What actually happened was:
- I dated 1 man after high school (and had a kinda relationship with an old friend, that wasn't really a relationship)
- I spent ~ 7 years in college and it still took me almost 10 years to finish my undergrad.
- I met my father and sister after my 21st birthday for the first time and it changed me forever! I dropped out of school for awhile to go live with her and get to know him.
- I spent 2 summers serving as a summer missionary in the Mid-Atlantic and Pacific Northwest regions. It was during my summer in Idaho that God called me to move there and work with the kids in the Valley.
- So I did just that! After my sister, Denise, got married in July 2002, I moved to Idaho with my buddies, Johnny and Joel. We served at one church together for about 8 months at which point, I was asked to serve at another church. What started out as a 2-year commitment, ended up as a 7-year entrenchment in the lovely LC Valley.
- I worked at Red Lobster to pay the bills and ended up making a career out of it. It was here that I made some extraordinary friends and colleagues, grew up a bit, developed a thicker skin, and honed my leadership skills.
- I also had the blessing and privilege to serve Warner Alliance Church as the middle school youth leader alongside two awesome youth pastors, Jon and Drew. This church is unparalleled in their devotion to the Lord and their passion for seeking God's will in their personal lives as well as the life of the church. Are they perfect? No. But they do strive to glorify God in the LC Valley. I miss them!
- It was during my time in Idaho that my big brother, Michael, passed away. Ya'll I have not been the same person since his death. This was one of those moments in life where you are forever changed. In some ways, the changes have been good. In many ways, they have not. But Yahweh is faithful and continues to help me work through my grief. No, you never get over it. Yes, you will forever be changed. Yes, you can learn to move through and past your pain. Thankfully, I had faithful friends who relentlessly pursued me and did not allow me to stop going to church and pushed me to fight for healing and restoration.
- A little over a year later, I moved back to Maryland to be closer to my parents and at least one of my siblings. Turns out, it was in vain because within six months they all moved west! LOL!
- Within only a few months until being promoted to running my own restaurant, God pulled out the shepherd's hook and my career with Red Lobster ended. Now, this was not necessarily a bad thing! I had the opportunity to work for my chiropractor and got to know some great people. It opened up my schedule to get back to serving with the youth at my church. It also led me down an unusual set of circumstances which culminated in meeting another person that forever changed the trajectory of my life!
- Because I was no longer a restaurant manager, I had the time to take off to take my students to camp 2 summers ago. It was at camp that I met Dr. Allen Jackson (no, not the country singer). Upon the recommendation of my own former youth pastor, who was also at camp, I had a conversation with Dr. J about who I was, what I was doing, and where I was going (which was nowhere, fast). The result of that conversation was applying to seminary at NOBTS!
- The end of the summer left me working at the campground where we had gone to camp (having lost my job at the chiropractor) which left me with no job by the end of the year due to layoffs! I was floundering with no income (other than little I was getting as the now-official youth director at church). My parents wanted me to come to Texas and serve at their church until my move the next fall to NOLA. I couldn't explain it, I just knew I wasn't supposed to leave MD yet!
- Turns out, God really does know what he's doing because I met Andy a month after that conversation with my parents! Two months later he proposed and two months after that, we were married! WHEW!
- We moved to NOLA and haven't (really) looked back! While I do get homesick for ID and MD sometimes, I know I am right where I'm supposed to be.
Yeah, life didn't exactly turn out the way I'd expected. But you know what? It's so much better than I could have dreamed! Is it perfect? NO! Is Andy perfect? No. But then, neither am I and he still loves me. Someday soon, we'll expand our family and I'll have to grow up a little bit more as I learn to juggle my husband, my kids, school, and (hopefully) a ministry. Do I know how that's all going to play out? NOT A CHANCE! But here's the cool thing:
"For I know the plans I have for you,” declares the Lord, “plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future." - Jeremiah 29:11
God has given me a LARGE family that loves me. He has sent me on adventures where I have met extraordinary people. He has sent people into my life that have made a profound impact upon me and helped grow me into the person I am today. He has guided my steps and carried me through the worst of my pain and danced with me during my greatest joys! He fulfilled my greatest desire in the exact manner I asked him to: He made it overwhelmingly clear to me that Andy was the man he made especially for me, just as I asked of Him. God has provided/is providing the means for me to better my theological education and worldview so I may better serve my students.
Friends, herein lies my heart of gratitude! I have MUCH for which to be grateful, by mostly because I am a daughter of the Most High King. I am His sweet princess. He takes delight in my heart and loves me no matter what. Forget mid-life crisis; it is in THIS, that I trust and what I cling to in my darkest moments and my greatest joys!
No comments:
Post a Comment