Where have I been the past few months?
School, Young Life, preparing for graduation in May, trying to figure out slowly step down from Soddy Daisy Young Life...
Why?
BECAUSE I'M GOING TO SHARPTOP COVE FOR A YEAR!
This place...my future home.
School, Young Life, preparing for graduation in May, trying to figure out slowly step down from Soddy Daisy Young Life...
Why?
BECAUSE I'M GOING TO SHARPTOP COVE FOR A YEAR!
This place...my future home.
I have been called to step out of this season of life into the next. Starting September 1, I will be a Year Long Intern at STC. I am SO stoked and my heart is filled with so much joy every time I think about it. My friend Maddie and I (we interned together at STC last summer) visited camp last weekend and as soon as I walked onto the property I felt the Lord say to me "It's time, my love..."
Time.
Time to step away from everything that is comfortable. Time to give up something that has been a huge part of my life for over 3 years now. Time to walk away and trust that the Lord's hand will still (and forever be) over Soddy Daisy High School...
Time to start preparing for what's next. I am still trying to figure out what "goodbye" will look like. I've decided that leaving Chattanooga will be one of the hardest things for me to do, but possibly one of the best things that could happen. How do you say goodbye to the people that you would die for? How do you say goodbye to places that you think you're not finished with yet?
Trust.
Trust that when Jesus says it's time to go, you go. He's chosen a new set of challenges that awaits me. He's chosen a new setting for me to grow closer to Him. He's chosen a new place to show me how madly in love with me He is. And I could not be more excited.
God always prepares us in advance for everything (Ephesians 2:10). So, how can I prepare for SharpTop with my time here in Chattanooga..the 6 months that I have left?
"Therefore, as God's chosen people, holy and dearly loved, clothe yourselves with compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness and patience. Bear with each other and forgive whatever grievances you may have against one another. Forgive as the Lord forgave you. And over all these virtues put on love, which binds them all together in perfect unity." -Colossians 3:12-14
This semester has been a semester of transformation for me.
I feel as though the Lord told me last semester that I was about to walk into a hard semester...one that will challenge me in ways that I will want to walk away from. Jesus walked with me through hard conversations that I did not want to have; He walked with me and taught me that it's okay to be vulnerable with the people that love me (this one was really hard for me); He taught me when to be silent and when to speak; He taught me that He is for me ALL THE TIME; He is teaching me how to let go of control...
I can honestly say that I can see a change in myself from just last semester. I used to say "I'm not who I used to be! I'm so different than who I was in high school." 2 Corinthians 5:17 says "Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; the old has gone, the new has come!" This doesn't just mean one big change. Yes, once you've accepted Christ as your Lord and Savior, your life will be forever changed. But is that it? There's no more daily change to be done in a person's life?
I hope that I never stop changing. Because I feel as though once you stop changing or looking for change, you stop yielding to His plans for you...you stop relying on Christ. When you stay in a comfortable situation, it is so easy to take the reigns and take control of everything.
yield...
In the midst of those hard conversations that God called me to, I found myself wanting to run..putting those pride walls up. I started believing the lie that if the outcome of the situation wasn't perfect that it wasn't worth it.
"I'm not looking for perfection; I'm looking for willingness..."
Yes. Yes. Yes. Life isn't about becoming perfect (because let's just face it...that's not ever going to happen here on Earth); it's about experiencing God's perfect Love for us.
So, now that I have rambled on for 14.34 minutes, let me tell you where God showed up on Friday, March 1, 2013...
Time.
Time to step away from everything that is comfortable. Time to give up something that has been a huge part of my life for over 3 years now. Time to walk away and trust that the Lord's hand will still (and forever be) over Soddy Daisy High School...
Time to start preparing for what's next. I am still trying to figure out what "goodbye" will look like. I've decided that leaving Chattanooga will be one of the hardest things for me to do, but possibly one of the best things that could happen. How do you say goodbye to the people that you would die for? How do you say goodbye to places that you think you're not finished with yet?
Trust.
Trust that when Jesus says it's time to go, you go. He's chosen a new set of challenges that awaits me. He's chosen a new setting for me to grow closer to Him. He's chosen a new place to show me how madly in love with me He is. And I could not be more excited.
God always prepares us in advance for everything (Ephesians 2:10). So, how can I prepare for SharpTop with my time here in Chattanooga..the 6 months that I have left?
