My Friends

I have some friends with whom I’m really good at not being real friends with. In other words, I’ve known them long enough and see them often enough to call them an actual friend, but in reality we’re simply acquaintances. I ran into one of them today as I often do. While the conversation was the same as usual, it seemed to have fewer awkward pauses, and this made things more enjoyable. After I was done asking him how he was, and how his life was he asked me how my life was going. I was surprised that he had returned the question, but then again I’ve learned to not hold too high of expectations when it comes to conversations with this not so much of a friend friend. Before I began to tell him of all the stress and busyness I’m currently experiencing I had to stop and take a deep breath. I told him of Raft Trip next week and in return he told me that he had once gone on the journey to West Virginia in 8th grade. Part of me wonders why he hasn’t gone since. After our discussion of this topic I moved on to the preparation for my trip in the fall. As I told him of my plane ticket, and sending out my letters he began to smile. This smile was precious because for once in our “friendship” it was not a courtesy smile. It was a true smile that reflected his enjoyment of listening to me tell him a few details about my future travels. This smile stuck with me for two reasons.

1. It rarely ever appears in our short lived conversations, and

2. It proved to me that this is worth it.

He saw something in my face, or heard something in my voice that told him that I am more than excited about this trip. He felt the enthusiasm. He enjoyed these things along with me.

There is a difference between these two journeys on which I am about to partake.

On the first one I will experience frienship. My friends will be there. Some newer and some older. Some that I haven’t seen in a long time, and some that I will meet for the first time.

On the second one I will have no friends upon my arrival. I know that as I spend time in the country I will meet more and more people, but honestly I’m looking forward to having to start completely from scratch. No one there will no me at all.

My friends are so dear to me.

I’m ready.

Journey #1.05

I JUST PURCHASED MY PLANE TICKET!!!!!!!!!!!!

I know, I know, I should’ve bought it weeks and weeks ago, but nevertheless I finally bought it.

This is really going to happen. This is really actually going to happen. Like really!

Every once in a while it’ll just hit me big time out of no where.

Yep, this is one of those times.

What I’ve Learned #12

What I say is worth nothing if God’s name is not in this post.

Let me explain what I mean…

Everything I have, everything I am, everything I know, everyone I love, all the good things that happen, all the bad things that happen, every single moment of my life is there because He placed it, or them there.

EVERY SINGLE THING.

If I don’t put Him into EVERYTHING in my life then my life is not complete.

He is EVERYTHING.

He means EVERYTHING.

If you don’t focus on Him, His Word, and the GOSPEL…if you don’t focus on the Gospel, that we were DEAD in our trespasses and sins that we were by NATURE children of wrath, and that God being RICH IN MERCY, because of the great LOVE with which He loved us made us ALIVE WITH CHRIST.

If you don’t focus on the fact that God wants to show us the IMMEASURABLE RICHES OF HIS GRACE IN KINDNESS TOWARD US IN JESUS CHRIST, and if we don’t take the time to realize what Paul means in Ephesians when he says that we have been saved by GRACE.

If you don’t focus on the fact that God has set into place good works for us, He has set these desires in our hearts, and that no matter where we go…whether it’s the Canary Islands, or Philadelphia, or Thailand He will be with us. We CANNOT get away from Him.

And that is why I go. That is why I serve.

And that is why what I say means nothing if His name is not in this post.

I owe everything to Him.

Today is my birthday…

and to celebrate I bought U2’s new album.

Friday Night

It’s a weird place in life in which I live.

I’m a college student. I’m trying to grow up. I live at home.

I know that I’m not the only person who could describe their life with such statements, but that doesn’t make it less weird.

As I slowly step out into the world and try to stand on my own two feet I find myself quite often surrounded by discouragement. I don’t believe that the reason for this discouragement is that until now there was not a list of things to be discouraged by, but because I refused to see all the discouraging things that were happening before this moment in time.

However, not all hope is lost.

I graduated from high school with 50 other people, and on Friday night a few of us got together at one of our former teachers’ house and spent time enjoying one another and filling in the gaps between graduation and now. It was a late night spent around a bon fire, and every second was worth it. We have all changed, and while most of our habits and desires and personalities have stayed the same, we’ve become more confident in who we are and what we believe and little hints of this confidence appear every once in awhile. Our conversations have changed because of this. Our conversations are better than ever before. Perhaps this is because we’re learning new things about ourselves and about this world every second of every day, or perhaps it’s simply because we’re not afraid of each other any more. Whatever the reason, I praise God for these conversations that were had on Friday night. They brought me back to reality. They helped me to focus. There is a handful of very fine people from the class of 2008. I am more thankful for them now than ever before. They love me, and I love them back. We support each other, encourage one another, teach each other, and learn from one another.

I’ve missed these people. I’ve missed them a lot.

Journey #1.04

I’ve tried to stay away from posting videos because I feel as if it’s not what this blog is about. However, this video not only completely goes along with what I’ve tried to make this blog about, but it also goes along with what I am currently trying to make my life about.

There is something that happens in my heart when I see pictures or hear stories from journeys people have taken around the world.  After this longing in my heart expressed itself about a hundred times I realized that God must have placed this desire on my heart. It was originally His desire to share the Gospel with students in the Canary Islands. Yes, I may be learning Spanish while I’m there, and yes, I may be living in 72 degree weather in December, but the real reason why I want to go there and live there for three months is because my heart longs to be somewhere other than here. It longs to serve people and love people other than the people who are here. And those desires, I believe, were placed on my heart.

Dr. John Piper can explain the root of this desire much better than I can.