the question: What was the best moment that could serve as proof that everything is going to be alright? And how will you incorporate that discovery into the year ahead?
my answer:
I can think of a few, actually. I'm struggling to pick between the day I knew that camp was, in fact, exactly where I was supposed to be; a day of complete restoration that I have written about already; or a day when I was reminded that the Lord is all sufficient in my life. I think that last one will be the winner today.
There were several moments this past semester where it felt as if the world was just bogging down on me. I think we all have those days. Some days you just feel that you need to get out of town, take a break, and go for a long ride by yourself. One Friday afternoon after a rough week the Lord blessed me with an incredible, unexpected series of events, of which I will give you the short version. I'd been trying and failing to Skype with a friend all week and in the midst of finally getting to talk to him (a blessing in itself), I got an incredible phone call from LifeWay about my summer position at camp. The timing of it was incredible and it was a joyous occasion all around. Minutes afterward, my doorbell rang and it was one of my all-time favorite people, a hilarious boy named Chris, who had come unexpectedly from Valdosta for a surprise weekend. (And what a fun weekend any weekend with Chris is sure to be!) But the real moment of beauty came that night when I was driving up to Toccoa to visit my good friends Jeremy and Jeff Slaughter. My gps took me the back roads (per usual) and I was soaking in the incredible beauty of the landscape, still on a high from the events of the afternoon when the Lord spoke to me. I was thanking him for friends, for beautiful scenery, for unexpected blessings, and for a chance to get alone with Him when He reminded me sweetly that because I seek to be obedient to Him, I truly have everything I need. My life is far from perfect, but it is complete in the Lord. How true... I can think of more things that I would like to have, sure, but sincerely everything I need and way, way more has been provided. And that is the moment that I knew, despite all the mess, that indeed we can "rejoice in the hope of the glory of God". (Romans 5:1) I found a verse just last night in Hebrews six that talks about Christ's hope as "an anchor for the soul, firm and secure" and I love that, because I love how I have seen it hold up when it feels like your ship is sinking. My beautiful friend Season just wrote a great post about the beauty of that same hope-- you should check it out sometime.
Let's remember today, on Christmas eve, that hope is what this night is really about-- Christ's love and the hope that it gives us in return. Everything is more than okay-- it is beautiful because Christ came that we "may have life, and have it to the full." (John 10:10) Embrace that tonight and in the morning and take hold of the fact that our lives are capable of being more than okay, they are capable of being abundant.
I'm signing out today with this picture of our Christmas tree. My mom and I decided to branch out (ha, branch... trees...) this year and add a little blue to our all red and gold decor. Confession Friday: I really like it.
wow... amazing!!! loved ur post... I found ur blog on reverb10 tweets!! and is all about hope that I wrote in this prompt!! God is amazing!! =)
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