Reflecting on a Strong Semester

Post #6 of Sarah’s Post-It Note Inspirations Blog Series

Life Update: I am happy to announce I have finished the fall semester of my junior year. Only three more semesters left of my college career! I rank this semester as my best on-campus semester, and I have a feeling that this upcoming spring semester is going to be a contender for the best as well. Why? What is making these semesters of my junior year so great? Well, I can name a number of reasons, some of which include: I love my on-campus living situation, I have a great group of friends and good relationships with my family members, I have a solid class load, I enjoy my job, I have time to pursue my other passions like writing and fitness, and I am grounded in a strong faith (with a ton of room to grow of course). But taking this a little deeper, the reasoning behind my strong semester is closely tied to these three phases:

Live boldly – Just because it is outside the norm doesn’t mean you shouldn’t do it.

Looking back on not only this semester, but on the entire year of 2016 (which includes my semester abroad in Spain, a summer at home, and this past fall semester on-campus), I can see that I have discovered more about myself in one year than I ever have before. I have learned more about my passions and how I want to pursue them. I have readjusted my goals for the rest of my college career and for thereafter. Although I have not mastered it yet, I am learning how to not get caught up in the day-to-day tasks and what everyone else is doing. I am learning how to not hold back, and to really go after these passions and goals that I am continuously setting. I am learning that God has big plans, some exhilarating, some outside of my comfort zone, but nonetheless, I am following His plans faithfully.  

I am slowly becoming the person God has created me to be, and isn’t that what He wants for all of us?

Walking in His plans, I have decided to pursue the opportunity to study and intern in London the fall semester of 2017. I understand that the opportunity to go abroad for a second semester is not common, but I am walking in this idea of living boldly, and following the passions and goals God has placed on my heart. I am sure I will have much more to say about this as the time comes closer, but as for right now, these are my plans!

Push yourself – Hard work does pay off.

Again, looking at the year of 2016 as a whole, I have learned how much hard work really does pay off. This semester especially I have seen the fruit from my hard work come to life right in front of my eyes. This doesn’t always happen. Sometimes, we really do work hard, but we don’t see the reward from our hard work right away. I have seen this happen as well in more ways than one. Therefore, I can confidently say that yes, hard work does pay off, and that if we continue to challenge ourselves, we will reap the benefits in the future. These benefits will not only affect ourselves, but also, impact others and help build His kingdom.

Don’t settle – It’s ok to be uncomfortable.

This phrase “don’t settle” in essence means “not to settle for anything but the best,” but to me, it also means that it’s ok to be uncomfortable, to go outside your comfort zone. Comfort is always one of the biggest things holding me back, but then I remember the good things that have come out of going out of my comfort zone in the past, both in big and small ways. Not settling also connects back to the two ideas of living boldly and pushing yourself. All three of these ideas together inspire us to live the way He is truly calling us to, and to inspire and touch people along the way.

With this inspiration in mind, I have decided to pursue a marathon training class this upcoming spring semester. In hopes of completing my goal of running a marathon, this class will push me and challenge me, and definitely get me out of my comfort zone of casual running just to clear my head. This class will impact my semester greatly, and I know there will be difficult days, but on those days, I hope to remember the importance of pushing myself and being uncomfortable.

I understand that I am at a young age and at this point in my life, I have endless opportunities in front of me. I understand that many people my age don’t have as many opportunities as I do. I also understand that those past this stage of life don’t have as many opportunities as me either. For that reason, I am even more grateful for the many opportunities God has placed in front of me, and I am motivated to pursue the opportunities He is calling me to with all of my heart. I also keep in mind the perspective of why I am doing what I am doing: To glorify Him and to develop and use my gifts to help others. However, no matter where you are in life, I believe we are all called to live boldly, to push ourselves, and to not settle. I believe we are all called to live a life greater than we can ever imagine. 

