A Decision

To Whom it may concern:

Deciding what college to attend has not been as simple as I originally thought it would be.  My heart has been torn between two colleges of high standards and quality for sometime.  As a teenager, I didn't want to completely disregard my parents advise as an act of rebellion; nor did I want to blindly follow them, as it is not their life.

I have talked to many people who are older and wiser than me.  I have talked to people my age.  I've asked almost anyone who would listen and offer advice.  I've received advice from people I didn't want advice from (Sorry, sometimes I just have to end a sentence in a preposition).  Through the many conversations I've had regarding this decision I've learned a few things:

1.  Everyone has their own biases.
 This statement might seem rather arbitrary and biased in itself, but as I continued to try to find a source that would only tell me the facts about which college was better, I discovered that every source and every person is biased.  Everyone perceives things differently, and when asked about that particular subject they will share with you their perception, which isn't necessarily the true reality of the matter.

 2.  This choice really is a matter of opinion, and you should make it based on your own, educated opinion.
This statement may seem very obvious, but it took me a long time to come to this conclusion in my head, even though people and articles told me that statement many times.

Upon realizing this second point and due to recent events, I have chosen where I will attend college.  Through God prodding at my heart and reassuring me through the scripture (Jeremiah 1:5; Deuteronomy 31:6), and through prayerful consideration (I Thessalonians 5:17; Psalm 145:18) I have concluded that this coming fall I will attend Purdue University as a Biology major.  Hopefully (and with a lot of hard work), in four years I will know where I will attend medical school.

Between now and then I pray that I may be a light before men, that they may see how I act and praise my heavenly Father (Matthew 5:16)

Living in Reckless abandon for Jesucristo,
Jo

P.S. "Real gold fears no fire." -Randy Alcorn

Near Sighted

I was recently having a conversation with a friends mom about how the game "Peek-a-Boo" works.  To adults, who have more developed brains, they know that the person is simply behind the hands.  However, when a baby sees someone's face disappear behind their hands, the baby sees the person as gone.  What is interesting about this topic is that it takes awhile before the baby learns that the adult playing Peek-a-Boo with them isn't gone, they're just hiding behind their hands.  As I had this conversation I was thinking about the parallels that a baby's behavior and an adult's behavior have.

Quite simply, there are a lot of distractions in this world.  Every where we go, we are bombarded with sights, smells, sounds, tastes, and feelings.  We go to restaurants. smell food, eat food, participate in conversation, listen to the music that is playing.  We walk along a street and smell car emissions, see signs and billboards, and hear people's conversations.  We get into our cars and listen to the radio.  Even now, I'm listening to music as I write this.  Our senses are bombarded nearly all the time.  Among all of this, it is very simple to wonder if God is gone.  It easy to wonder if He has left us high and dry in a moment of struggle.  Sometimes, in the hardest moment of struggle we get a glimpse of God, and they seem to amaze us.  We are left in awe, just as a baby is left giggling when an adult emerges from behind his hands.

 However, God is never gone.  He is behind the distractions.  We have to take the time to push away the sights, sounds, smells, tastes, and feelings to see him.  We have to trust that He is with us.  We should be in awe of him all of the time, because He is an awesome God.  He wants us to be in awe of Him, but He also wants us to know that He is with us.  He is not an adult playing games with babies.  We are forgetful babies.  We forget where He is.  He is right here.  He is with you.  He is with me.  Take the time today to pray and read the Bible in quiet solitude.  Fast from a meal.  Kneel in awe of a God who chooses to love all people. 

The LORD said, “Go out and stand on the mountain in the presence of the LORD, for the LORD is about to pass by.” Then a great and powerful wind tore the mountains apart and shattered the rocks before the LORD, but the LORD was not in the wind. After the wind there was an earthquake, but the LORD was not in the earthquake.
After the earthquake came a fire, but the LORD was not in the fire. And after the fire came a gentle whisper.

When Elijah heard it, he pulled his cloak over his face and went out and stood at the mouth of the cave. Then a voice said to him, “What are you doing here, Elijah?”

 I Kings 19:11-13

God is speaking to you.  God loves you.  God has plans for you.  God is with you.  Are you listening?
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UoXT4vfZDks

Written in Reckless Abandonment para Jesucristo, Thanks for Reading!

The End? Or Just the Beginning?

The last Spring Break of my high school career is coming up.  This has a lot of meaning behind it.  It means that I'm nearly eighteen years old.  It means my high school career is coming to an end.  It means that soon I need to know where I am going to go after high school.  It means more responsibility and pressure than I've ever felt will fall on my shoulders soon. This Spring Break, although offering a break in the day-to-day chaos, means the end of many things.  I'm not going to college with any of my friends from high school, so it means the end of many of my high school friendships.  These are all relatively sad things.  But there is hope.

With my last Spring Break of my high school career coming up, it means that my high school career is coming to an end.  But it means that I'm getting closer to college.  It means I'm closer to bigger and better things.  Not only am I close to ends, I'm close to new beginnings.  I will have more responsibilities, but I will use these to learn to trust God more.  The ends of my current friendships mean the beginnings of new friendships.  It means the beginning of learning new things.

Sometimes change hurts.  Trusting God is scary.  Believing that He will take care of me through these new challenges is hard.  But, even though I'm turning eighteen soon, I will try to have the faith of a child.  Not blindly trusting, but attempting to follow Him with a humble spirit.

And he said: “Truly I tell you, unless you change and become like little children, you will never enter the kingdom of heaven.
Matthew 18:3

Written in Reckless Abandonment para Jesucristo, Thanks for Reading!