this blog led me on a journey through grief and to the other side, the better side. God showed me the better things He has in store for us. He gave me hope in the midst of grief.

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Slow tears trickled down my face. I watched the pallbearers carry Mama ever so gently up the steps into the white clapboard church she called home.

The hot July day would have been unbearable if I had noticed it. I did not. I was in a fog, depending on the grace of God to get me through the next few hours.

I could hardly put one foot in front of the other; it felt like I was walking through a river of mud. Struggling. But there were things to do. People and family to greet. Slowly, they arrived, their murmured condolences not even beginning to comfort my grieving heart.

Her service was beautiful! Exactly what she would have wanted. Mama’s pastor told us about her love for Jesus and explained the plan of salvation. Her church family fed us after the funeral, hugged us, and loved on us. They told us how much she would be missed. Oh, how well I knew!

One bittersweet scene replays in my mind. On a whiteboard in the church choir room, these words:

Ann Eason

July 28, 2011

Oh, happy day!

Oh…happy…day. I was trying, but my heart was broken. It’s a hard thing to lose a mama. She was the glue that held our family together. What now?

My heart was in Mississippi. My family was there. It felt like home. For the first time in thirty years, I felt like a stranger in Louisiana.

I didn’t belong here…or there. I was homesick. For Mama. For the family time we had shared. For home – wherever that may be. Nothing felt the same – like someone had re-arranged the furniture. Familiar, but not quite right.

Stranger. Sojourner. Exile.

Like Abraham.

Genesis 23:2-4 Sarah died in Kiriath-arba (that is, Hebron) in the land of Canaan; and Abraham went in to mourn for Sara and to weep for her. Then Abraham rose from before his dead, and spoke to the sons of Heth, saying, “I am a stranger and a sojourner among you; give me a burial site among you that I may bury my dead out of my sight.”

Abraham and Sarah had been living in Canaan for many years before Sarah died. Yet Abraham felt like a stranger.

The original Hebrew use of the word “stranger” indicates an alien – someone living in a strange land among strange people. These strangers did not identify with the group among whom they were living. Yep, that was me.

Why didn’t Abraham return to his homeland if he felt like a stranger in Canaan?

We’re told in Genesis 12:1-2 ‘Now the Lord said to Abram, ‘Go forth from your country, and from your relatives and from your father’s house, to the land which I will show you: and I will make you a great nation…’

God sent Abraham to Canaan. Abraham was seventy-five when he obediently left his homeland. He didn’t question God or ask “Why?” He just went, based on God’s word and promise. The Lord put Abraham there for His purposes, and Abraham chose to stay, and grow, and make a life where God had placed him.

When the Lord moves you into a strange land, it could be your place of promise.

If this was Abraham’s land of promise, why did he feel like a stranger after so many years there?

Abraham knew—deep in his heart—what I was beginning to understand after Mama’s death: This earth is not my home. I am a stranger here, a temporary resident.

“For he (Abraham) was looking for the city which has foundations, whose architect and builder is God.” Hebrew 11:10

My heart ached for this city created by God. My whole being longed for it. I’d never felt this more acutely than after Mama’s death. This longing that wouldn’t go away, that stayed months after my grief had subsided, was a longing for my real home, my heavenly home.

Abraham stayed in Canaan, even though he was a stranger, even though he grieved his wife, Sarah. He was able to endure this grief in a strange land because he kept his eyes on the city that God was building for him. Abraham’s hope was in the Lord God.

Have you ever suffered a loss and suddenly felt like a stranger—out of place and homesick? Let this promise from God’s word comfort you:

“If I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again and receive you to Myself, that where I am, there you may be also.” John 14:3 (NASB)

Jesus Himself is preparing a place for us! In the meantime, we must live as strangers here on earth.

“For we know that if the earthly tent which is our house is torn down, we have a building from God, a house not made with hands, eternal in the heavens. For indeed in this house we groan, longing to be clothed with our dwelling from heaven.” 2 Corinthians 5:1-2

If you find yourself in the midst of grief, Longing to Belong: Filling the Longings of our Heart with the Hope of Home can help!

Stop Doing, Start Becoming

January 13, 2026 by Ellen Leave a Comment

Frank Sinatra and his contemporaries are some of my favorite singers. However, Frank Sinatra had it wrong on Strangers In The Night. He says, “Do be do be dooooo.” Take a listen here, if you’re not familiar with the song (especially at around the 2:20 mark).

The words should say “Be do be do beeee.” Why? Because when we stop doing, we start becoming.

Everyone rushes around at the beginning of a new year to make resolutions, set goals, or set intentions. But what’s the difference?

A resolution is a decision to do, or not to do, something. It’s a promise you make to yourself. It generally has no specific time frame for change. And, let’s be honest: We set resolutions, but after about two weeks, we forget them. Resolution? What resolution? They are only a list of things I want to do, but never do! Raise your hand if you feel the same way!

A goal is an outcome that has a short- or long-term timeline. Goals need a specific plan of action to complete. They have specific outcomes you aim to achieve.

Intentions focus more on mindset or feelings. They are our determination to act in a certain way. Intentions can lead to more sustained personal growth. Intentions can be your guide. They can help you complete your goals. They can help you grow into the woman God intends you to be.

Did you see it? INTENDS YOU TO BE.

You must first pray and determine the person you want to BE (and who God wants you to be). Then, you can DO things to help you get there.

Here are some examples:

DO: I want to lose 15 pounds.
BE: I intend to be healthy.
- Goals to help me get there:
  - Eat lighter meals, no sugar, no processed foods
  - Exercise 3-4 times per week
DO: I want to write.
BE: I intend to be a writer who writes for the glory of God.
- Goals to help me get there:
  - Write regular blog posts
  - Brainstorm book ideas
  - Set aside daily time to write
DO: I want to read the Bible in a year.
BE: I intend to grow in my spiritual life.
- Goals to help me get there:
  - Read my Bible daily.
  - Pray without ceasing.
  - Cultivate godly friendships.
  - Establish an attitude of gratitude.

The goal is not to do so much that our lives overflow with busyness. The goal is to become.

As James Clear (Atomic Habits) said in his weekly e-mail:

“Improvements are only temporary until they become part of who you are.

The goal is not to read a book; the goal is to become a reader.

The goal is not to run a marathon; the goal is to become a runner.

The goal is not to learn an instrument; the goal is to become a musician.

Every action you take is a vote for the type of person you wish to become. No single instance will transform your beliefs, but as the votes build up, so does the evidence of your new identity.

This year, focus on the identity you want to build.”

So, let’s make this resolution:

Whereas the term resolution has become increasingly associated with a lack of action,

Resolved, that we, as God’s children, intend to STOP setting resolutions.

Resolved, that we intend to BE the women God calls us to be.

Resolved, that we intend to stop doing and start becoming.

Now, go, pray, and set your intentions. Then, set some goals to help you get there! You’ve got this!