Thankful for vs. Thankful to

A Break from Sarah’s Post-It Note Inspirations Series to Give Thanks

In honor of this season of thanksgiving, I wanted to write a post to recognize some of the things I am thankful for. Now, you must understand that it is not possible for me to list everything I am thankful for, but here is the brief list I came up with that I wanted to highlight in this blog post:

I am thankful for:

I am thankful for the things that bring me happiness and joy, the three core being my faith, my family and my friends. I am thankful for these meaningful relationships with God and with the many people in my life. I am thankful for all the opportunities God has blessed me with, including my school, my job and my extracurricular activities. I am thankful for my passion of writing. I am thankful for learning. I am thankful for running. I am thankful for all my basic needs that are met every day.

I am even thankful for the hard things, for the people and circumstances that hurt me. I am thankful for the situations that left me with bruises that heal, and scars that don’t. I am thankful for suffering, because I know that in suffering, He uses me and I see His power work.

The difference between thankful for and thankful to: 

In my opinion, there is a difference between the phrases thankful for and thankful to. Switching the preposition gives the phrase a different, more intimate, meaning. I can be thankful for pretty much anything, but I can only be thankful to people, more specifically, very special people. In fact, without these people, many things on my thankful for list would not exist.

Similar to my thankful for list, it is not possible for me to list all of the people I am thankful to, although I very much wish I could. But instead, it has been placed on my heart to use the rest of this blog post to recognize just three groups of people that have really helped me this fall semester. The following are three groups of people I am very thankful to:

I am thankful to:

My family 

Thank you for encouraging me to work hard and pursue my passions, and for providing me with both the courage and the opportunities I need to succeed. Thank you for knowing me more than anyone else in this world. Thank you for walking with me through hard times, and celebrating with me during accomplishments. Thank you for shaping me and for making such a powerful impact on my life.

My roommates 

Thank you for being the biggest blessings of my entire semester. Thank you for allowing me to know what it feels like to live with best friends, and for showing me what it means to love and support each other every day. Thank you for providing a safe, comfortable and most of all fun environment to live in, and for providing a listening ear whenever I need it.

Mis amigas españolas

Thank you for understanding the most life-changing adventure of my life, and for helping me be the best person I can be. Thank you for listening to my struggles. Thank you for remembering Spain with me and for helping me to express my emotions, passions and goals as we go through our daily lives here on campus. Thank you for creating friendships that will last a lifetime.

A Reminder: On the Good Days & the Bad Days, He Gives You Strength

Post #5 of Sarah’s Post-It Note Inspirations Blog Series

You know those days when you feel you have it all together? You wake up with confidence and a smile on your face, and you feel more than ready to face the day. Even if you have a lot to do, you feel as if you have it all under control. You feel you have everything you need for it to be a great day.  

Then there are those other days, when you feel ill-prepared and inadequate to face the world. On these days, you may feel doubtful about the circumstances ahead, and unsure of how the day is going to go. You feel as if you don’t have the resources or the confidence to begin the day. It’s almost as though you wish you could start the day over before it has even started.  

In both scenarios, in both the good days and the bad days, it is God who gives you strength.

When you feel “on point,” it is Him who provides you with that confidence and composure. 

When you feel inadequate, His grace, love and power overcomes your insufficiency.

So in both the start of a good day or a bad day, remember to thank Him for giving you the kind of strength you need in that very moment.

I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me. 

He Created Us to Run 

Post #4 of Sarah’s Post-It Note Inspirations Blog Series

I have been running a lot lately. I started running more this summer, and that turned into running my first half marathon at the end of August. I kept it up and ran the Twin Cities 10 Mile Race the second weekend of October. The medals I received in each race are displayed in the picture below.

I love running because it clears my head and improves my mood. It allows me to slow down, metaphorically, and just reflect. It allows me to just “be.” Often times, it serves as a needed escape from the busyness and the current hardships that I am facing that day. I told this to my roommates, “If I am really grumpy, tell me to go for a run,” and it has actually worked on more than one occasion. Running rejuvenates me. It provides me strength and hope.

