Truly, Truly Blessed.

This semester has been a lot more difficult than I anticipated. I'm far, far away from my parents and my brother.  I miss them dearly, and I get discouraged that I don't have them during this very trying time. I had an unpleasant trip to the emergency room last week, and was referred to a specialist.  I've had to make payments for the emergency room visits and my prescriptions, but I don't have a job.  I fell behind in homework after getting sick.  I'm constantly doing nothing but homework, and I am still behind.  My classes are extensive and difficult.  I don't have the same relationships that I had last semester.  The people who encouraged me and supported me last semester are not a part of my life in the same way this semester.  My bike was stolen last semester, so I have no transportation at all this semester.  It's been extremely rough, and not having my family there has been very difficult.  

However, the Lord is so gracious and provides comfort for his children.  While I was overwhelmed with confusion and self-pity, the Lord used someone dear to me to correct me.  I was so consumed by my fear and loneliness that I was unable to see the blessings that the Lord had showered upon me.  If I am focusing on my trials, I can't be focusing on the glory of my Lord and Savior, which is the only thing that my gaze should be focused on.  This semester, God has blessed me so abundantly.  First of all, I have a new roommate, Sarah, who is the sweetest person I have ever met.  She and I weren't even supposed to be roommates this semester, but God providentially worked it out, and I am so thankful for her and blessed by her.  We pray for each other, spend time together, encourage each other, and speak about meaningful things.  Through Sarah, I've made so many friends that I may never have met otherwise.  Even though I'm far away from my family, I don't feel lonely, because I am blessed with such a great example of a woman of God in my life. Second, although the sickness that I'm going through scares me, the Lord has comforted me.  Nothing that I own, not even my health or my body, belongs to me.  It is all a gift from God.  God is the reason that I wake up in the morning.  I had a very high view of the sovereignty of God before my illness, but now it is only heightened.  Coming from a Roman Catholic background, I struggle with prayer.  My illness has encouraged my prayer life so much, not because I am praying for my health, but because I am acknowledging God's sovereign power over my life through going before Him in prayer.  Third, God is using the fact that I am behind in my homework to teach me discipline.  I have been getting up at six every morning and going to bed before midnight every night, working on homework during most of the day.  Neither my sleeping pattern or my homework pattern was so structured and healthy.  I've been beginning the day with about a half hour of Bible reading every morning, something I didn't have time for last semester because I didn't manage my time.  If I was on top of my homework, I would be wasting so much time.  I know that because it's exactly what happened last semester.  Fourth, although my classes may be difficult, I love them.  I am learning so much, and from such a great Biblical perspective.  I am so thankful to be at this college, and I am so thankful for the learning I experience every single day.  It is a blessing to have difficult classes, because it forces me to learn!  What a blessing!  I don't want to coast through college.  Fifth, even though I don't have the same people as such a big part of my life, they're still there.  I still get the chance to see them and spend a little bit of time with them, just not in such a deep way.  God-willing, those relationships will be reestablished when we're ready, in God's timing, not according to my own.  Additionally, I've made new friendships and developed new relationships.  I've met so many people this semester, and I am really thankful for that, both through school and classes and through my church.  Santa Clarita Baptist is a huge blessing in my life.  I miss my home church, but I love the church that I have found here.  The people are such a blessing to me, and I am making the time to be a lot more involved than I was last semester.  Lastly, my wonderful parents bought me a new bike.  It's at Walmart, I just have to go pick it up.  I have nothing to complain about.  

My life has been so abundantly blessed by the Lord.  Not only did He call me to be a part of His family and save me from the condemnation of my own sin, but He has also given me so much that I do not deserve at all.  Now, all I can do is praise Him and thank Him for the trials that He has put in my life to help me realize how blessed I truly am.  My life is great, thanks to the grace of the Lord.  As a friend said this afternoon when I asked how he was doing, "Better than I deserve."  How true that is.