no worries

“Therefore I tell you, do not worry about your life, what you will eat or drink; or about your body, what you will wear. Is not life more than food, and the body more than clothes? Look at the birds of the air; they do not sow or reap or store away in barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not much more valuable than they? Can any one of you by worrying add a single hour to your life? And why do you worry about clothes? See how the flowers of the field grow. They do not labor or spin. Yet I tell you that not even Solomon in all his splendor was dressed like one of these. If that is how God clothes the grass of the field, which is here today and tomorrow is thrown into the fire, will he not much more clothe you—you of little faith? So do not worry, saying, ‘What shall we eat?’ or ‘What shall we drink?’ or ‘What shall we wear?’ For the pagans run after all these things, and your heavenly Father knows that you need them. But seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well. Therefore do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about itself. Each day has enough trouble of its own." -Matthew 6:25-34

I just read this passage this morning, and it was such a timely reminder. As final exams are soon to come, papers are due, tests are next week, and everything outside of class continues, it is so easy to worry. Easier to worry than to pray and trust. In Philippians, Paul writes not to worry about anything, but to pray about everything. Instead of worrying we should pray, putting our trust in God rather than ourselves. This passage was kind of a slap in the face this morning, like God was saying, "Hello...don't you know that I will take care of you? You don't have to stress. You don't have to be in control, because I am in control. I feed the birds. I clothe the flowers. I made you in my own image. Don't you know that I will take care of you even more?" So to all of you out there who are stressed and worried with life (probably most of you), trust God. Hand it all over to him. Cast your burdens on him, as it says in 1 Peter. The last part of this Matthew passage telling us to seek first his kingdom and righteousness ties it together perfectly. When we are more focused on him and less focused on us, he will take care of all those little things we waste our time thinking about. Think about it, and put your trust in him rather than yourself.

time flies when you’re in college

I thought high school went by fast. Nope. I am almost finished with my first semester of college. It’s kind of one of those, “Who am I, where am I, and what am I doing here?” moments. I feel like it’s been such a short time since Union was only a dream–something I wanted to happen but something that seemed out of reach. Well, I’m here. God worked it all out, and I’m here. I’m so thankful for this place and the fact that I’m in it. God graciously continues to show me why he has led me here. There are so many events and people and thoughts I could write about…I just don’t even know where to start. I think I’ll go backwards from this week.

Wednesday morning we had the most wonderful discussion in Honors. I left feeling giddy. Go ahead and laugh. I’m a nerd. Maybe it was just the coffee…ha. We just started reading through the book of Proverbs–what book would be better in a class called Wisdom??? It’s amazing how much of what I’m reading in Proverbs relates back to the secular sources we have read throughout the semester. I definitely noticed things I had not noticed before. Well, we read Chapters 1-9 for Wednesday morning. Basically, Solomon personifies wisdom and folly as two women. While Solomon personifies folly as an adulterous who seems desirable but is actually deceitful, he personifies wisdom as a woman who is good and right and true and most desirable above all. I think I will blog more about this on another post because I could go pretty deep, but I have more to say here. Be looking for a post on this soon

 Last week, the Honors Community freshmen from Union went to a conference about wisdom in education at Baylor University in Texas. I learned a lot, was confused a lot, spent time with my wonderful honors friends a lot, and returned home with an even greater passion for seeking wisdom than the passion I had before. Look for a later post for more on what I learned about wisdom. However, I will talk here about the fun times we had! First, we drove. In fifteen passenger vans. On the way we split up the trip, but on the way back to Union, we drove about twelve hours from Waco to Jackson. So we rode in close proximity to each other for about twenty-four hours, and it was great fun. Really. We listened to music, sang, danced, had deep discussions (you know we can’t live without those!), and slept. When we finally got to Waco, we spent most of our time at the conference, which I will discuss later, but we also got to just hang out and talk a good bit, which was such a great break from the stress of schoolwork and class. I love the community that God is building among the honors students here!

Whole Bible Study

Hello friends! It has been way too long (again, sorry). I'm on fall break, so I have a little time to just relax and visit with people I haven't seen in FOREVER.

