Find your inner woman 17: Forever young

The other day I walked into a bank to open an account and as I followed the petite, smiling banker to her desk she asked me if "we" were opening a teen account today...

Last week someone at youth group thought I was there as a student rather than one of the leaders...

At church on Sunday a kindly lady asked me what grade I was in...

Remarks like these used to really upset me but I think I really have come to terms with this young face of mine. I mean, what really is there to be upset about? Of course, everyone wants to look older when they are young and younger when they are old but isn't it all rather silly? What is the basis of this bizarre need to be viewed a certain age, even if it's just the age we actually are? It's not like we have anything to do with how old we are. It's not like I can take pride in my age or even ownership.

A person's days are determined; you have decreed the number of his months and have set limits he cannot exceed - Job 14:5

My days are not my own. James says my life is only a vapour. Not exactly ample reason to stress about how many years I have had. Rather it's what I do WITH them that matters.

So I'll be "forever young" I guess, until that magical day when perhaps I will look older. I am who I am. Perhaps being "ageless" has it's perks. Perhaps it doesn't. What does it matter anyways? Perhaps we should just not judge people by their age or how they look, there's a thought...

After all God uses the weak against the strong and the foolish to shame the wise.

Where does that leave me? At the realization that I should see the person, not the stats written on their passport.

Besides sometimes I feel like a ten year old anyways... who's to judge?

Well hello February

It seems like I have been called to a period of waiting at this time in my life. And I have discovered there is a lot to learn in these periods. I would never characterize myself as a patient person. I am not one to sit back and watch and hope... not that I don't do that sometimes. I have my dreams and aspirations. But I'm more of a get-up-and-get-it-done type. I'm a planner. I organize. I strategize.

But not always. Not now.

Right now, mostly, I wait.

And during this waiting I have experienced an odd phenomena. Time seems to stretch on and on and on; the future is this foggy unknown; the days go by marked only by their lack of definition and unknown answers.

And then suddenly it's February.

It's like I have been in this habit of waiting so long, feeling immobile, that though time is passing, I don't really expect anything around me to change because I'm in a seemingly static state.

But the month has changed. They tend to do that, I realize. And I knew it was coming. But it's here now. A simple change maybe. But a change nonetheless.

Perhaps there's hope for me too.

Guest posting!!! Whaaaaat??

I know... I haven't blogged in forever. As usual... I'm disappointed in myself. You have no idea all the potential posts that have flitted through my mind and all the attempts I have even started. Buuuuut, it just hasn't happened.

HOWEVER

I am guest posting today over at Insight for Living's blog "LifeTrac"! I interned at Insight Canada and wrote a few posts for them, the first of which is up today. Head on over there and read it if you are interested; perhaps read a few more and explore their website.

Insight for Living Canada is an awesome ministry of Chuck Swindoll. The staff are an amazing group of people set on reaching people through the truth of God's Word. I encourage you to check them out. They have an American ministry as well for all my friends in the USA.

Too blessed

A week ago I told you all of my upcoming adventure: my fears, my prayers, my confidence in God. I thought I would update you on how He has truly blessed me this week.

I am thoroughly enjoying my course! I am learning so much, far more than I really thought I would in just a few days. Truly these professors know how to pack loads of information in just a short period of time.

I get up each day around 6 and I am headed out by 6:40 to the train. My journey continues to the busy Waterfront station. The masses of people the disembark from the transit move like a never-ending, unstoppable force. One little face in the crowd; I feel small and yet part of something bigger. Footsteps from shiny heels, scuffed sneakers, and polished leather soles join together in the muffled cacophony of noise, nearly overwhelmed by the train whistles, cellphone talkers, car engines and horns of the great city.

Up the block to the university I go and then up the escalator to my class where I am met with the smiles and greetings of now familiar faces. I know that God hand-picked my classmates. Each one of them with a unique story. I am intrigued by the truly different people He has brought together. Of course, none of my classmates would give God the credit for our new found acquaintance with one another but I know without a doubt that He has a purpose for each of us in this class together. I don't know what it is but I pray for courage each day to be His light in that place.