I believe I am not alone in these thoughts, and that a lot of people feel these same feelings after exercising. However, I have really come to love running in particular because of the fact that almost everyone can do it. I understand that there are certain circumstances that inhibit people from running, but I do believe that for most cases, if you can walk, then you can run. I believe God created us to run; it is something we were made to do. Maybe not everyone was made to run far, or made to run fast, but in my mind, everyone was made to run.

In both of the last two races, I ran to finish. I was not trying to run at a World Record pace, I was solely trying to finish the race. And that I did, crossing the finish with a huge smile on my face, feeling grateful for the opportunity to run, and feeling thankful that I was finished with the race. Usually when I am running, whether it is in a race or not, I am not trying to push myself as hard as I possibly can, but I am just trying to get some exercise and enjoy myself. I am not running to beat anybody, I am not running to win, I am just running to run.

I run to finish, but ultimately in life, I want to run to win.

Our lives are a race. As each of us run our own race on the individualized path He has set before us, let’s encourage each other to run to win, to win in this one race He has given us. We should strive to run a race with all our heart, leaving everything we have on the racing grounds. We should strive to do as well as we can, to follow the path He has created for us, and to help others run their race so that when we reach the end, we can feel as if though we have truly finished, and receive our heavenly reward. And most of all, may we remember to be thankful for the race He has blessed us with, the life He has given us.

So although when I am running I run to finish, in life, I run to win. 

Trusting in His Plans: What Should Happen, Will Happen

Post #3 of Sarah’s Post-It Note Inspirations Blog Series

I may have said this before, but I strongly believe in the fact that what should happen, will happen. This is why I also believe that following His plans is always better than following my own plans. In fact, from my experiences, trying to follow the path I have created for myself always fails. With that said, this post-it note inspirations blog is dedicated to committing to the ways and wonders of the Lord, and trusting that He will make your path straight.

In everything we do, we should commit ourselves to the will of the Lord and understand that we cannot make it on our own. I am going to relate this concept to my experiences in college and exploring careers, but you probably already guessed that because as you can see from the picture, the post-it note is stuck right on my resume.

In the midst of my junior year of college, I have more than ever been thinking about what my future career may hold in terms of what kind of work I want to be doing and what sort of company I want to work at. I have finalized my major and minors and I feel confident in them, knowing that these are the fields I am most passionate about, and where my strengths fit best. For this summer, I am seeking a full-time internship not because I am required to or that I feel pressured to, but actually because I want to. Because of this, I have been working really hard to refine my resume and apply for positions, all the while thinking: “Is all this work really worth it? Is this even what I am supposed to be doing? Will my hard work pay off?”  Even with these doubts, I do still believe that this is the direction I am being called to go, and this verse from Proverbs 16:3 is a humble reminder to no matter what, trust in Him to establish my path.

So as I continue on this path in search of a summer internship, I will continue to work hard and to pray that He leads me to the internship He has in store for me. Even when I am denied of interviews, even when I am anxiously waiting to hear back from companies, I will continue to trust in Him because I am confident that what should happen, will happen. 

Dependence

Post #2 of Sarah’s Post-It Note Inspirations Blog Series

I heard this phrase talked about at this past Sunday’s church sermon, and it hit me right away. As I thought about it more, I processed it in three different ways. I hope my thoughts about this topic touch you in a special way today. Thank you for reading!

Today, Labor Day

According to http://www.history.com/topics/holidays/labor-day, Labor Day was established as a federal holiday in 1894 as a way to pay tribute to the contributions of American workers. It also represents the end of summer, and for students in particular, the start of back-to-school. For many of us, it is a day off of work to relax and enjoy a barbecue or two, but at the same time finally face the reality that summer is really over and school is going to kick into full swing very soon.

The concept of Labor Day is right in the name, “labor.” Labor is an interesting concept because it has both good and a bad connotations. God created for us to work to further His kingdom, but I believe He doesn’t want work to consume our lives, or leave us joyless. Whatever you do, work at it with all your heart, as working for the Lord, not for human masters (Colossians 3:23). Work is a good thing, God created jobs just like He created everything else, for our benefit and more importantly, for His glory. But I also think it is important to take a step back, to take a day off, and ask ourselves these questions: Who are we really working for? Am I depending on my own efforts in my work, or on God?