Tonight I had the opportunity to help lead Wade's Bible study at Whole Foods. I'm not really sure who came up with the name "Whole Bible Study," but I like it. It kind of has a double meaning. Of course, it takes place at Whole Foods, so that makes sense, but also, we should look at the Bible as something that is a whole, not just a bunch of books that happen to be combined. The Bible is a living and active text that screams the name of Jesus throughout. The Bible as a whole works together to point to Christ. Also, it's important that we look at the Bible as a whole because God didn't give it to us as a Jesus buffet. We can't just decide we like his salvation and disregard his call to surrender our lives to him. When we look at his whole Word, we realize that he wants us wholly (and holy...ha punny).

As I've said before, I've been memorizing the Book of James. Well, I finished, and I went through the whole thing at Bible study tonight. If you've never memorized longer than a few verses before, I challenge you to pick a passage (or if you've done that, a book) and memorize it. This is not just for the sake of "being spiritual." Knowing God's Word is powerful. When you really know it and meditate on it, the Holy Spirit brings it to mind when you need it. I definitely challenge you to do more than memorize, though. When you learn Scripture, think about what it means as you learn it. It's easier to remember that way, too. God will use what you learn to change your heart and your life. Just knowing the Book of James has helped me to overcome temptation and to understand what following Christ looks like, among other things.

Some of you are challenged and will do this, but maybe some of you are busy and feel like you can't handle memorizing Scripture right now. Let me debunk your excuses right now. (Was that a little harsh? Not intentional...I totally understand that busyness--especially with already memorizing stuff for school--makes it hard to pile on more brain activity.) First, if you think you don't have time to strengthen your relationship with God, make time. He's worth it. Second, honestly, memorizing Scripture is not extremely time consuming. It just takes discipline. I have used several things to help me. First, I usually print out what I'm memorizing and carry it around with me. When I was in high school, I would pull it out and work on it when I was finished and had down time in class. The best way for me to memorize is to go verse by verse. If a verse is long, I'll split it up. I memorize the first verse, and then move on to the second. I learn the second and then go over the first and second together. I move on to the third and then go over the second and third togther, then the first through third together. I continue like that, verse by verse, then backtracking, until I have all of it down. Also, another way that I learned James was listening to it on the Journey CD (just make sure it's the same version as what you're memorizing!). I would listen while driving or running or such. This might work better for someone who is more of an audible learner than a visual learner. Definitely figure out your learning style and use it! I also get to know the passage better by saying it in the car when I drive or going over it in my head when I run (this is the best thing for me...I pretty much hate running!). I pray through the passage. Don't tell anyone, but I write the passage in my notes when I get bored in class...or on AP tests when I finish early...haha. Basically my point...you can do it! And please do. God will use it to bring you closer to him.

So I'll step off my soapbox now and continue. It's great to see what God is doing in and through this Bible study. Students who have never looked that deeply into the Word are really learning it, as well as what it means to be devoted followers of Christ. Students who have been deeply studying the Word for years are digging deeper. God is using this Bible study to draw students (and, as a result, their friends and families) to himself. Praise Him!

Sorry for the randomness, but it's really weird that I'm sitting at my desk at my house (in Birmingham) right now. I can't really explain the feeling. Union is home. Birmingham is home. I don't know. I think that God wired me so that I pretty easily adjust to wherever I am. I feel at home here, but when I get back to Union, I'll be glad to be home (in Jackson). Speaking of my current home, I love Union! As you can tell from my lack of posting, it's quite busy, but it's so good.

Confessions: I'm a nerd, and I study too much. I'm a grandma, and I sleep more than your average college student. I'm a penny-pincher (and on the verge of caffeine dependency), and my coffee-drinking schedule revolves around where and when it is provided for free. I'm crazy, and I'm the only person on campus awake before lunch time on Saturdays. Let me unpack all of these.

I actually enjoy studying for my classes (for the most part), and I do so a lot. My favorite place on campus is the coffee shop, Barefoots Joe. I love to study there.

