I have recently realized how fast my life is really going. Coming into a new year creates new possibilities, new adventures, and new landmarks within my life. I have realized that these years are precious and with each day the future becomes reality. I think the older I get, the more I think about the future and what God has planned for me. I talk often with friends about our plans for the future. Kids? How many? Marriage? To whom? Career? What? Where do I wanna live? What friends are gonna be in my life when I get to these points? What do I really want to accomplish in my life? So many questions that are discussed but mainly left unanswered. I am almost 20 years old which means my future is right around the corner. I was talking with a friend of mine last night about our lives and how fast these years at Hope College have been already. We can hardly believe that in a few short months we will be Juniors! For us, it is crazy to think because we remember, like it was yesterday, walking through those open doors into a dorm that we would live in for the next year without our parents for the first time. I am constantly reminded how much change happens in my life. I am currently in a brand-spanking new semester with new classes, new faces and new experiences. I am waiting for the time to come shortly when one of my best friend's leaves for Spain for 3 months and my brother leaves for Texas for the Air Force. All of this happening in the same weekend! You can expect a sappy mess out of me that week for sure. Constantly changing, constantly moving. That's life, right? Or like the French say, "C'est la vie!" This semester is definitely going to be a challenge for me both physically and emotionally. I plan on relying on God's strength to get me through it all. With all of the business of my life and the constant worry about the future, I forget that all I have to do is give it to God. Let Him fill me and consume my life. He knows the path he has for me and I will choose to follow him even when the going gets rough, and for sure it will. My prayer for you all is that you choose to give it God when worry and doubt seem to be all-consuming. Change is destined to happen and with God, we can get through it together.
Grace & Peace,
B.
"But I've learned the hard way that change is one of God's greatest gifts and one of his most useful tools. I've learned the hard way that change can push us, pull us, rebuke and remake us. It can show us who we've become, in the worst ways, and also in the best ways. I've learned that it's not something to run away from, as though we could, and I've learned that in many cases, change is not a function of life's cruelty but instead a function of God's graciousness...If you dig in and fight the changes, they will smash you to bits. They'll hold you under, drag you across the rough sand, scare and confuse you. But if you can find it within yourself, in the wildest of seasons, just for a moment, to trust in the goodness of God, who made it all and holds it all together, you'll find yourself drawn along to a whole new place, and there's truly nothing sweeter. Unclench your fists, unlock your knees and also the door to your heart, take a deep breath, and begin to swim. begin to let the waves do their work in you."
Bittersweet by Shauna Niequist
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