Ready... set....

GO! Is the expected end to the post title. The race has begun, it's time to go-go-go! But this post isn't about the going, it's about the... Well, the ready-setting. Today's inspiration came from this lovely anonymous quote: 

Now that may not apply to anyone else reading, but it's particularly true for me. As long as I can remember, I've struggled with fear. My fears have grown and transfigured with me through the years, shifting from one boggart into the next (yes, that is a Harry Potter reference. So what). From monsters to exclusion to the uncertain future, fear has always had an unpleasant way of controlling how I love my life. 

Lately, fear has manifested itself in the college application process. Finding a way to pay for the school of my dreams and construct a resume impressive enough to get into it has paralyzed me to a degree of procrastination. To echo the above quote, I have been waiting until I felt ready. But what a cowardly move for something so simple! As Paul rightly proclaimed in 2nd Timothy 1:7, "God has not given us a spirit of fear and timidity, but of power, love, and self-discipline." 

What fear do you struggle with? What is holding you back? According to The Word, we as sons and daughters of Christ have the POWER to overcome our fears, LOVE strong enough to set aside our struggles for what's right, and SELF-DISCIPLINE to get 'er done. If The Lord has proclaimed this over you and I, who are we to deny it? Today, don't shirk away from life and God's calling on your's. Turn from the darkness of fear to the rising sun of courage, and face whatever fear has held you back from. Stop hiding your faith from your unsaved coworkers, tackle the messy topics in your relationships, apply for that college! You may never be ready, but God always is. So ready... set... 

"And so with the sunshine and the great bursts of leaves growing on the trees, just as things grow in fast movies, I had that familiar conviction that life was beginning over again with the summer." -F. Scott Fitzgerald

For me, summer is the season when God seems to mold me the most. Perhaps it's my distance from negative influences, more time in my days, perhaps it's the abundance of camps and conferences I attend, whatever it is, the Lord speaks loudest to me in the summer. I realized yesterday- the first day of August!- that summer was winding down. The season was an uphill bike ride, slowly moving forward, taking its time, but out of nowhere, the hilltop appeared and the swift downhill journey began. My days are zipping by, and before I know it school will have started and I will be busier than ever with my senior year. So while I have the time, I'm going to forever commemorate these lessons in this blog. 

1. The world does not revolve around me.
• I am a selfish human being, always wanting my way and expecting things to happen as I want them to. This summer, I've begun to learn how to sacrifice what I want in order to love others like Jesus wants me to.
2. God has plans for my future, and I need to trust them.
• There were a few things concerning my future that I'd been keeping quite a tight grip on, hidden away from the Lord. God used a few encounters with amazing people to show me that what He has for me is the best possible thing FOR ME. His plans are higher than mine, and He holds my future. 
3. There is opportunity for joy in everything.
• This is something I witnessed in the greatest of tragedies and the most average of days. This summer, I watched people I love overcome loss and avoid terminal depression in it. I also saw my sweet, sweet grandparents laugh at everything, smile in every conversation, and just enjoy life. God offers joy every minute, every second. I just have to set aside my bitterness/exhaustion/selfishness and embrace it.

There's a ton of other little things that I learned this summer, but these are the main points from which most of the smaller points flow. I hope at least one person reading this could learn a bit from my spiritual epiphanies this summer, and that you'll come closer to the Lord through it. 

-Madison