Awe and Joy in Following in His Footsteps

Spring is alive today. The flowers are blooming and the grass is green. The birds have been out in force attacking the feeders. And with spring comes Easter, which now lies right around the corner.

I love the soft beauty of this time of year. At moments I find it to be nearly heavenly. But at the same time, some changes in my life leave me feeling a bit more uncertain about the future. It's a bit of a contrast that gets me thinking. Sometimes I wonder if the carefree happiness of spring should be our default setting, or if perhaps our normal mode should consist of longing and self-denial. Certainly circumstances create both of these things in the lives of most of us.

But how do we harmonize it? How can we be deeply joyful at all times yet perpetually have the proper demeanor of servants and pilgrims?

I think that the answer to this question is found in the holiday that is set within this time of year that excites such happiness as well as longing in me: Easter. After all, at Easter Christ was the ultimate Trailblazer. He procured our eternal joy, security, and purpose when He went to the cross - we are all familiar with that. It should in itself be sufficient inspiration to turn our lives upside down. But there is another lesson in Easter that strikes me. It is the sacrifice of Christ. He went so far as to endure physical torture that I can't even imagine, as well as the ultimate torment of the loss of the one thing that we've been told that apart from which we fall: the presence of the Father, all to accomplish God's perfect purposes for His glory and our good.

Now looking at that example, I realize what dirt I am in and of myself. Thank God that Christ hides my sin from the Father's face! But, oh, can you imagine if we were to follow Christ's example? Then we would find perfect joy in the offices of a servant. We'd understand how glorifying God and enjoying Him merge. And would that not be the most beautiful thing? Well, not quite. What is most beautiful is how He first loved us.

Will life be hard? Yes. Will there be uncertainty? Very likely. Can our lives be joyful and fulfilling, no matter how humble or hard they are? Absolutely, if they are lived because of Him and for His will to be done. Our Savior's cause is ours.

Interview!!!

1.      Are you in college?  Why did you choose the path you chose?

After taking a ‘gap’ year, I decided to continue my education. This is my third semester at community college, and so far I have taken all of my classes on-line. This format has been great so far, it has enabled me to keep a flexible schedule; I’m going to be tied down for the rest of my life with something – work, responsibilities, family, etc. – so I’m thankful for the freedom that on-line classes have offered. Since I don’t have to be on campus, I’ve been able to help out my cousin with her new little one, teach two of my sisters math, and help out my mom (she’s a single mom) with my other two sisters – I feed them and chauffeur them around J. I am, however, transferring to a local state college in the fall to get my degree in Secondary Special Education and English Literature. Since I am taking my pre-requisites through a community college and attending a public state college, I have been able to keep the costs down; I will most likely be a poor teacher, and not having massive student loans will be great!

2.      How do people you know respond to your decision?  Do you feel pressured one way or another?

My senior year of high school, I was extremely stressed about my future. I really wanted to go to college right away but the Lord’s timing was not my timing; it became evident that it would not be the wisest decision to go to college immediately after graduating high school. I sincerely love learning and being in school, but school tends to be my idol. School and learning, in and of themselves, are wonderful things! But not when you find your identity in them. After deciding to take time off indefinitely, I dreaded the question, “Where are you going to school” or “what are you doing these days?” I was concerned about what people would think when I told them I wasn’t in college; I didn’t want them to think that I wasn’t motivated enough or that I was wasting my life (according to society’s standards). Or, if I told them I was taking some time off, I felt like I needed to be doing something fascinating and noble, like going on a short-term mission trip to Africa or feeding the poor. As you can see, my heart was in the wrong place and I was so focused inward and concerned about my reputation, rather than truly serving the Lord – and going unnoticed in the process. I still struggle with finding my identity in academics, but the Lord has really been working in me and humbling me in the process. And I have to say, a lot of the pressure I felt to attend college right after high school was self-inflicted. Most people were very supportive of my decision.

3.      Share a little about how you feel the way in which you are preparing now will help your life vision.  Biblically speaking, how do you support the decision you made?