Volleyball

I will always and forever be a volleyball player, even if I am just playing recreationally at this point in my life. Volleyball is something that is important to me, and something that will always make up a part of me and my past. When I thought more about this concept of dependence, I thought about volleyball and how you have to trust in your teammates to get the job done. As a setter, I needed to trust the passers to get the ball to me, and then after I had done my job, I needed to trust the hitters to put the ball away. Volleyball, like other team sports, is a sport where how you function and work together as a team is more important than your individual ability. You need to trust your teammates, depend on them. Sometimes, your teammates will let you down or you will let your teammates down, but good teams keep trusting, depending and encouraging one another no matter what. Are you trusting God, the ultimate teammate, the teammate that will never let you down?

Beginning of school

To tie it all together, the last thing I thought about when I thought about this concept of dependence was the beginning of a new school year. I am going into my junior of college, and I still feel as nervous and excited as I did my freshman year. Although I have done this before, this year will be different with new classes, relationships, and experiences. I want to put my best effort into everything I do, work with passion, and live with purpose. But no matter what I do, I want to remember this concept of dependence in Him and Him alone. Other people may fail me, at times I may feel like I have failed myself, but God will never fail me. His ways are stronger than my own efforts, and I know I can always depend on Him.

  

God’s Will

Post #1 of Sarah’s Post-It Note Inspirations Blog Series

Here is my first post to kick-off Sarah’s Post-It Note Inspirations Blog Series – I hope you enjoy this short and sweet post about a topic I have learned a little bit more about recently, God’s will.

So many of us are caught up with discerning God’s will for our lives. We especially begin to ponder what He really wants from us when we have a decision to make that will impact our life greatly. I have learned that even in these stressful times, the comfort I receive from knowing that God has a plan and already knows what will happen outweighs the stress of making the “right choice.” He already knows what decision we will make, and because of this, I believe that no matter what, everything will work out the way it is supposed to. This doesn’t mean that we should just throw in the towel and not care what happens next, but we should continue to pray to God about our situation, follow His promptings, and have peace about where He is leading us.

Recently, another truth has come to mind pertaining to God’s will: He is more concerned about where our heart is than what we are actually doing. He is more concerned about who we are becoming than our accomplishments. So wherever we are and whatever we are doing, we are called to focus on always improving the state of our soul and our heart. Wherever life takes us and whatever difficult situations come our way, we should continue to fight to improve ourselves for the glory of God.

One last thought to conclude this post about God’s will: I learned at last week’s church service something I have never thought about before. The lesson comes from a simple few verses from 1 Thessalonians 5:16-18

Rejoice always, pray continually, give thanks in all circumstances; for this is God’s will for you in Christ Jesus.

Read carefully, and you will see that these verses reveal what God’s will is for all of us. His will for us is clear, we are called to rejoice always, pray continually, and give thanks in all circumstances. No matter what happens, He is with us. He is always there. And in this we rejoice and give thanks. 

One Strength Update: The start to year #3

Two years ago today, my first post was written & One Strength was created. That post launched a two year blogging journey, and 77 posts later, here I am, at the start of year three. Here’s a short note about two years of blogging and my hopes for the future:

I would like to say thank you to my family and friends who continue to support me in my writing, read my posts, and share my blog with others. You are just as much a part of One Strength as I am because without you, my mission to share and spread the love of God would be lost, so thank you for your continued support.

As I continue in my faith journey and this adventure called life, I am continuing to seek God’s direction, His purpose, for my blog and for my writing. This year, I am beginning with a blog series I would like to call, Sarah’s Post-It Note Inspirations. For those of you that know me well enough, you know that I LOVE post-it notes. I write to-do lists, project ideas, goals, verses, quotes, thoughts….pretty much anything you can think of…on colorful post-it notes (because those are the best kind) and I leave them everywhere. So, this year, each post will contain a picture of maybe one, maybe two, or maybe multiple colorful post-it notes that I have written, and my writing to go alongside it. Below is the first Sarah’s Post-It Note Inspirations picture to kick us off, featuring a few of the post-it notes I wrote down this summer. As you can see visually in the picture, inspiration that comes from God’s Word and His truth will continue to be the center of my writing.

