God is Good, All the Time... All the Time, God is Good!

So lately I have been reflecting on life and the many incredible opportunities God has given me that I did not ever expect to encounter in my life. Once I really allow myself to step back, it is an incredible thing to see how God is working through my life. Even more this semester I find myself so grateful that I am able to go to an incredible university, learn incredible things, and be surrounded by incredible people. I do not know if I am more grateful for this after everything that happen last semester.... but for some reason I am. I am also so grateful that my parents have allowed me to come to TCU and are paying for my tuition... all of it... I have the best parents in the whole world, and because of that I don't think I stop and tell them enough how much I appreciate them and everything they have done for me and how much I love and miss them.
I am also so grateful for second chances and new beginnings. Finding myself in the place I was in last semester, I never thought I could shake myself of the pain and burdens I was carrying. But, since God's love is so amazing and refreshing, He carried me through when I could no longer carry myself.... the funny thing is He was carrying me through the whole entire time. He knew there was a great plan for my life, and like my pastor has said many times before... sometimes it takes hardships in our life that we have to go through to see God's hand at work in our lives and the beautiful things He has planned for us. I am really making it a priority to learn that my life is not my own but God's... without Him I am nothing and I give everything back to Him. So as I go about my days now, even more I try to do everything so that it will bring back glory to God. Sometimes this is so hard because I want to grumble and complain, but then I remind myself... you have been given another day... do EVERYTHING unto the Lord. So I now know all that God asks for is my best, not to be perfect, but to give him my best in EVERYTHING I do. When I do that, He is pleased, the outcome may not always be what I wanted it to be, but I have to know that I did my best and move on with life instead of dwelling in the past. If I choose to stay focused on the past, I will miss the opportunities of the here and now that God has placed in my life.
I am so grateful for the girls that I live with. As my time with them is coming to an end, I have really made an effort to let them know how much I have loved living with them and the impact they have made in my life. The memories we have made together will be ones that can never be taken away and for that I am so grateful. It is so incredible for me to reflect on how we all met, and how God has now made us our own little family. All three of those girls have touched my life in an incredible way, and my prayer is that I have made just a little imprint on their heart as they have on mine.
I am so incredibly grateful that I am in love and that I am experiencing love. It is a beautiful thing, that definitely has its ups and downs but it is something that I hope everyone gets to experience in their life. I find so much comfort in knowing that I get to be with my best friend for forever, but that Reagan and I have honored God the best we possibly can as humans in our relationship. So many people find it crazy that we are getting married so young... 21 and 22 but we honestly know in our hearts this is the best decision for us so that we can continue to seek God in our relationship. We both really just came to this peace in knowing that God blessed us with each other, why not cherish it for a lifetime. We find marriage as an exciting journey, one that we know is not going to be easy at times, but having each other makes it that much better. Marriage for us is not giving up our lives... it's being blessed to have the opportunity to experience life together. We are very excited and hope that our lives and relationship can be a Godly example for those around us.
I am very grateful for life. It is so nice knowing that I do not find my comfort in Reagan, my parents, friends, or worldly things, but I find my comfort in my God. It is a journey each day for me to find comfort and peace in who God has made me to be. Though, I can proudly say, I have come a long way. I am a child of God, and I may not always like who I see in the mirror but knowing that God created me just the way He wanted me to be... makes me smile a little brighter and hold my head a little higher. I am not perfect, I have many flaws, but each day that I choose to look to God for my happiness I know that I will be okay because He is the only one who truly knows the cries and joys of my heart.
Every day there are so many things to be thankful for, and to smile about and remind yourself that GOD is GOOD all the time. Allow yourself to reflect on life and be grateful for the things God has given you.... because too many times we get caught up in the things of this world and wish we had so many things, when God has provided for all our needs for the here and now.

"God is not who you think He is, God is who He says He is."