2013.

2013.

This was a big year. It's come and gone but has left a lot of lessons learned for Matt and me. God stretched us in ways we never thought we would be. But we grew together as a couple and also in our walks with the Lord. I wanted to share some things God taught me and Matt this year. Here's a list of 5 biggies our family learned.

1) Be present, wherever you are in life.

Matt and I went through a lot of transition this year {from school to work & work to school, buying a house, getting a dog}, and it was easy for us to always look forward to the next big event. But we learned that if we are constantly looking forward, we'll never be content in our lives with what God has given us. So be present. Even in the seemingly worst of circumstances. God is there.

2) Live at peace with all, as much as you can.

Matt and I had to learn to be selfless toward one another very quickly in our marriage. But not only with each other, we learned that living a peaceful life with others is such a testimony. If our co-workers and neighbors see our peaceful lives, they'll want to know why it's so different from the chaos of this world.

3) Be thankful.

Each and every day is a gift. Not only that, many things in our lives can be seen as gifts if we change our perspective. People are quick to take many things in this world for granted. A warm cup of coffee. A house to live in. Clean water. But if we start to pause and thank God for these seemingly small gifts, it really changes our perspective and our contentment in this world.

4) Trust the Lord.

We had several big decisions to make this year, and it was easy to trust in our finances or in our circumstances instead of God. But we learned that those things will always fail us. God is the ultimate Provider and Giver. So we need to trust that He knows what He is doing in every season.

5) Laugh a lot.

Life is hard. And it's easy to get caught up in our sorrow and in the disappointments in our lives. But, life itself is a gift. Sometimes when life is at its toughest, we just need to laugh. It too will pass.

Have a wonderful end to your 2013. And Happy New Year! :)

In a Dry & Weary Land.

It's been a while since my last post. I've found it hard to write about anything because our lives haven't been that eventful lately. It's just been work, school, take care of Brody, make dinner, clean the house, work out, repeat. And repeat. And repeat. And I just realized yesterday that I've become very negative. Seeing my life as a list of to-dos rather than the amazing gift that it is.

I've felt like I've been walking in a dry and weary land. I haven't been able to find joy in the mundane. & I feel sometimes as though God isn't here. I think that's the routine most Americans get into. It's hard when we are rich {in comparison to the majority of the world} and lose sight of how much we need God; because we focus more on the things He's given us rather than the Creator Himself. We forget that the things that we are bothered with (going to school, having to clean our houses, making food for our family) are gifts in and of themselves.

I've begun to read 1000 gifts by Ann Voskamp. And it's been such an amazing platform to get back in the right mindset. To start to see the ordinary details in my life as blessings from God. If we all just slowed down and understood that the running of freshwater in our homes, the lights that turn on in our houses each day, the shoes on our feet, the vacuums that suck dirt are all gifts, we would start to better see God as the good God that He is.

So my challenge for myself is to start looking at my life through the lens of God's goodness. To see each seemingly burdensome task as a glimpse of God and His character. I'm tired of just trying to get by. I want to live this life abundantly. I challenge you all to do the same.