I am looking forward to what God has in store. Again, thank you for your support. May He continue to be our One Strength. 

When nature measures-up to the magnificence of God (well, almost)

Have you ever found yourself in your “happy place” in nature? I am talking about the instant when your mind stops running, and your world stops spinning, just for a moment, just enough time to think, “it could not get any better than this,” or to even in the state of awe to stutter out the word, “wow.” For some, this place might be in a field with the smell of grass and flowers surrounding you. Staring at the painted sky over a canvas of deep blue, a sunset over the ocean. The view standing at the top of the cliff you just climbed, the sound of the rushing water below. The view of snow-capped mountains in the distance, captured by your camera with the perfect frame of tree branches. Opening your front door and stepping into the cool, crisp air, blinded by the color white, snow falling gently. In your “happy place” in nature, you may feel feelings of peace, calmness, comfort, beauty, power, strength, and complete wonder and awe.

Can you think of this place for you? How does it make you feel?

For me, my favorite place in nature is a path through the trees. When the trees stand tall overhead, and the sun peaks out of the gaps of their branches, beaming down on you as you pedal. You are on your bike, and you feel like you are flying, as you soar down the path, surrounded by the woods. The trees make you feel small with their giant stature, but also protected by the way they perfectly surround the path, one after the other, deeper and deeper into the woods.  In this sort of moment, I feel completely free.

I think in these moments, these breathtaking moments, is when we get the closest we will ever get on earth to the sight and feelings we will experience when we come to meet our higher power, our God, at the end of our life. Nature demonstrates God on earth, which makes perfect sense as it is He who created our favorite nature place. The feelings we muster up in these moments are the feelings God blessed us with, and these feelings are the same elements that make up His character, and therefore, how we should think of Him. He is gentle. He is peaceful.  He is powerful. He gives us strength. Because of Him, we are set free. He is the Lord Almighty. We are in wonder of His love and beauty.

Experiencing nature gives us a glimpse of the magnificence of God. Just think what we will experience when we meet our Master face to face, the One who created nature, who created us. Wow. 

Completion

I am one to start something with the anticipation of finishing it right at that given moment. I find it easier to do things all at once, while my mind is focused on it, instead of doing it for only a little bit then taking a break and moving onto something else. This type of mindset goes for anything from a task at work, studying, cleaning my room, or even writing a blog post. It even goes for long term goals. I strive to start on my goal right away, whether it is fitness, school or relationship related, and I hope to see results quickly.

This all has to do with completion, wanting to complete something as soon as it is handed to me. I admit, I really like the feeling of completing things. It feels good to finish one thing so I can move onto another. Often times, this is how I live from day to day, completing one thing and then moving onto the next.

But if we go from thing to thing wanting to just find completion, we may miss what God is really wanting us to learn from the journey or even His signs telling us to move away from the task for a little bit, His calling to take a break. Maybe He wants us to move away, to take a step back, and maybe even to risk completion in order to gain something better, to gain a different direction. He may be calling us to step out of our own ways or the ways of the world to try something new, to follow a new path we wouldn’t have thought of on our own.

I am sure each and every one of us at times need to learn how to slow down and listen to God in the process of doing things, whether it is the big goals or the small, daily tasks. And even when we do have to stop in the middle of the process, when He is taking us in a different direction, we can trust that whatever He has started within us He will bring to completion:

And I am certain that God, who began the good work within you, will carry it on to completion until the day of Christ Jesus. – Philippians 1:6 

Don’t press fast forward.

