hello from my hammock, friends! have ya missed me? :)
it's a beautiful day in Auburn! Chelsey and I are chilling in our hammocks as campus slowly turns into a ghost town. pretty sure we're the only people staying here this weekend..BUT our friends are coming!!!!
we cannot wait to see Katelyn, Reagz, Alyx, and Chan! get ready for a weekend full of Auburn fun, y'all :)
anywho, since I'm chilling here avoiding my psychology notes, I thought it would be a good time to update the blog!
since my last post, I have...
spent a lot of time with these ladies
chopped my hair off
bought a hammock
taken my first college road trip with some of the best friends I could ever ask for
seen T-Swizzle in concert
spent a lot of time in Robert Brown Draughon Library
mostly goofing off or pinning..but I get a good bit of studying done, too :)
made some really precious friends (and cheered on the tigers. war eagle, y'all!)
and been amazed my Heavenly Father's ability to make Auburn's skyline look like this almost every night.
but ultimately, I've been learning. not about finite math or american government. but about the importance of holding onto faith and trusting in the Lord. I'm not going to sugar coat my college experience thus far in this post because, frankly, I would be lying if I said I haven't struggled. The Lord has shown me so much in these first two months. He's shown me that He's always there even when it feels like no one is. He's shown me how important it is to spend time with Him and make Him a priority. He's shown me how blessed I am to have precious, precious friends who love Him. there have been many instances where I've felt very out of place. instances where I've found myself wishing I was back in the halls of Hoover High where I knew everyone and everyone knew me. instances where I have desperately craved the presence of my Christian friends. instances when I wish some things had turned out differently. but if they had, it would be the Lord's plan, would it? nope. it's been very hard for me to take comfort in the fact that the Lord knows exactly what He's doing..but I am doing my best to continue trusting His perfect will and plan for my life.
college has been very humbling so far..goodness gracious. it's been SO humbling.
"For by grace you have been saved through faith. And this is not your own doing; it is the gift of God, not a result of works, so that no one may boast." Ephesians 2:8-9
I have to be honest on this part..it's been hard for me not to judge other girls in my classes and in my sorority based on their actions or even on their looks..I was so discouraged for a while because I hadn't found a core group of girls in zeta that loved the Lord and that were going to "build me up" in my walk with the Lord. this was my mindset for weeks. everyone else was finding friends and I still hadn't. looking back on it now, I was angry with the Lord about this. it was like I couldn't understand why He would put me in a place where His presence wasn't evident. I love how the Lord uses a sermon or even casual words from a friend to get His point across. not by coincidence, the subjects of grace and judging others kept coming up. the two things I really needed to take to heart. who am I to judge these girls? sure, I don't drink, go to parties, etc. and yes, they might do those things. but why should that mean they can't be the girls that will strengthen my walk with the Lord? where did I even get the idea that this whole sorority thing is about me anyways? it's about HIM! everything in my life should be about HIM and HIM ALONE! I am on this earth to shine God's light and share the love of Christ with girls (and guys) who may or may not party. that is my purpose. zeta isn't about me. college isn't about me. I may not be comfortable in some situations. I may not be being encouraged in the way that I'm used to. but I'm not there to be comfortable. I'm there to build up and encourage other girls and pray that they might see a speck of God's infinite love through me. and even if they don't, it's still not my place to judge them. that is the Lord's place. loving them is my place.
"they will know you are my disciples, if you love one another." John 13:35
I definitely have not perfected this love yet, but I'm trying to keep it in mind when I am tempted to judge or think highly of myself. because in the end, I am nothing and Jesus is everything.
I am so thankful that the Lord has given me this outlet to share my faith. I love blogging, and I can honestly say that writing these posts draws me nearer to Him. I'm going to try to blog a little more now that I've gotten caught up :) I hope and pray that you enjoy reading about my walk with the Lord and maybe even find some nugget of encouragement from my experiences. I ask that you pray for me if you will. for the Lord to soften my heart to others and to His plan for me. pray that I will be intentional about my time in Auburn. naps and homework and pinterest are great, but spending time in the Word is better. encouraging others is better. sharing my faith is better. Jesus is better. He's better than any work I will do on this earth. He's bigger and better than any struggle I may go through. I am so thankful that even when I go astray, I can come back to the Lord and His arms will be open, waiting for me. He is always better.
"12 We are not commending ourselves to you again but giving you cause to boast about us, so that you may be able to answer those who boast about outward appearance and not about what is in the heart. 13For if we are beside ourselves, it is for God; if we are in our right mind, it is for you. 14For the love of Christ controls us, because we have concluded this: that one has died for all, therefore all have died; 15and he died for all, that those who live might no longer live for themselves but for him who for their sake died and was raised. 16From now on, therefore, we regard no one according to the flesh. Even though we once regarded Christ according to the flesh, we regard him thus no longer. 17Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation. The old has passed away; behold, the new has come. 18All this is from God, who through Christ reconciled us to himself and gave us the ministry of reconciliation; 19that is, in Christ, God was reconciling the world to himself, not counting their trespasses against them, and entrusting to us the message of reconciliation. 20Therefore, we are ambassadors for Christ, God making his appeal through us. We implore you on behalf of Christ, be reconciled to God. 21 For our sake he made him to be sin who knew no sin, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God." 2 Corinthians 5:12-21
