21 Things I Learned When I Was 21...

21. Sometimes the hardest people to love need it the most.
20. No matter where I end up, Albemarle will always be the most beautiful place in the world to me. It is family. It is home. 
19.  Wishing produces wistfulness that may never come to fruition. Praying transforms the heart to rejoice in God’s perfect Will.

18. No one will remember how amazing your project turned out to be, but they will remember that you stayed after class for 2 hours to help them with theirs.

17. The cure for discontentment is serving others.

16. It’s okay to be afraid. It’s not okay to stay afraid. (Isaiah 41:10)

15. I like dried fruit and humus. But not together. Ew.

14. If you have hair, you should not complain about a bad hair day.

13. Everyone wants to be understood. Most solvable problems begin with listening.

12. The secret to beauty… is children.

11. Talking to complete strangers should not be as intimidating as it is. You either get a friend out of it, or you get a great opportunity to learn humility. (Psalm 18:24)

10. Every big decision deserves two weeks of thought and prayer before being made.

9. Don’t take chances because you trust people. Take chances because you trust God. 
8. Trials are worth rejoicing in. (James 1:2-3)

7. Never assume anything. (Phil 4:8)

6. God is the God of reconciliation. Life is wasted if it is full of grudges and bitterness. The Bride of Christ is a group of people, so to hold a grudge against a person is to hold a grudge against Christ’s Bride.

5. The best lessons are painful to learn, but God is a wonderful teacher.

4. Emotions change moment-by-moment. God’s truths never do. 
3. Love is enduring and patient and difficult and all that matters. (1 Corinthians 13:3-13)

2. It’s okay to not have a plan.

1. God uses broken people to do huge things. And I mean really broken people. (2 Corinthians 12:9-10)

  Here's to jumping into year # 22 with arms wide open!

 

Never Look Back

Cares and troubles flood my heart

Fear and flesh tear me apart

I’m holding on to empires of dust

Inwardly, after comfort I lust

Down I slip in foundations of sand

My only hope is to reach for Your Hand

Down on my knees, I fall and cry,

“I can’t do this alone; I’ve already tried!”

My insecurity and all of my fears

Melt away with my falling tears

I hand You my cares; the full range

You fill me with peace; the sweetest exchange

All comfort in the world cannot give

What You’ve offered me: to come and live.

To do so, I must first strive to kill

All that would rival for Your Will

In order to surrender, I must first see

That You are the only God there can ever be;

Under Your night sky, I’m humbled to silence

Woe is me! From the Almighty, I deserve violence!

For the nearest star is a lifetime away

And I can see thousands from where I lay

There are more in number than grains of sand

And yet, these massive wonders are held in Your Hand

My understanding fails to provide reason

That while glorious stars praise You in every season

You would want a wounded rebel’s praise

So imperfect and insignificant in all of its ways

But Truth You are and Truth You tell

And to believe in Your love does my soul well

So give me the measure of faith that I lack

To take hold of the plow and never look back