Another year in the books and it still feels like only a couple of months have gone by. It seems the older one gets, the quicker time flies. I still remember my early childhood years and those lazy summer days where I would climb a tree or lie in the grass and just stay there for hours on end dreaming of my future and days not far off. To an eight year old kid, it seemed like an eternity to reach every milestone. But now, if you blink, it's gone. To me it still feels like 2010 has just ended rather than 2012 breathing its last.
Around this time, many people create resolutions for the new year...and then in a week or two they break them and store them in the back of their minds until the next year. These are mainly to correct what they failed to do the year before. My idea of a resolution is to create and complete goals of things I want to do rather than things I want to do away with. With that note, let me reflect upon 2012 and revel in what 2013 may bring.
Normally when asked to recall a year, as soon as I hear the number, a different type of feel comes to mind. For example, when I hear the year 2007, I get really excited because that was an awesome year in my life. But when I hear the year 2005, I immediately get a feeling of disgust. That year was by far the worst year of my life. And if you were to say the year 2003, I would be in between conflict and mirth. As for 2012, let's just say it was a roller coaster.
The year started off better than I could have imagined. A number of problems I had just vanished. I went on vacation to North Carolina for a week with 11 other awesome people and had a time of my life. I was still in a one year Christian internship that was totally worth leaving school for a year and it would go through the summer. Now let me divulge on exactly what this was. This was a years worth of reading, studying, and learning the Bible. Four hours every day were committed to getting into the Word and discovering all its riches. The rest of the day was devoted to being with people, preaching the gospel, being with the church, and learning the Word on our own. There were 18 of us in Cleveland and around 30 total between us, Ann Arbor, and Buffalo. The ones I was with, whom I call brothers and sisters in Christ as well as friends, shared memories, experiences, and we all grew together with strong bonds of friendship and love. Then we got to see all our hard work pay off during the summer when we planned, served, and put on events for the young people. To make a long story short, the number of kids that attended Mountain Top and Interest Camps were much higher than they had been in the past. The Lord also did many amazing things this summer.
After the summer and the labor had ended, I was dreading the return to college. I didn't miss the 40 min commute every day, the 12 hour plus days of work/school combined, pointless papers, worthless general education classes, and obnoxious tests that determine half your grade even though you had an A going into the final. I'm not a fan of school, even though I will admit that it is very valuable and you are better off getting through it than struggling to find a job in the future.
The return to school began well and it was like I never left. But as the semester wore on, I found my self restless; wanting so desperately for the semester to end. It was like I was being suffocated in things that bored me, waned me, and consumed me. Then a number of things happened in a short period of time that pushed me over the edge...which hadn't happened since 2005. Did I tell anyone? Not really. I knew they were temporary problems that would pass and that the Lord would carry me through.
Finally the semester ended and winter break came and just relieved the school burden I was carrying. Along with it came the Rock and Empower. It's times like these that make me realize the things that matter and the things that don't. It's refreshing to be with all the other college age Christians whom I know and love dearly. However, there was a bit of an empty feeling that lingered about me. It was about the so many other ones who were not or could not be there; ones who had been there in years past, but not this year. I just want you to know I'm thinking about you, sometimes daily.
Now that 2013 has arrived, I am looking forward to what the Lord has in store and what new adventures this year will bring. I have a number of goals I'd like to conquer, one being to see the salvation of at least one of seven friends and another is to complete at least five things on my abnormally long bucket list.
I know not what the future holds. But this I do know. He is Lord today, yesterday, and forevermore. No matter how much my heart falters, all my trust is placed in Him. Storms will come, be they rough or be they drizzle, but every storm runs out of rain and every storm obeys its Master. Here's to the new year and to all the Jesus has in store. There is no one like our God.
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