"conventional" wisdom

I'll be leaving Seattle this afternoon and travelling back home. The convention I've been attending is for my work with our county's drug court program. It'a a program where instead of sending some alcohol and drug offenders to prison, we place them in an intensely supervised treatment program, where they appear in court on a regular basis. It's a part of my job that I really enjoy, because I see it as a good example of a Biblically based combination of justice and mercy. It's been an interesting conference, but I've found myself not "here" for most of the week. My mind has been a mix of longing for home and enjoying the interesting combination of urban life and natural beauty of downtown Seattle. I've found myself thinking that a place like this would be a fun place to live, a place to enjoy the concept of walking down the street with my iPod on and a cup of Starbuck's in my hand. It has been fun, and it's definitely a place that I hope to return to someday to visit further.
But in the midst of this enjoyment of this place, there has been a longing to be home. A longing to be back with my family. I've said it in the previous entries - that getting out of your routine does give you a new perspective on things. It's re-energized me a little bit and it's certainly caused me to enjoy the glory of God's creation that exists in the Pacific Northwest. Now, as I take that new energy and new appreciation back home (on a long and late nite flight), it's my prayer that those things will travel back with me. That God will have used this time away to draw me closer to Him back home as well.
It will be tough..... going back to work after time away is hard. Perhaps, that even more, will cause me to rely on Him and realize that nothing can be done on my own strength.