I guess I lost too much sleep in high school, because I refuse to stay up late or get up crazy early. (maybe that has something to do with why I study so much during the day???) I'm pretty sure I haven't stayed up past 12 studying (or doing anything else), and I've only done that a couple of times. That's right. No one tells me to go to bed, but I go to bed earlier than I did when I was in high school. Friends of younger grades who take insane amounts of AP classes...there is hope! In college, if you discipline yourself to get your work done during the day, you can actually go to bed at night. It's quite nice.

God is really teaching me right now what Godly money-management looks like. I don't have a lot of money right now because I'm not working this semester and I'm saving up for a spring break mission trip to Boston (yay!). My parents provide me with the money that I need (honestly more than what I need), so I'm learning how to make financial decisions. It's kind of my nature to forgo certain purchases just because I want to save money (which is definitely a good thing a lot of times), but I'm learning that each purchase is truly an investment. For example, it can be this simple: when I'm grocery shopping, I might really want some fruit to make smoothies. Well, fruit is pretty expensive, but buying smoothie mixes are a little cheaper. However, it would be cheaper to just forgo the smoothies. Nevertheless, purely fruit smoothies are healthy as opposed to cheaper snack foods, so maybe investing in smoothie mixes (that really go a long way when blended with ice and bananas--which are cheap) is actually a good idea. On the other hand, sometimes it is better to choose what is cheaper or just forgo whatever I'm thinking about buying...like coffee, for example. Yep. I did start drinking coffee. I had to make some rules for myself, though, to keep my affinity for coffee from becoming sinful (ha I do realize that sounds pretty crazy...and it is...a little bit). First, I take advantage of free coffee on Wednesdays, Fridays, and Sundays. However, sitting in Barefoots on non-coffee days is quite tempting. This is when God teaches me. I can save the money and use it for mission trips or school or such, or I can spend it on coffee. I'll be honest. Sometimes forgoing the coffee is easier than other times. That sounds simple, but seriously, even buying coffee (just coffee...the fancy stuff is doubly expensive!) just a couple times a week adds up. Think about it. If you've never thought about this before, try praying before you take out your cash or your card. It'll change your life, and you might hate me for suggesting it. Just sayin.

I love Saturday mornings at Union! I think I've already talked about this in one of my earlier posts, so I won't repeat myself, but my Saturday routine is just another one of my non-college-student-like quirks. I just can't sleep through such a wonderful time to run and work out and spend time with God and (maybe even) study, you know?

Well, I could probably write more, but this post is INSANELY long. Sorry. If you persevered this far, bless you.

a union friday night

Tonight was such a lovely night. Actually, all day was pretty great. After honors, chemistry, and chapel this morning, which were all truly fantastic, I took a trip off campus to replenish our toilet paper supply. This made me feel oh so collegiate. I then went for an exhausting, but rewarding, swim at our wonderful aquatics center. Soon after was honors coffee hour, a refreshing time of fellowship with the honors community. Not much later, I went to a back to school party put on by the chemistry, physics, and engineering departments. We had dinner (free food = I'm there) and played sand volleyball. I returned home (my dorm, not B'ham) to work on some homework and hang out with my roommates before time to meet with my life group.

Now for the best part of my day--life groups. My life group met tonight and went to a water fowl reserve about ten minutes from campus. We walked out to a clearing where the full moon was bright enough that we could see clearly. We--well, the boys--made a fire, and we ate smores. Yum. A few of us brought guitars, and my leader brought her ukelele. We played and sang under God's beautiful sky--from How Great is Our God to Barton Hollow. It was beautiful. And I don't mean I had beautiful feelings. It was beautiful--the moon, the stars, the music, the fellowship. ***that was a plug for my honors friends. disregard if that didn't make sense*** In my life, one of the activities that brings me the most joy is playing and singing--especially songs that worship God--with people who love to do the same. Who knew that such a simple couple of hours could bring so much joy? This is what I love about being here at Union with people who find simple ways to enjoy God's creation and fun ways to build friendships and community.

Thanks to everyone that has been praying for me this week. God has given me so much peace and comfort and joy over the course of the week. Last week at this time, I was feeling pretty bummed (this might be an understatement) about not being in a sorority and wondering how long it would take for the assurance that God has a reason for my disappointment to get from my head to my heart. I'm not gonna lie...I'm not over it. However, I'm much more over it than I was last week. God has filled me with joy again. I rejoice in the simple things like the events of today and tonight, and I rejoice in the fact that God is sovereign and he works all things together for the good of those who love him.