Photo cred: Zach Sumners

After passing many milestones in my life, the two most recent ones captured in the picture above – my 20^th birthday and more importantly, Rachel's graduation from high school, all in one crazy, blessed day – I have more than ever realized this important lesson: Don’t press the fast forward button on life.

Time goes by fast, we all know it. But this still doesn’t stop us from thinking and planning ahead, and wishing we were just a little bit older or even at the next stage of our lives.

The current stage we are in….whether that is studying in school, just out of school with our first “real” job, traveling the world, getting married, having our first child, working to advance our career, married and consumed with the lives of our children, empty nesters, retirement, or any other life stage that is a combination of these, in transition, or one I have not mentioned…always seems to be the “hardest stage.” We look to what is to come and think once we pass this current stage we are in, things will get just a little bit easier. But the truth is, the next stage doesn’t get easier, because every stage in our life comes with new challenges and hardships. Maybe we all know this truth, but this still doesn’t stop us from wanting to click the fast forward to the next stage of our lives.

Maybe we have also done the opposite, and wished we could go backwards in time and just be a child again. I know this has been my wish on many occasions. For others, it may be thinking back to our college years, or our first job, or when we were just younger and felt more adventurous and free.

With these two extremes, we can see that all of us quite often wish we were somewhere different in life due to knowing how it used to be, current circumstances being as they are, and predicting what the future holds.

Ecclesiastes 3 expresses that there is a time for everything….There is a time for everything, and a season for every activity under the heavens. It is God who appoints a time for everything, and His timing is perfect. He arranges even the smallest details of our earthly surroundings, and because He cares about each and every one of us, He has destined and determined the activities and stages of our lives.

With this in mind, let us enjoy where we are at in our current life stage, even if it is hard. Let’s hold on tight and do the best we can, because it won’t be like this for long. Soon you will be moving onto the next adventure of life God has already planned for you. Most importantly, time goes by fast, and you don’t want to miss what God has in store for you at the present moment. Don’t press the fast forward button on life. 

Undercooked Brownies

A few weeks ago, I decided to bake some brownies to bring to a friend’s house. “This shouldn’t be too hard,” I thought. However, when they were out of the oven and just about cool, I started cutting into them to find the disappointing truth: I undercooked them. I guess I am not the greatest baker after all.

The funny thing about undercooked brownies is you don’t know they are undercooked until the moment you cut into them and the still gooey batter is revealed as it sticks to your cutting knife. Sure you can do the toothpick trick before you take them out of the oven to try and get a hint whether they are done or not (which I did by the way and still managed to undercook them), but you never truly know the full story until the moment you cut into them.

This may be a stretch, but I think this is true of people too – you can never really know the full truth about someone until you figuratively “cut into them.” So many times in life, we assume we know everything about a person without even talking to them. “That mom must want to pull her hair out taking care of those crazy kids every day,” we ponder. “Their job sounds amazing, they must be really well off.” Or we even go as far as to thinking something along the lines of, “at least we are better off than this person because they are struggling with ________ (fill in the blank, you get the idea). You see, comparing and assuming things about people can ultimately lead to us finding a way to prove we are better than someone else. It makes us feel better about ourselves without actually hurting anyone because we never say what we are thinking out loud. My pastor from my church has a three-step plan for humility, and one of them is “never presume.” If we want to work towards humility, we should hold back from assuming something to be true of someone else. We should stop assuming we know someone without “cutting into them”, without hearing the full story.

When I cut into my brownies just to find that they were underdone, it left me frustrated and even a little confused. “I worked too hard for imperfection,” I thought. “I followed all of the directions correctly and I still didn’t get the results I was hoping for.”

This too relates to us struggling with humility: we just want something to show to others so they can say, “you did a good job” or simply, “you are great.” We think if we follow the directions perfectly, everything should turn out, and then we will receive the praise we think we deserve. We know deep in our hearts this isn’t true, because life just isn’t that simple or perfect, but we still talk ourselves into thinking this way. But as we grow in Christ and strive to be more humble, the truth will soak in, the truth that states we don’t need perfect results or to receive praise from others to feel that we are doing something right.