"Therefore, as God's chosen people, holy and dearly loved, clothe yourselves with compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness and patience. Bear with each other and forgive whatever grievances you may have against one another. Forgive as the Lord forgave you. And over all these virtues put on love, which binds them all together in perfect unity." -Colossians 3:12-14
This semester has been a semester of transformation for me.
I feel as though the Lord told me last semester that I was about to walk into a hard semester...one that will challenge me in ways that I will want to walk away from. Jesus walked with me through hard conversations that I did not want to have; He walked with me and taught me that it's okay to be vulnerable with the people that love me (this one was really hard for me); He taught me when to be silent and when to speak; He taught me that He is for me ALL THE TIME; He is teaching me how to let go of control...
I can honestly say that I can see a change in myself from just last semester. I used to say "I'm not who I used to be! I'm so different than who I was in high school." 2 Corinthians 5:17 says "Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; the old has gone, the new has come!" This doesn't just mean one big change. Yes, once you've accepted Christ as your Lord and Savior, your life will be forever changed. But is that it? There's no more daily change to be done in a person's life?
I hope that I never stop changing. Because I feel as though once you stop changing or looking for change, you stop yielding to His plans for you...you stop relying on Christ. When you stay in a comfortable situation, it is so easy to take the reigns and take control of everything.
yield...
In the midst of those hard conversations that God called me to, I found myself wanting to run..putting those pride walls up. I started believing the lie that if the outcome of the situation wasn't perfect that it wasn't worth it.
"I'm not looking for perfection; I'm looking for willingness..."
Yes. Yes. Yes. Life isn't about becoming perfect (because let's just face it...that's not ever going to happen here on Earth); it's about experiencing God's perfect Love for us.
So, now that I have rambled on for 14.34 minutes, let me tell you where God showed up on Friday, March 1, 2013...
Before we got new leaders. So ready for our newest family members!
Here they are! Soddy Daisy Young Life leaders with our newest additions!
These people....
these new faces are the new Soddy Daisy Young Life leaders. PRAISE GOD.
10 of them.
10...10?!? YEP. Diez. DIME. TEN. 10.
that's more than I prayed for. God can do immeasurably more. Why? Because He is Faithful, and He is for us.
These people, I am already so proud of and already have so much love for them. I wept on Friday night. And I don't cry in front of people. My tough walls never allowed me. And the Lord said through my good friend Tess that it was okay to be vulnerable. Jesus wept. I wept. Man, I love transformation.
Those Soddy Daisy folks aren't going to know what hit them. To our new leaders Dakota, Houston, Kalie, and Moe...here's my word of encouragement for you (if any of you ever end up reading this):
I am so proud of you. I am so blessed and so honored that God chose to write Soddy Daisy into your stories. I have so much more peace leaving at the end of the semester knowing that y'all be there to continue loving on the kids that don't know Jesus (yet ;) ) When Jesus tells you to pray, you pray. When He tells you to listen, you listen. He tells you to go, you go. Why? Because He is with you every step of the way.
"Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you. And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age." -Matthew 28:19-20
Transformation is a beautiful thing...if you let it be.
With a heart full of love,
T
these new faces are the new Soddy Daisy Young Life leaders. PRAISE GOD.
10 of them.
10...10?!? YEP. Diez. DIME. TEN. 10.
that's more than I prayed for. God can do immeasurably more. Why? Because He is Faithful, and He is for us.
These people, I am already so proud of and already have so much love for them. I wept on Friday night. And I don't cry in front of people. My tough walls never allowed me. And the Lord said through my good friend Tess that it was okay to be vulnerable. Jesus wept. I wept. Man, I love transformation.
Those Soddy Daisy folks aren't going to know what hit them. To our new leaders Dakota, Houston, Kalie, and Moe...here's my word of encouragement for you (if any of you ever end up reading this):
I am so proud of you. I am so blessed and so honored that God chose to write Soddy Daisy into your stories. I have so much more peace leaving at the end of the semester knowing that y'all be there to continue loving on the kids that don't know Jesus (yet ;) ) When Jesus tells you to pray, you pray. When He tells you to listen, you listen. He tells you to go, you go. Why? Because He is with you every step of the way.
"Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you. And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age." -Matthew 28:19-20
Transformation is a beautiful thing...if you let it be.
With a heart full of love,
T
