3 years of abundance
Coming to the realization that the season that is college is over a bit early has caused me to do a lot of reflecting/ journaling/girly things these last few weeks. All I can think about when I think about my time at CofC is abundance. These have been years full of abundance, even in the littlest things.
I got to go to the school I dreamed of and live in the city that’s always had my heart.
People older and younger than me taught me new things and showed me new images of God’s glory all the time.
I found a church that feels like home.
One of my biggest dreams came true, I got to dance in college and for the first time since high school, I got to experience the joy of dance that the Lord intended for me because I was no longer trying to find my identity and purpose in it, and I got to share my new joy and purpose in Jesus with other girls who felt the same pain I had from expecting ballet to fill the holes in my heart.
I fell in love with nursing, I saw the beautiful servant-heartedness of the role, the deep compassion and caring, and I get to work with kiddos who love you even when you have to give them finger pricks, and at work, I get to provide for people's needs while learning how to be the hands and feet of Jesus.
I learned how precious family is and I got to live with girls that felt just like family.
I have sisters and brothers who run with me in this race we call life even when I get worn out and feel like I can't keep going.
I've experienced what real love, unconditional, relentless love feels like, and I've learned how to love authentically, how to meet people where they're at, in their mess, how to sit with them, how to walk with them, how to run with them, how to love for the sake of loving and not seeking to receive anything back, the way Jesus loves us.
I learned how to evangelize and share the best news I've ever heard, that Jesus loved us enough to die for our sins. I saw people go from death to life when they met Jesus, I saw God trade people’s sorrow for joy that never ends. I saw people come to know Jesus for the first time and I saw people grow in knowing Him.
I learned how to be a disciple and how to disciple other people. I learned how to pour my life out for someone else's benefit. I learned how to put other people first, how to really listen, how to do life with people, how to do laughs, ugly crying, grocery shopping, how to do every bit of life with them as we both get to know Jesus a bit better each day.
But the biggest thing that gets my joy going down deep is that I see God in every moment of college. I see God crying with me in the sorrow and rejoicing with me in the beauty. I see Him reaching out my freshman year when I couldn't see His meaning in the mess, I see Him dancing with me in all the joy and excitement of sophomore year, I see Him walking through all the beautiful parts and hard parts of this combined junior/senior year right there with me. I see Him holding me in the lonely parts. I see His forgiveness in the parts of the story I wish I could go back and shake my sinful self for.
I see Him rejoicing in my freedom, I hear Him quieting my fears. I see so much of it in every moment these 3 years.
And I see how there was abundance in the beautiful parts and the messy parts and how each moment was a moment to be cherished. So whatever part you’re in, the beautiful, the messy, or maybe a little bit of both or maybe something in between, I hope you take heart, because you’re in abundance even if you don’t see it, and you’ll be in abundance tomorrow too.
the gathering place
"This house has become a home, not just to me but to hundreds. It holds my heart. It holds so many lessons. It is a place where children can be children, where people can know that they are important and special and loved. It is a place where people accept Christ and learn about Him and grow in Him. It is my house. But mostly it is a house of the Lord.' - Kisses from Katie
After my freshman year, some of my closest friends and I decided to move into a little house right next to campus. We all agreed this house wasn't going to be for us. It was going to be a haven, a safe place, for younger girls to get away to. A place where they could be people, where they could be silly, where they could be broken, a home away from home. We all agreed this house was for ministry and not for comfort, and that this house was to be a vessel for the Lord to use as He wanted. We got to the house and it was in pieces, much like all of us. It looked pretty on the outside in an effort to get attention and approval, but when you unlocked the pretty but rigid door, you saw how it had been worn and torn. The house had been through a lot. We got to work painting it blue and tan and all the girly colors we could think of, we stuck pretty paintings on the wall, and taped up scripture, we put up pictures and made it as aesthetically pleasing as we could, but even with all the decorative band aids, we all knew it was still a little broken. It was special though, to see God use this house despite its cracks, despite the broken AC, and the doors that sometimes wouldn't work right, despite the brokenness, God decided to use what we nicknamed the Gathering Place to bring people closer to Himself. We had bible studies in our house, we had times of encouragement and times of sorrow, times where we danced together and times where we leaned on each other. God saw the brokenness in the house the same way He saw the brokenness in us, a way to display His strength. The next year, our landlord broke our lease the week of finals, and we desperately tried to find another home. And we did. And God used that home too. It felt scary to move somewhere new. I loved our old house, that we had nicknamed 205. I loved it even though it was broken, I loved it even though it was tiny, I loved it even though I didn't have a wifi signal unless I was in the kitchen, and I felt scared moving into our new place. But new places are often where God wants us to be. And He made 40 a home too, He brought girls into that home the same way He did at 205 and He used it as a place to make His love known, to make His welcome felt, and to provide for needs.I wish we could all be roomies forever, but seasons are beautiful even when they don't last forever. People get married, people move away, and new seasons are beautiful even when they're scary just like the new Gathering Place held beautiful memories even though moving in felt scary. I'm so thankful for every laugh and every lesson, the way these homes have made life so much more joyful, and God is so good for letting me be a part of our special home. We saw people meet Jesus in our houses even if the walls were falling apart in a similar fashion that our hearts do when life gets hard. We taped up some truth on the wall and before we knew it, we never wanted to leave. I love my sisters that have lived with me, I love my sisters that have come in and out of our home, I loved 205, I loved 40, and I love that God uses broken people and broken houses to bring people closer to Himself. |