The Year of Our Lord

Personal blog time.

I've tried turning this blog into an offshoot of Red Raptor, and I've liked it, but sometimes you just need to say something that isn't about 2 minute videos of dance and manatee humor.

2009 was a long year. I went through a lot and came out of a lot. It started with a very cranky Christmas, but I did get to read "Wild at Heart", which has changed some views I had about myself and Christian men. The second semester of BICS was my last and hardest year there. The work and study was harder to apply to life and I was having a hard time dealing with the balance of work and socializing. I can see now that I was really struggling with pride and the change of responsibility and desire. But, because of God, I got through it (passed Greek) and got my certificate. I spent some time in Nashville, TN working for Cottage Cove Ministries and making them a video, which was very cool.

The summer was hard, in different ways. My biggest struggle was work, because I am a lazy slug. Working at Big Y was something new, and I had to work more hours than I had in a long time. I struggled a lot with how I spent my free time; watching movies and reading instead of doing anything productive. I spent the summer living with the Mclaughlins and Corey talked to me about serving. It was hard hearing for me, because I wanted my time to be my time. But, I know, that my time isn't my own. Hard lesson indeed.

It should be mentioned that I got accepted to Houghton as well and there was no real reason why that should have happened. It was very impulsive and I had failed to talk to God about the matter. But, God had grace upon me and allowed it to happen. There was a lot of praying for financial aid, because in no way could I pay for school on my own, but once again, God took care of me and paid for my school year, as a loving father would.

Houghton has made this year something new entirely. For the first time, I was in classes for a major I decided on, and that does something to your way of thinking about school. I also had to adjust to a new setting alone and this time I felt more confident and prepared then ever. Not because I thought I was hot-stuff, but because over the past two years at BICS, and even this summer, I have been learning how to talk to people and how to find my identity not in myself, but in Christ. Houghton has been a blast. I'm back into swing dancing, I gave blood for the first time (I miss you blood!), I preformed in a play, and I finally read "Ender's Game". The classes have been great, though they've had their moments.

This isn't a brag list. I have nothing to brag about. Everything I just talked about has only been possible because of God and God alone. Anywhere I've been, anything I've done, anyone I've meet; it's all because of God. This year is a year Jesus Christ showed his unbelievable glory to me. It wasn't a year of the health and wealth gospel in my life; it was a year of God showing he can use any situation for His glory and if I'm looking for it, I can find the most joy. There was sorrow this year. Many things didn't work out the way I wanted them and I failed at doing a good amount of tasks I had set. I'm still not the Christian man I should be, and I've spent a good portion of the year unsure of what I want to do with my life. But God still uses that to remind me to rely on Him; all year.

God is faithful and will be faithful, even in 2010.