2 Corinthians 3:1-6

Are we beginning to commend ourselves again? Or do we need, like some people, letters of recommendation to you or from you? ² You yourselves are our letter, written on our hearts, known and read by everyone. ³ You show that you are a letter from Christ, the result of our ministry, written not with ink but with the Spirit of the living God, not on tablets of stone but on tablets of human hearts.

⁴ Such confidence we have through Christ before God. ⁵ Not that we are competent in ourselves to claim anything for ourselves, but our competence comes from God. ⁶ He has made us competent as ministers of a new covenant—not of the letter but of the Spirit; for the letter kills, but the Spirit gives life.

We are brave.

I want to highlight the word “are” in this sentence, I used it for a reason. I didn’t say – “We can be brave.” I said – “We are brave.” Courage is part of our character, for all of us, whether we know it or not.

If you think of it, braveness is just a series of decisions that we make every day that help us get to where we want to go, or even better, where we feel God leading us. Courage is not a feeling that we just gather up right before we need to do something scary or difficult, but rather, it is always in us, sometimes it just comes out more than other times.

We were brave and we still are brave. Bravery started from when we were a child, when we were discovering the world and trying things for the first time – going down the big slide at the park, riding a bike, climbing a tree, starting preschool and then elementary school, trying foods our parents made us try, etc. And bravery continues today because even as “adults” (“adults” meaning people like me who don’t feel quite like an adult yet, maybe a better word would be “young adults”), we try new things and we are still discovering the world around us even at this age. Many of us leave home to go to school or to get our first “real” job. We make decisions about our future, even if when we still don’t really know what we want to do. We make new friends, let other friends go, and try to stay afloat while the world seems to keep throwing at us new things and new decisions to be made. Real adults, you are still brave too. You finish school, maybe even go do more school. You may get married and have kids, and/or buy your first apartment or home. You continue to live life making decision after decision, and bravery is in the midst of all of that. And so is God. 

You see, God and bravery are connected. Many times in the Bible God tells us to, “be strong and courageous”, but I think this command can be applied to not only when we are making a hard decision or going far from home, but throughout every decision during our entire lives.

So whatever you are doing - whether close to home or far, whether it is the “norm” or not, whether with someone or solo - you are brave. 

Blessed.

How did I get so lucky?

Every good and perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of the heavenly lights, who does not change like shifting shadows. – James 1:17

We are blessed people. God has blessed us with many good things. Sometimes it is hard to really understand how blessed we are during our day-to-day lives, especially when we are in not-so-good circumstances. But even during these hard times, He is there strengthening us (whether we remember this truth or not, He is there).

So do not fear, for I am with you; do not be dismayed, for I am your God. I will strengthen you and help you; I will uphold you with my righteous right hand. – Isaiah 41:10

I have had the opportunity to get out of my normal college routine in Minnesota and go study abroad not just for a few weeks, but for a few months. How did I get so lucky? This has given me the opportunity to come to know even more just how great God is, and how He is faithful in every circumstance. More often than not, I am feeling truly grateful for all of the blessings God has given me. He has blessed me with so many great opportunities to learn and to travel, forgiven me with His great mercy, and He pours on me His love and compassion every single day. He has surrounded me with people that love and support me both here and back home, and provided me with others to love and touch with His love throughout my life.

And now these three remain: faith, hope and love. But the greatest of these is love. – 1 Corinthians 13:13

These are simple truths and blessings that all of us in Christ are given – His love, grace and mercy. So how come we can’t thank Him for these blessings and the mountain of others every day? How come it takes something like a three month study abroad trip to truly realize how blessed I am?

I believe we can all breathe in these truths every day, but first we have to really feel it. We can find out more about these truths and blessings God has given us throughout Scripture. This sort of thankfulness should not be just a once a month or once of week sort of state, but it has to be an everyday sort of state. I also think that practicing thankfulness will lift our spirits, our hopes, and our attitudes when we are facing difficult circumstances in our lives. By thanking Him for all the blessings He has given you, you may be able to see His light and love for you peeking out from the darkness. We can breathe in His blessings every day, and breathe out with our thankfulness, and in response, bless others throughout our lives.

