It's so fascinating to look over the last 3 1/2 years of my life, since I began college. Every year, every semester, always there are changes. I never knew as a 16 yr old girl what this journey would hold. But then, no one ever knows what life will hold. I am overwhelmed by the mere fact that I can look back then look at myself in the mirror and feel as though I am a better Christian, better person in general, because of all that I have been through. This time last year, I don't believe I could have said that. I still have two semesters of undergad left, but the thoughts of moving on from this place are already heavy on my mind. It's wonderful and sad...bittersweet.
I've been a commuter, had the dorm room experience, went on a mission trip to Mississippi, was a summer-camper one last time :), promoted to an apartment, put in a lot of hours of community service(!), made friends, lost friends, lost my dear Ma (great-grandmother), spent a summer in London, tried to be someone I didn't want to ever be in the first place, been blessed with some amazing people in my life who helped me learn from my mistakes, spent a summer working in a biomedical research lab, and here I am about to start finals week for the 7th time. To think...those are just the general highlights!
Tears, smiles, laughter, pain, silliness, devastation, hope, learning, failure, forgetting, love, hate, anger, peace. All of these things are life in its complete form. Without them all, and so much more, we will not grow. We will not become who God wants us to be. We fight God, then we submit. We rebel. We worship. One day we will stand before Him, beyond the earthly realm, and know what it truly means to be complete. For now, we have to embrace life in its fullness if we ever hope to live a full life. Don't fear the hard times. Dwell in the joy. Only by enduring the trials can we begin to understand, can we embrace joy that is of God.
"This is what the Lord says: You say, 'This land has been ravaged, and the people and animals have all disappeared.' Yet in the empty streets of Jerusalem and Judah's other towns, there will be heard once more the sounds of joy and laughter. The joyful voices of bridegrooms and brides will be heard again, along with the joyous songs of people bringing thanksgiving offerings to the Lord. They will sing, 'Give thanks to the Lord Almighty, for the Lord is good. His faithful love endures forever!' For I will restore the prosperity of this land to what it was in the past, says the Lord."
JEREMIAH 33:10-11