Six hours of class and an hour lunch break later I am back on the train and headed home. Exhausted and ready to relax, I instead work on assignments. My excitement to experiment with new knowledge and tools keeps weariness at bay until I can fall into bed.

I've watched with exasperation and yet a smile as my room slowly becomes more and more cluttered with news articles and brochures in addition to the general untidiness that I don't have time to combat. College life I suppose. I'm not too worried about it. How bad can it get in 5 weeks???

Suffice to say, my first week has been a delight - exhausting, stressful at times, but truly an exciting and enjoyable time. I am so very thankful that God lead me here and I cannot wait to see how He continues to work and teach me during this time. He truly has taken care of all the details.

As part of my course I am require to participate quite heavily in multiple social media platforms leaving me very little free time for this blog. I hope to keep it up, posting at least once a week. If you would like to follow my new blog, supposedly "professional," feel free. I'd love to have you stop by there or my new Facebook page. Personally, this blog will probably always be my favourite place to write. For here, I am truly myself.

Thanks for reading and spending a little time with me! Hope your week is filled with God's blessing as well.

Tomorrow...

Well I had grand intentions of writing a few more detailed blog posts about my trip this summer but time, it would appear, has gotten away from me. Perhaps I will yet come back to the topic but for now, I am about to embark on a whole new adventure.

A train.
A big city.
A fast paced intensive course.

New people.
New places.
New challenges.

I've been waiting anxiously for this day to arrive and now it is only hours away. I am taking my first big step towards a career in journalism... I am tempted to dissolve into tears of anxiety; to drown in the dread of the unknown. But...

Be anxious for nothing, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God. And the peace of God, which surpasses all comprehension, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus. - Philippians 4:6-7

I believe in God's promises. I can not thank Him enough for His provision and His peace and His protection. I am blessed beyond imagining. He has promised to guard my heart and mind in Christ and I believe He does and will continue to.

I know that He has lead me here. I know taking this course is my next step. Now I know I need to give God the little things that have me worrying. Because He is sovereign over them too!

I remember, on our trip this summer, being fascinated by the little things; the tiny details God has designed in creation. I marvel over the work of little caterpillars.

I stare in awe at the intricacy of a flower.

I study the tiny designs in the leaves.

God's glorious fingerprints are everywhere; the evidence of His care and precision and attention is all around me in the inanimate world. How much more will He give His care to the details of my life? Small things like getting a good sleep tonight, arriving at the train on time, finding parking, where I sit in class, who will sit beside me, who my professors are, and what they shall teach me...all this is in His hands and will follow according to His sovereign plan.

And so. Tomorrow is coming. No sense in worrying. I rest in Him. May His will be done, for His glory alone.

Would appreciate your prayers as I embark on this journey.

Weddings and old friends and car accidents

I recently had the huge honour and blessing of not only attending another wedding but being a photographer for this amazing couple. I'm sure you've all heard Bible College often jokingly referred to as “bridal college” and in the case of the JHBC class of 2011, it seems to be true! This is the second couple that God brought together at JHBC during our year there and what a cool couple they are! Both with a heart for reaching people with the gospel and a desire to live for God's glory, Richard and Olivia have the potential to do great things for God's kingdom. How excited I am to watch them grow and learn and discover His plan for their lives! 

I was doubly blessed on this occasion because Richard and Olivia decided to have their wedding in the place that they met; a place that has had such a huge impact on their lives. Being back in Wyoming was so cool! I journeyed their with my dear friend Megan and we had quite the trip! Through Washington, Idaho and Montana we travelled along enjoying each other, good music and the beautiful sights. We got lost a few times in search of Starbucks and the campground we were to stay at but it was all part of the adventure! 

