So if you are one of my three official followers, or if you are one of the many who read my blog posts without subscribing (shame on you!) you will know that I took a bit of a blogging break this summer. It wasn't really intentional...I just got lazy. BUT!! I have returned to the world of online rambling and intend to once again make it a part of my daily routine.
In the meantime, I shall satisfy your no doubt anxious minds with a few updates-after all, so much can happen in one summer. This summer I:
-Took a family vacation to Colorado which included an all day white water rafting trip
-GRADUATED COLLEGE!! With a BA in Criminal Justice (about flippin' time)
-Officially commissioned as a Second Lieutenant in the Iowa National Guard
-Got hired as a youth ministries intern for my church's high school ministry (Escape22)
So within 3 month, I attained 3 jobs, one working as a Fire Support Officer for the Army, one working as a Teacher/Counselor/Mentor for troubled youth at a juvenile rehabilitation center, and one as a ministry leader in the church! That's pretty cool.
God has been preparing me to enter the "real world" (even though I still live a block from the ISU campus). So what have I learned this summer? If anything, God has been teaching me about His sovereignty- the fact that He is the one that directs the course of my life, not me.
The point is driven home most excellently by James the half-brother of Jesus when he writes this to the church:
Now listen, you who say, "Today or tomorrow we will go to this or that city, spend a year there, carry on business and make money." Why, you do not even know what will happen tomorrow. What is your life? You are a mist that appears for a little while and then vanishes. Instead you ought to say, "If it is the Lord's will, we will live and do this or that." As it is, you boast and brag. All such boasting is evil. (James 4:13-16).
I find it interesting that right in verse 15 he tells us that we should say "If it is the Lord's will, we will live..." Even our very existence, the very breath of our lungs, continues at the pleasure of an Almighty God. When faced with such a truth, I think we have 2 main options: (1) We can grow bitter that we are not ultimately in control. Those who chose this option spend their lives raging against what they perceive to be an arbitrary God who can and will snuff them out of existence the moment we displease him. They then choose to live life "their way", making vague references to a noble idea of forging their own destiny. Or (2) we can grow better with the knowledge that we are not ultimately in control. Those who choose this path are enabled to still their anxious minds, knowing that they rest safe and secure in the hand of an all-powerful, all-loving God. Their lives then reflect it by living according to the will of Him who holds their destiny in his hand.
So friends, choose for yourself. Will you grow bitter or better knowing that you are not in control of your life? The cool thing is that God will prevail no matter which you choose and He can and will work out your bitterness for good if that is the path you choose. But here's a little secret to help you choose: the only path which ends with your happiness intact and the maximum benefit for the others around you is number 2.
PEACE OUT GIRL SCOUT!!