I believe that God gives us specific gifts and passions, through which we can serve him, glorify him, enjoy him, and be active kingdom builders. I think that I am a fairly patient person, I love working with teenagers, I enjoy reading, and I have a special place in my heart for people with intellectual, physical, and learning disabilities; I hope to employ these gifts and interests by serving God through teaching either Special Education or English Literature. Right now I work with a young boy who is Down and autistic; I hope that I am a blessing and witness to him and his family.

4.      Share some encouragement you might have for people who made the same decision you did.

There is no right decision – whether you chose to go to college or not, make sure that you are seeking God’s will for you life. I know, this is a bit ambiguous. Just make sure that you are praying throughout the whole process; pray that God will make His will your will, and that He will open and shut doors. Also, weigh your options and take into consideration the opportunity costs of attending college or not attending college. If you go to school, it will cost money and a lot of time; all things considered, is this the wisest decision? Or, if you don’t decide to go on to college, are you going to use your time wisely and in a way that is glorifying to God and will testify to His name?

5.      What is one thing that you think would be encouraging to you and others who made the same decision you did.

I can still be insecure about the fact that I chose to attend community college (versus a prestigious and expensive school); but I need to remind myself that for my situation, this was the wisest decision. I won’t graduate with a ton of debt, and since the classes were maybe a bit less challenging, I was able to devote more time to family, the Lord, and serving others. But again, there is not one right decision!

Letting Go

The other day I was at a talk, given by a Christian artist. She was comparing God's work throughout our lives to the creating of a portrait. In reference to this, she pointed us to Ephesians 2:10, which reads:

"For we are His workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand, that we should walk in them."

She keyed in on the first part of the verse: "we are His workmanship". God is making art in us, as He shapes who we are, and shapes our lives, for His purposes. This is indeed comforting to me! Much as I often feel out of control, God always holds and molds my life in His hands. It also challenges me to have a greater view of my life. Not bigger, not more "exciting", but greater-because I am the beloved art work of the Great Creator, intended to love and glorify Him!

So often, though, it can be hard to keep this vision-hard to take it into the "real world". So often I struggle to walk by faith, when walking by sight is so much easier! I want to see results in my life. I want to feel accepted by others. I want to do something "big" for God. Yet I feel "stuck". Why do I feel that way?

I think it's because I've forgotten what really matters. I've forgotten why I do what I do. It all comes down to who really holds the reins to my life. If I am immersed in the love of God, and His love floods my soul, then the natural outcome is that through my realization of my new identity, and deep desire after Him, I will want to do the works that He puts before me to do, will withhold from what He wants me to withhold from, and will wait when He tells me to wait. This is acting upon conviction. This is letting the Master Painter to His job.

So God is the reason. He is central. "In [His] light do we see light"-Psalm 36:9. Why does my life fall apart? Because I don't live that way. My life fails to make sense because it's like a sentence without a verb: I for you. What's "I for you" supposed to mean? It falls short of imparting much. But "I work for you" communicates very clearly. That sentence does something-and it makes sense. If we would have our lives be meaningful and purposeful, there is one thing we must have-God. And He is the only thing that we can't do without.

This means that we need to let go of everything else. Other focuses clog us up. Not to say that there is no place for other things in our lives, that the approval of others or future dreams are bad, or that we should only do something if God sends us a FedEx. It's the framework that we're talking about. Not only does God come first, but He's the one that makes everything else fit together. We obey His laws, we seek His glory, we focus on His priorities-we fall so deeply in love with Him that naturally our whole way of looking at life changes. As we delight in Him, His desires become our desires.

This is so beautiful-like a dream. We fall so far short. We blow it. Our failures are ever before us. What should we do? The apostle Paul struggled with this-he called himself the chief of all sinners (1 Timothy 1:15). But he was confident of his salvation in Christ, faithfully sought the aid of God, and strove to "run the race" for his King.

