May 21, 2023
Good afternoon everyone! I hope you have all had a fantastic week and we’re able to find at least one area of you life to challenge yourself with. I had a really big moment this past week that I wanted to share with you all because I think it may help you or encourage you as it did me. So first let me just tell you guys how busy of a week we have had, between getting ready for my brother’s graduation, the end of the school year, preparing for our trip, and just to add a little something else, we decided to plan family pictures right in the middle of it all. All of these plans have turned out to be a blessing in disguise though because we have had the chance to spend a lot of time as a family which I am super grateful for.
Now to the point, so a couple of days ago we were all in the car together going out to dinner and as we were driving my family started to talk about our relationships with God. Now if you know my family as much as we wish this was a topic we discussed really often and excuses don’t make up for it, usually isn’t just because life gets in the way and we get distracted as many families do. However this day as we were all in the car we started talking about how we felt God using each of us in different areas of our life and where we feel God calling us to serve. for example, my dad mentioned his mission field is work, and my brother shared how he feels that God is calling him to West Point in order to be on mission while he is there. As we shared these things, I kind of had a realization that I have not been surrounding myself with God as much as I should. I kind of got caught in a rut and felt like I was distancing myself from Christ.
It wasn’t until we started talking about being on mission that I really began to feel ashamed. I have not been reading the word, going to church like I should, or praying for spiritual growth. I have kind of in a since been in a standstill of “I’m doing enough”. Now that I think about it, there is no such thing as enough, life isn’t about fulfilling a Godly checklist just to be able to say we did or engaging in specific events as a way to earn a closer relationship with God. In reality the only way for us to grow closer to God is to engage with Him as much as possible. My brother made a really good point, he said that having a relationship with God is really much like having a relationship with just another human. If we don’t stay in contact and speak to each other often, our closeness will fade. Therefore, we should be having conversations and interactions with Christ as much as possible.
With all of the conviction I felt after talking about this with my family, I decided to start to do a daily devotion. Now I am not going to lie, in the past this has been something I have really struggled to stay consistent with but I am determined that this will be the time. I read something not too long ago that said 90 days and it becomes a habit so, I am challenging myself to do with devotion every single day until it becomes a habit and I pray it would truly become something I crave and cannot live without. It is so important that we spend time with God every day, even if it only 5 minutes.
I hope this brings you all encouragement like it did me and please feel free to reach out to me if you ever need someone to hold you accountable! (That’s what y’all are for me) I pray that you all have a great week as we jump into summer and I look forward to our next update!
May 13, 2023
Good afternoon! I hope you have all had a great week. This week has been so crazy for me. First off, we have been having end of the year testing at school which means sometimes we have class, sometimes we are testing, and sometimes we are just sitting around while our teachers proctor. This is always the part of the school year that seems so long. Everyone is dragging and waiting for the last day of school to be here. It is so funny because I was talking to my friends as we were walking down the hall on Wednesday and we were laughing because everybody that we passed had a face of pure exhaustion. It feels like every day is equal to about three days because I am so ready to summer and I think most people feel the same way. I am so excited because me and my family are taking a trip to Europe in a few weeks for my brothers graduation gift. I have never gone this far away and so I cannot wait to see how different life is there. We are flying into Rome, Italy and then getting on a cruise ship to go to Greece and Turkey. It is going to be a long trip which is probably going to get a little rough for me lol. As most of y’all know I am definitely more of a homebody so twelve days away from my bed may be a little struggle. However, I am trying to look past that and be excited for what is to come.
Life is short so we need to enjoy it while we can, right? I think this trip will be really good for me because it will make me step outside of my comfort zone and live life on the fly for a few days. It is good for us to put some change in our day to day lives because let’s be real, when you do the same exact things every day (even for people like me who enjoy life this way) life gets very repetitive and it is because of different experiences that we are able to make new memories. Like I said a couple of weeks ago, I am not ready for my brother to leave for college and I know it is going to be a big change so, I have been looking at this trip is an opportunity to spend as much time with him as possible and really just soak up the last few weeks before he leaves for New York. I am so blessed and thankful God has allowed me and my family to have this opportunity and I cannot wait to tell you all about it when we return.
Now, I say all of this to say that I challenge you all to step outside of your comfort zone at some point this week. Whether it be introducing yourself to someone new, asking for help, or even simply going out with friends. I want you to try and find some time even if it is only a few minutes to push yourself and see how good it feels. Have an amazing week! I love y’all so much and will see you soon!