This trip was made even more interesting by a little car accident we found ourselves in. Completely my fault, we kinda made contact with a guardrail on the side of the road...thank God no one was hurt and no one else was involved. It was terrifying for me and I wonder that I had to drive hundreds of miles away from home to have my first car accident but I trust that God has a plan in it all. We were truly blessed to be in Jackson, surrounded by loving, caring people who took care of us and comforted us. God is too good to me. The poor wrecked car made the trip home even more adventurous. I don't think I have ever been so stressed out or tense in my entire life but God brought us home safely in time for my birthday the next day!

Suffice to say, the trip was pretty memorable. I am so glad I was able to go and so thankful for Megan for joining me, though I don't know how eager she will be to do so again...

Basket Case

I have decided that I am an emotional basket case. But aren't we all? Perhaps its just the novel I'm reading.

Emotions are a funny thing. We have so many and yet sometimes only few of them seem to matter. They can make things impenetrably confusing or they can bring your circumstances into sharp focus. I can feel two emotions that should conflict with each other and yet I know the presence of both simultaneously, each as strong as the other. How is this possible? I don't know. I'm a basket case.

Sometimes emotions come as a direct reaction to outward circumstances, sometimes they seem to effect the circumstances themselves. Sometimes feelings are a choice, sometimes they guide our choices.

Sitting in this lonely house, as the halls darken with the setting sun, no sounds but the clicking of my keyboard, the wind through the windows and the growing chorus of frogs, it's easy to sink into the melancholy that has been chasing me the last few days. Yet just hours ago I was laughing hysterically with my coworker as we rushed around closing the coffeeshop, full of glinting sunlight, dishes clinking and music like a static background.

I can look at a picture of my friends and feel a deep penetrating sadness, my heart aching to be with them. I can feel a profound joy at having them in my life, if at a distance. I can cry out of my self pity or I can feel tears well up because I am so touched by their friendships.

What are these wild emotions? Why do we have them?

I'm a reading a book set in a world with only one emotion, fear. A world without ambition, purpose or reason. A world where everything is ruled by logic and order, but as I learn more about this world and see how the characters react to everything, I can see that life without emotion is truly no life at all. And so, though our tumult of conflicting emotions seems chaotic in contrast to the characters in this book, they are truly such a beautiful thing. God gave us these emotions for a purpose. Without emotion, we could not know love, or hope or trust. Of course, there is also the danger of greed and anger and hate. If we could abolish emotion, we could perhaps have true "peace". But we would be incapable of appreciating it. And so we take them all. I suppose we have no choice in this present age and so even suggesting it seems ridiculous but I've just been surmising about these things lately and felt like writing...I trust that God's purpose for emotions will prove itself in the end and I'll take the confusion that can nearly incapacitate me over a world with no purpose.

Anyways, I can't believe it's been over a month since I have last posted. The fact saddens me. It seems I have little ambition for.

I'll be home for Christmas

It's really over.

Over the last three days I have hugged, cried, and waved as I watched my dear friends drive away. It's hard, being the last to leave. I'm not going to lie, it's a lonely place tonight on this empty campus. I'm all packed up, ready to head out tomorrow afternoon, ready to start the next step.

The last week here was packed with such amazingly awesome times. We stayed up late, played games, chatted about anything and everything, went out to eat, played broomball (still sore, but SO worth it), and just ENJOYED each other. I also finished my work here, well obviously the book will be a continuing project but we are as complete as we can be on our draft, waiting to hear back from the editors now. It felt so bizarre to finish up everything. So fulfilling, yet it left me feeling all jittery and odd. I was rather hyper and giddy as well. As you can probably guess, it made for an exciting evening.  :)

And so now, I sit in my lonely, empty house. Looking around as memories flash by me. I hear echoes of laughter, can still feel the hugs of my friends, and see glimpses of their twinkling eyes. How I will miss living here and being a part of their lives in this way.