And what about when it's hard? God is with you as much when it's dark as when it's light; the darkness may just deceive you. But He is not hindered by the darkness, for it is as light to Him. We have to trust that everywhere He takes us, He takes us for a purpose. And if He doesn't take us somewhere, it's not because He missed something, but because you would miss something if He didn't have you right where you are. He is the Potter. We are the clay. He is the Painter. We wait eagerly until the day when we can stand by His side and see the finished project.

Yet, what if we believe all this, and yet just feel too weak...too weak to make it through? Cling to Him. Cry out to Him. His Spirit is given to aid us, and He binds up the broken. He empowers the weary.

"Even youths will faint and be weary...

But they who wait on the Lord shall renew their strength"

Isaiah 40:30-31

Rachel

By Right of Conquest, or, With Cortez in Mexico

I've been thinking about my life and how many unplanned turns I've been taking in the last few years, and G. A. Henty's book By Right of Conquest, or, With Cortez in Mexico came to mind. Roger was living in England and had his life planned out. He was taking a short trip to the New World, at which point he would return and settle down in England with the girl he had picked out. However when he got to the New World he ended up in a lot of unexpected adventures that tossed him about and spun him around until he could hardly remember the life he had planned out. And he began to wonder if maybe he had made his plans, but God was directing his ways. While in the New World for much longer than he had planned, Roger met another girl in Mexico whom he admired. And after a great many years longer than was his original intent, Roger and his wife returned to England, where the English girl as well had married someone else, causing everything to work out in the end. And of course it is a Henty book, so they end up with a nice piece of land, Roger's wife get some jewels, and they have lots of children and grandchildren to whom Roger likes to relate his adventures.

I've been feeling a bit like Roger.

Those of you who know me well know that I have always had my entire life planned out to the smallest details twenty years in advance, although I'm not that good at planning the immediate future. In the past few years, with none of my plans working out the way I'd planned, I have been asking God what He would have me do while feeling strangely lost without my 20 year plans.

Sometimes the things that are meant to be temorary, God chooses to make not so temporary.

I recently took a very temporary, as I thought, break from my plans, which I have continued to modify to my situation regardless of how difficult or ridiculous that may be. However it seems like God is really leading me in a complete opposite direction right now, which is incredibly confusing to me, because it is not at all where I thought God wanted me. I didn't think I was doing too good a job serving God where I was before, and wanted to go somewhere where I could better do that. Instead I get put somewhere worse.

I don't know how coherent that last paragraph was, but it results from my personal confusion over the turn of events. I don't understand how this fits into my plans, or how it fits into God's plans. I think maybe I was mistaken about God's plans. I just really hope that He makes it clear soon, because I would like to have a plan.

And maybe, just maybe, I'll end up with a nice piece of land, some jewels, and lots of children and grandchildren to relate my adventures and God's providence to someday soon.

Katie

Please excuse the fact that the blog is still under construction and we do not yet have everything properly organized and posted.  We hope to have the blog fully ready soon, so please continue to visit!!!

Thank you for your patience!

Welcome to Trailblazer's!!!

We are excited you are here! We started this blog to offer encouragement and raise awareness as to different approaches to the "college-age" years of life.  We plan to have several guest posts in the near future! 
Here's a little about us so you know where we are coming from:

Rachel
Rachel has been given the desire to have a God-honoring family and serve on the foreign mission field.  In the meantime, she is strving to equip herself with skills that will be helpful down the road and is seeking to mature as well as serve her family and others God has placed in her life.  Rachel enjoys cooking with her Mom and sister, studying Spanish, reading, writing, music, and spending time with her friends and family.


Katie

Katie also has been given the desire to have a God-honoring family and to serve women through midwifery.  Katie is currently studying to be a midwife, is a trained doula working on certification, and is also training to be a peer counselor at a local crisis pregnancy center.  She has previously written and published two books for children.  Katie enjoys cooking and baking, sewing, reading, writing, and music.

The Two of us...
Rachel and Katie met each other through Civil War Dancing and have continued to grow in their friendship throughout the end of highschool.  After graduation they encountered the pressures of going against the cultural norm, and decided to start this blog to encourage others who may have the same struggles.


We are really excited and we hope you enjoy this blog!