Details

The longer you stay in a place, the more you can discover about the place, the more you can uncover the details that make the place complete.

During my travels, I have realized that it is more memorable and more enjoyable at the moment to visit a site with the intention of actually seeing it and uncovering it, rather than visiting just to say you did or thinking about the next site you need to check off the list.

In my opinion, a relaxed way of traveling is not only more enjoyable, but it is also more beneficial because you can begin to learn more about the details of each site, whether that be the history, certain objects or pieces within the site, or even hidden parts or walking paths that you wouldn’t have found if you were just rushing from place to place.

Details are important, and we are often too rushed to notice them. We often don’t stay long enough in each place to uncover the details.

Discovering the details helps us to really enter into a place or circumstance. Entering in deeper, spending time with one another past the everyday conversations, is how we really bring out the best in our relationships. God created each and every one of us so carefully and intricately, and with so much detail that there will always be something new to discover about a person. By digging past the surface in our faith, we can uncover more about God and His character. The longer we can be patient and stay in a difficult situation instead of taking the first path out we can find, the better chance we have of finding a crack of light within the darkness.

Details are helpful and allow us to dig deeper, don’t forget to take time to notice them within every realm of your life.

Everyone has their own walk.

Everyone has their own journey, their own calling.

Even if you don’t know your calling, you know that you have one. God calls us all to do something during our lives. Some of us are called to go far, while others are called to stay close to home. Some of us are called to take on great leadership roles in the church or community, while others are called to simply be a helping hand to their neighbor.

Whatever your calling, you should cherish it because it comes from God. I think sometimes we get caught up in specifically what our calling is, instead of focusing on the One who gave it to us. We compare callings. We say since this person is doing that, we should be doing more. But God doesn’t want that either. We are to be happy and humble, and not to compare other people’s callings to our own.

In fact, in reality, we all have the same, “united calling”: To glorify God with our lives. However, we all do this differently. We all have our own walk. We all go different places, have different jobs, different families, different lifestyles, all of which we combine into our calling. Many of us feel called to do different things in the future, and we focus on that instead of what is happening in the present. The majority of the time, our focus is all off.

Shouldn’t we be more focused on our “united calling”, and especially on the One who gave it to us, instead of what we feel individually called to do now or in the future?

Let us work hard not to fulfill ourselves and our own calling, but to glorify Him with our good works.

This verse was the theme verse last week for my church’s sermon. It reminds us to set good goals, and to be living proof of God’s presence in our lives. It reminds us to not work during our lives just to improve ourselves, but to lift His name higher.

With this in mind, we constantly pray for you, that our God may make you worthy of his calling, and that by his power he may bring to fruition your every desire for goodness and your every deed prompted by faith. We pray this so that the name of our Lord Jesus may be glorified in you, and in him, according to the grace of our God and the Lord Jesus Christ. – 2 Thessalonians 1:11-12

Go ahead….keep ruining other people’s lives

It is not until you really care for someone that you start to impact them in such a powerful way.

It is then that you start to ruin their life, surely but slowly.

What you do may make them sad, mad and annoyed

Or happy, excited and proud – maybe even all in one day.

They may choose to go the extra mile for you,

Or stand back to let you shine.

Without even knowing it, you are influencing their thoughts or actions,

And you just can’t help it.

This is how you can ruin their life.

It is good and bad all at the same time.

Their life would be totally different without you, to say the least.

Maybe they would have less pain, maybe it would be a little easier.

They would have more of this, or more of that,

But less of you.

If they had to choose, they would always choose to keep you. Because less you means less love.

So go ahead,

Keep ruining other people’s lives.

For God has called us to love one another just as He has loved us.

And what is love?

What is the greatest love?

There is no greater love than to lay down one’s life for one’s friends. – John 15:13

Cherish your friends. Love them. And ruin their lives with your love.