It’s
Been a Long Journey but I Have Been Blessed
Walking
with Jesus I Have no Regrets
He
is so Good to me I Must Confess
The
Way Has Been Long but I’m Blessed
If you asked me at 20 years old where I would be today, I would’ve said
married with two kids. I would’ve told you about my dream job of being a
housewife. I would’ve told you how wonderful my husband would act and how
dashingly handsome he would be. I had my whole life planned out. As the years
have passed by my dreams have faded and reality has snuck its way into my mind.
Things I had so carefully planned for never seemed to work and amongst all the
kafuffle I lost a sense of who I was. I had given up my dreams only to replace
them with doubt and pessimism. My 24th year has changed my whole
perspective on life. It started very badly with depression and end with hope
and cheer. I still hold to the dreams but realize that life may not work out
the way I planned.
As I look back, I realize that this year of my life was one of the most
enlightening and enjoyable year of my life. I regained who I was and became
confident in what I could do. I owe this all to my Lord and Savior Jesus
Christ. I cannot tell you how much He has worked and how much I have grown
because of what He has placed in my life. Let me share a few things God has
done for me during my 24th year. First I would like to share that He
answered my prayer in giving me a good, single friend that was a girl. I had
known this friend for a few months and invited her to see Straight No Chaser in
November. Since then we have become closer and she has helped me through those
trying lonely times. Second, God has answered my prayer of why He wants me to
be single. The reason is so that I would know that God’s grace is sufficient for
me. I don’t think I will be able to ever get over that truth. No matter what
comes in life God’s grace will always be sufficient. I don’t need money, fame,
a husband, or nice things, all I need is God. Third, I have learned to be
content with being single while learning to be lonely. I have learned to
embrace loneliness as just a part of life and deal with it in my own way while
not losing control. I rarely cry at night anymore and no longer beat myself up
for not having a boyfriend. Lastly, God has given me a sister. This might not
seem much to anyone else but to me, it means that God answered my prayer. God
is so good.
My favorite memory of 2012 is a tie between the April weekend spent
with my friend Miranda and the wedding of my little brother Joel. The weekend
in April was memorable because Miranda came down all the way from New York just
to visit me. I felt so special. We traveled to Toledo with two other friends to
see Straight No Chaser. On a side note, if you ever want to see them try to get
as close as possible. The price is so worth it. The next day we went to the zoo
and later on the mall. Of course we had to stop at Chik-Fil-A for a bite to
eat. It was sad to see her go but I’m glad that we were able to spend some time
together. Last month, my brother got married to a wonderful girl. It was the
first wedding in which I was a bridesmaid. It was an entirely different
experience for me. I have attended many weddings in which I have been a guest
book attendant or general whatever-you-need-me-to-doer. This gave me an
opportunity to enjoy the wedding for the aspect of setting it up to taking it
down and everything in between. This wedding was different in that I couldn’t
help out as much as I had in weddings before because I was busy with my
bridesmaid duties in between taking pictures and greeting my family and
friends. I enjoyed it immensely as I got to walk down with not one but TWO
guys. Ah the life of a single girl…it does have its perks every once in a
while.
What is next? Well I will continue to serve God in any way that I can
and continue to pray that His will be done. I am working on becoming debt free
and if everything works out, within the next year I will have all debt but my
student loans paid off. Within the year, I plan to move out and get my own
place (with a roommate) to learn how to live independently. I will continue on
the journey of losing weight. I hope to lose at least 100 pounds. Please pray
for me on that as it is a constant struggle for me. Other than that, the only
goal I have is to cherish each moment and grow closer to those who truly care
about me.
My new motto for this year is God’s Grace is Always Sufficient in
addition to Always Sing in the Rain. Life changes but God and His grace never
does. Until next time, I love you all and thank you for your patience. I hope
it was rewarded.
Christa
