One Year Already!?

Friends!!! It is with overwhelming delight, excitement and pure amazement that I can finally say I have survived my first year at Highlands. It was a year ago this weekend that I was finally able to announce to you what God called me to after I graduated and I wrote my MUCH anticipated blog post announcing that to the world. For those of you that haven't read that or met me after-the-fact you can see that blog post here.

The last week I have been spending a lot of time processing and praying through what it is that I have been feeling most recently. If I had to sum up all the lessons God taught me throughout the year in one big word or theme, what would that be? After some deliberation, prayer and reading through my journal I have decided that that one big lesson this year was TRUST - knowing that God was in control but letting myself trust Him in that and relying on Him to be my strength. Reading through Matthew this year with BSF, I was struck by chapter 14 when Jesus calls Peter to walk on water. I have read this passage many times before but this year that changed for me.

"...He said, "Come." So Peter got out of the boat and walked on the water and came to Jesus. But when he saw the wind, he was afraid, and beginning to sink he cried out, "Lord, save me." Jesus immediately reached out his hand and took hold of him saying to him, "O you of little faith, why did you doubt..." Matthew 14:29-31

Now, I am not saying that my job is something as monumental as Peter walking on water. But, God did ask me to 'come.' To step out, in faith, to something WAY bigger than me...just as Peter was asked to do. As soon as Peter took his focus off of Christ, he began to sink. He saw the wind and was afraid. This year I have learned that when I have taken my focus off of Christ, that is when I started to fear, to doubt, to question, to believe I couldn't possibly be good enough, or do this well enough to make it worth it, or believing that this really was too good to be true.

God has taught me a ton this year, I have been humbled in more ways than I realized I even needed to be humbled, I have matured more than I thought possible for a 12 month period and the things I have experienced in this year have been incredible. All of these make me so excited to keep going. To have more experiences than most my age, to fall even deeper in love for Jesus, to continue to discover that He has made me for this purpose for such a time as this to share Jesus with hundreds of kiddos.

After all of this I can't WAIT to see what God is going to continue to do with and through me this coming year. This year more than any, God reminded me that He has a plan for my life, a good and perfect plan that He will bring to fruition...in His timing and His way. This year the song "Oceans" by Hillsong became popular. Morri shared it with me in one of my more tear-filled days and it instantly struck a chord with me. THIS is the song to finally put words to what I have felt this year has been. If you haven't heard it before, you can listen to it here.

Thank you to those of you who have walked this year with me. For those that prayed for me, that let me cry and cry some more, for the hugs, dinners and encouraging smiles. For correcting me when I mispronounced or got the wrong name and to those who answered my hundreds of questions. And thank you, in advance, for continuing to give me grace in the above areas. :) I honestly couldn't have done it without you...thank you for loving me so well! Here's to MANY more year anniversaries!