His good, pleasing, and perfect will

I've wanted to blog for a while now, but I just haven't had time to sit down and get my thoughts into words in a (somewhat) concise form. So here we go. This might be long considering I have not blogged yet since I've started college.

First, God has been so faithful in confirming that Union is where I am supposed to be. I knew that when I made my decision, but it's always reassuring when God confirms decisions along the way, washing away doubt. I think I'll kind of touch on specifics as I go...

I love my classes--the people in them, the professors, the material, all of it. I'm meeting people here who are genuinely seeking Christ and following hard after Him. My professors love Jesus and care that I learn the material, but also that I see Christ in everything we learn. Last week, my Chemistry professor talked about how the unity and diversity of the elements mirror the unity and diversity of God (the Trinity--three diverse persons, yet one person). In the same week, in Honors, my professor used the Trinity to teach a lesson on writing. If you know me, you know I'm loving this. The professors also truly care about me. Some of them had even learned (or at least tried to learn) our names before we even stepped into class. Also, in my nerdiness, I'm pretty excited about philosophical discussions in Honors and chemical equations in Chemistry.

Of course, I LOVE LOVE LOVE not being in class from 8:15-3:35 every day. You see, my schedule is as follows: Monday--8:00 Honors, 9:00 Chemistry, 2:00 Chem Lab; Tuesday--10:50 Honors, 12:15 Biology, 1:40 Old Testament; Wednesday/Friday--8:00 Honors, 9:00 Chemistry; Thursday--7:50 Bio Lab, 10:50 Honors, 12:15 Biology, 1:40 Old Testament. Yep. That's right. Thursdays are brutal, but totally worth it for the rest of the week. I have more free time than I have had since I was about five years old. That will change, but right now I'm loving it. The workload is not much yet, just a good bit of reading. I've already learned most of what we're doing in Chem and Bio, so that helps a lot. Thank you Spain Park.

Not only do I love Union when classes are going on, I love Union on the weekends. Lots of people leave campus, so it's kind of quiet, but it's nice. No one gets up on Saturday mornings, but because I am such the morning person, I do. Last week, I got up and finished a paper that was due that afternoon, took a bike ride, worked out, and showered before most of campus was awake. This week, I rode my bike around campus, found a quiet shady place, spent some time with God, worked out, and went to the bank before most of campus was awake. Though I'll probably be more tired on future Saturdays, I love this routine. I think I'll keep it up. It's nice to spend the first hours of the weekend enjoying this wonderful place and enjoying time alone with God.

Well, I went through recruitment (rush) beginning last Sunday. We had display parties for all three sororities on Monday night, and then we were invited back to Skit Parties on Thursday night. I was invited back to all three sororities on Thursday, and I had a great time getting to know the girls and the personalities of each sorority. By that point I really loved one of the sororities, felt I could fit into another one (though I didn't love it quite as much), and felt the other sorority wasn't for me (nothing wrong with it...just not me). Well, Friday night, the last night before bid day, we went to the commons to find out which sororities had invited us back. I was disappointed to find out that the two sororities I liked had not invited me back, while the one sorority I did not want to be a part of had invited me to their preference party. I prayed and decided to go to the party just to be sure God did not want me in that sorority. After the party, I was sure that Greek life was not in God's plan for me this year. However, He did use rush to let me meet some new friends and to humble me. Rejection is humbling and heartbreaking. I would be lying if I told you that I'm over it. Nevertheless, I know that God is good. He works all things together for good for those who love him and are called according to his purpose (Romans 8:28). He knows those plans, and they are plans to prosper me and not to harm me, to give me hope and a future (Jeremiah 29:11). His will is good, pleasing, and perfect (Romans 12:2). I've got the Word in my head, and I'm praying that the reassurance will quickly resonate in my heart.

Despite these couple rough days, I still LOVE Union. I'm so thankful for all that God used back home to prepare me spiritually, emotionally, academically, etc. for this new season of life, and I'm looking forward to seeing how he moves in my life and the lives around me in this wonderful place.