....2011 in just a few words

Sitting down and recording your year in words is a bit of a hard thing to do. What shall I write about? What shall I not write about? What all happened in my year anyway?

In one year I went from being a junior in college to now only having one semester left between me and graduation. I'm not going to deny it, this year had some very hard spots. There are things I wish would not have happened. Some things as hard as they were I'm glad they happened, because I know they were just tiny pieces of a plan much bigger than I .

The year started just the way it ended. Only 3 weeks after my uncle died my aunt also died, and so together they were in heaven. I had left school early for a funeral and nearly returned to school late because of a funeral.

During my Junior semester I became the author a 20 page paper on Biblical food of all things. In counseling class learned how to be a marriage counsel and yes I still I am in a single state. When a literal plague of flu swept across campus I managed to miss all of my midterms and was confined to my room for three very long days. When schoolwork wasn't being done two other classmates and I planned the senior banquet and lets just say Hobby Lobby will always have some very interesting memories in our minds. Just when I thought school couldn't get any busier I found myself working ahead furiously, so I could skip out on classes to go to a wedding.

My big brother's wedding.

Mere feet away from me stood my big brother making a pledge before God to his girl. He promised to love her forever and I know he met it every word of those vows that were spoken in beautiful love and seriousness. Pretty much it was one of the top moments of my year.

Before I went to the wedding I went on another trip to Utah. To say I had fun would be literally the greatest understatement of the year . Road tripping is pretty fun especially in a very ancient Oldsmobile filled with some very amusing passengers. The trip wasn't all laughter though, because seeing such blindness of the Mormon people is simply horrifying. Memories of the trip either make me laugh from all the fun or they make me sad from seeing all the spiritual darkness.

Somehow the time between spring break and graduation flew by very fast and all people seemed to be asking me about were my summer plans. Those lovely little plans did not become finalized till the last week of school. God though put them together just the way He wanted it. When summer was over I had made 6 road trips and lived the entire summer out of my little black carry on suit case.

Pieces of my summer took place here and there. First at home then in a tiny town with some people with a very big heart for the Lord. Then I was in a big city doing things I had never done before learning lessons in the most unexpected ways. I had the opportunity over the course of the summer to serve children who had homes, but they were less than perfect. I served children with no home at all and few belongings, but their emotional baggage was enumerable. Every child needed the same love of Christ and I was thankful to show it to them despite my own shortcomings.

I started my senior year and yes every time I think about the word senior I want to smile. Being a senior has been wonderful even when the freshmen expect you to know everything and you don't know. Somehow I procrastinated more than ever this year and somehow friendships have grown even deeper this year. Oh there have been the bumps and far too many of them I think, but God's grace was just right for every situation. Everywhere I looked I saw God's grace. Even the one's that did not involve me personally, but still made heart ache very hard.

Resident Assistant. Being referred to as one of the RA's still makes me think they are talking to someone else. I have loved it though, because there are just some pretty special girls in the dorm whom I love getting to know. Mostly myself and the other RA just do normal things like lead dorm meeting and remind the girls for the 10th time to put away their shoes... Sometimes though we facilitate an impromptu fire drill because somebody's popcorn got a little too done:) What can I say dorm life has been amazing!

For the first time it didn't work for me to go home for Thanksgiving. I dreaded the day I normally loved, because there would be no family to spend it with. Needlessly I worried because when Thanksgiving break was over I had the best of times with friends. I'm not going to lie though I could not wait for Christmas break to come so I could see my family.

An eternity of projects and tests seemed separate me from my family. It's amazing though what can be accomplished in a few late nights. Just as usual all the work got done although we may have shortened our lives by several years. You forget about that though when you wake up at 8:30 on Monday morning and don't feel the least bit guilty for sleeping through first hour because your on Christmas break and it doesn't matter.

So that was my year...well a very small fraction of it. I've already gotten too wordy and still I only told you events not actual stories. Some things were not for me to tell, but instead are secrets between me and the Lord. I could write a big long book of all the very many things God did this year. There are exactly 10 days left in the year 2011, and so much could happen in those few days. I have learned to never estimate a day as only ordinary for you just never know what is going to happen.

I await the adventures of 2012 with anticipation of all the things I know God will do. Those little and big things that only God can do. With so much faithfulness seen in this year alone there is no doubt the Lord will continue to be faithful. My prayer is that I will continue to be faithful in all that I am called to do.

To God be the Glory!