The Blessing of Friendship

I have a friend named Richard. If you live in Charlotte, and especially if you go to Elevation Matthews Campus, you've probably seen him before. He sits between the two gas stations on the corner of Independence and Highway 51. Many would stereotype him poor. He has no home, rarely any food, and no family in sight. My friend and I have had the privilege of buying him Bojangles on the weekend and the greater privilege of getting to know him and sharing in his struggles. 

With the failing economy, Richard lost his job about six months ago. He has since had to downgrade from an apartment, to a trailer, to a tent, and now to an abandoned house. He had to give up his two dogs when he lost his trailer, two of his best friends as any dog owner would know. He is very intelligent and you very well might see him devouring book after book hoping someone will stop with some food. He loves thriller and horror books, Steven King and Dean Koontz being his favorite authors. He can tell you the time based solely on where the shade is and can almost exactly predict the weather. More than anything else, Richard just likes having someone to talk to. You could imagine the same feeling after going day after day in solitude. 

The poor are no longer just another struggling face to me, a common sight in today's world. They have a story, struggles, likes, and interests just like the rest of us. They are an individual made in the image and likeness of God, loved beyond belief. 

Richard is not poor in my eyes. We are the ones who are poor. He is greater in wisdom and overcoming obstacles than most of us. While he may not have many possessions and struggles to just get a meal a day, he is by far richer in ways that we could never understand, like his gratitude and humbleness. In ways that the we are too busy to stop and see, or even care for. 

I began this journey hoping to change other's lives for the better, but the fact is Richard and people like him are changing mine. The homeless are grateful for your food donations, don't get me wrong. But when we settle for just feeding the homeless we miss out on a whole larger blessing, the blessing of friendship. 

Curve Ball

Tomorrow will officially conclude my first week at seminary! I feel like I've learned more this week than I have in my entire life, not just Biblically, but I've learned some key things about life. Here are the two biggest learning curves for me this week: 


1. When you take a step of faith and obey God, things won't always get easier. 

I've known for a while now that my next step was suppose to be seminary, but I always thought that once I got here things would be a breeze because that's were I was called to be. That is about as far fetched from the truth as you can get. First of all, God doesn't grow you as much during the easy times, He grows you intensely in the difficult times. Second, if things were always easy you could lose your trust and reliance in Him. During the first week, I definitely had some "There is no way I can do this" moments, but I realized that yes, I can't, but God can. I've also discovered that this is a time that God wants to grow me and growing isn't always the easiest thing, but it will be the most worthwhile thing in the end. There is no better place to be than in God's will for your life. 

2. While change isn't always easy or comfortable, it is necessary. 

I have to admit, I've always struggled with change. I like routine, the same atmosphere, etc. This is probably been the biggest area of my life where God has matured me. I must say that going from military school to seminary has been a pretty big culture shock. While change can be downright scary and uncomfortable, I've learned that it is a dire necessity for progress in any area of your life. When things, places, or comfort become so routine for you there is no room for growth and without growth the destination God has planned for you will never be reached. Our God is always on the move, therefore we should always be striving forward. Paul states in Philippians 3:13 "I know that I have not yet reached that goal, but there is one thing I always do. Forgetting the past and straining toward what is ahead." I've had to do a lot of that in the past 6 months and this week has been the finale. I might feel a little out of place right now, but I know God has placed me here for a reason and I choose to believe that the best is yet to come. Don't ever settle for comfort over His kingdom and His plan for your life! 

Things don't always work out as you plan and that's probably a good thing. Embrace the curve balls that God throws you. Allow Him to grow you and always believe the best is yet to come, because it is! 

The Most Complex Mind of All

It's that season for summer jobs! I've been working a lot these past two weeks trying to get a little extra money for when I leave to go to school. Most people wouldn't even call it work, but since I'm being paid for it, I consider it so. If you haven't already guessed, I get paid for getting a nice tan, sitting around, and taking the occasional dip in the pool. Yep, I'm a lifeguard. But really, we do work, I've saved four people and saving people isn't always that easy!

I've been lucky these past two weeks being able to work at an outdoor pool. Minus the few days of rain and thunderstorms, the weather has been absolutely amazing. I am proud to say that I now have a watch, flip-flop, and swim suit tan! I absolutely love just admiring the outside and I've had a lot of time to do that this week. It blows me away. It makes me think of how complex and sovereign our God is. Can you even begin to imagine the mind of the One who thought up photosynthesis, the vivid colors of bloomed flowers, and animals such as birds that science says shouldn't even be able to fly. I am humbled by the great mind of God, overcome by how everything in nature works together so perfectly. Even getting a tan blows my mind; how our God even designed our bodies to adjust to environmental changes to protect us. It's unexplainable apart from Him and I can't help but see that mighty hand of God in our daily surroundings. 

Slow down from your busy day sometime to admire what's around you. Instead of getting frustrated in traffic, take the time to check out the surroundings. Take a walk or run outside instead of on the treadmill. Or simply step out of your door before getting ready for bed to admire such bright and fascinating stars. Don't ever get too busy to stop and admire such an awesome and complex creation God had provided for us! 

“Be still, and know that I am God” 

Psalm 46:10

The King of Patience

I'm going to be honest and say I'm not the best at being patient. I think most of us these days are in the same boat. We live in an age where we get frustrated if the internet takes more than 2 seconds to load, if we have to sit through two red lights, or worst yet watch three minutes of commercials before seeing the most suspenseful part of the show! By far, we, as a whole, are very impatient people. We want everything now.

 I've been trying to work on being more patient, but you know what they say, "Don't pray for patience because God will give you opportunities to practice it." I wish someone would have told me that in the first place! Just kidding. In the past few months I've had to struggle to be as patient as I can waiting to hear back an answer from the seminary I applied to. I just got an acceptance letter last week and I'm suppose to move in on May 31st, only a week and a half away! Now don't get me wrong, I am extremely grateful for this next step in my life, but man did I have to wait a while to know what direction that step would be! So now that I know I'll be going to Southeastern, I'm having to once again be patient and wait for my email account, housing and registration to go through! 

Have you ever got so tired of waiting and being patient that you kind of just give up and even stop asking God to see you through? We'll that's about where I was. I really felt like I was annoying God because I was seeking an answer from Him so often. Earlier this week though He spoke a solid truth to me in Genesis 18: 20-33. Abraham asks the Lord pretty much the same question six times in a row. "Will you destroy the whole city for the lack of [enter number here] good people?" Just as continuously as Abraham asks this, the Lord answers the same, "If I find [enter number here], I will not destroy it." Through this  repetitive interrogation the LORD never once loses patience with Abraham. Not once! If it was me Abraham was asking I would have cut him off the second time yelling, "I already told you!". 

So rest assured, you can always rely on God to be patient with you even in the most frustrating and seemingly badgering times. God will never lose His cool with you. He is always willing and waiting to listen in the most patient and loving ways. If you're in a situation where you feel you aren't hearing from God and you're tired of asking Him to speak to you, don't give up. He wants you to come to Him with the deepest desires of your heart. He will not become impatient with you! He is the King of Patience! 

So Many Changes in So Little Time

Well the next few weeks holds a lot of changes in my life. I finally heard from The College at Southeastern and my move in day is just around the corner. Along with that I'm suppose to have my 3 wisdom teeth out before I leave, along with a much needed hair cut, not that hair has anything to do with teeth. By far, this college switch is going to be a huge adjustment. Switching from a military school to a seminary; they can't be any more different. Plus you have to fend for yourself cooking wise at Southeastern, so I would suggest everyone to check in sometimes because I might die of starvation due to my lack of cooking skills! I also hope that I don't freak out on someone for being a little messy or having too much hair. Yes, we sure enough have a long road ahead of us. But it is for the better and it's where God is calling me, at least for now. So I'm ready to saddle up and hang on for the ride, it's going to be a wild one!