I still can't get over how I blessed I am. As I was packing I came across a picture of me from my very first day in Jackson Hole. I stared down at the girl in the photo, looked into her uncertain eyes and asked, "Would you ever have guessed? Could you ever imagine God would have given us this amazing year and a half?" I remember clearly that girl, I know her well, she's still very much a part of me but, well she's also practically a stranger. God has grown me so much over the last 18 months. I have experienced so much, learned so much, and I pray matured and grown wiser through it all. I have never before had such a great trust in God and His plan, a dependance on His faithfulness. Truly, even though I am uncertain about my future, I am sure that He is in control and so I rejoice at the uncertainty, for through it, God will prove faithful yet again.

And so Canada, watch out. I'm coming home.

Off the beaten path

I hear it's good to pave your own way,
to be original, to break the mold.
Apparently it's not admirable to just follow the trends,
stick to the easy road.
SO I decided to try it,
to push aside my inhibitions,
to venture beyond my comfort zone,
to branch out.
I stepped off the beaten path...

into a foot of snow
which quickly spilled over into my shoes
wet my socks and froze my ankles.
I almost fell over, gave a slight cry of shock
and scarcely missed jabbing my eye out on a tree branch...

as I scrambled back to the safe route.

And so I've decided to wear boots next time I go on an inspirational jaunt.

ten days

Ten days. I will be home in ten days.

I don't know if these tears that well up in my eyes come from joy and anticipation or if perhaps they testify to the ache in my heart when I think of leaving this place, these people, this task I have been blessed with. The past almost 18 months spent in Wyoming have impacted my life in so many ways and I hate to leave it. The last 5 1/2 months I have spent working on this book, serving at the school, have been such an incredible blessing. What a joy it has been to serve my Lord in this place. I have enjoyed each and every day with its specific trials and delights. I admit that I walk into this next chapter of life with much apprehension about my purpose. I never want to stop serving God, glorifying Him with all that I am and do and that's been so easy here. I know that I can do that wherever I am but as of yet, it's just not clear to me what I need to be doing upon my return. That's nerve-wracking to me, but really it's just another opportunity to trust my Father and His plans.

"And those who know Your name will put their trust in You,
For You, O LORD, have not forsaken those who seek You." (Psalm 9:10)

And so in these last ten days, the final pages of this amazing chapter God has written in my life, I will continue to serve, to love, to find joy in each moment, praising Him for this gift. I will let myself cry but I will not dwell in unhappiness. I will let my heart ache but with joy, storing up these memories as precious treasures. And I will look forward to the change, with a firm confidence in God's provision, with excitement for His plans for me, whatever they may be.

Ten days.

Prepare to Believe

It's impossible to really describe a walk through the creation museum. All the emotions you feel as you take step after step through it...it's hard to describe. It's like walking through our world and yet not - more like standing helplessly watching it revolve around you. It's like being a part of our history but not - more just watching from the outside. The exhibits come alive and it feels like it's you that is frozen in one state. I don't know how I appeared on the outside but my heart was in turmoil as the minutes turned to hours and I was drawn through the different scenes. Slowly I began to see. Slowly I began to understand. Slowly I saw our world, our history, through different eyes.

This is one of the very first exhibits you see and when I looked up at it and read the two quotes, it really hit me hard how pathetic we are. Descartes' famous line looks so weak next to God. With all our knowledge, our stacks of books, our years of searching, mankind is still so far from understanding. We are helpless to explain our purpose, our very existence. And yet we have such a high opinion of ourselves. We think we have accomplished so much. "Yet you do not know what your life will be like tomorrow. You are just a vapor that appears for a little while and then vanishes away" (James 4:14 emphasis added). In contrast God says"...I am the first and I am the last, and there is no God besides Me" (Isaiah 44:6); "...I, the Lord, am the maker of all things, stretching out the heavens by Myself, and spreading out the earth all alone" (Isaiah 44:24); I am the Lord, and there is no other; besides Me there is no God...that men may know from the rising to the setting of the sun that there is no one besides Me. I am the Lord, there is no other, the One forming light and creating darkness, causing well-being and creating calamity; I am the Lord who does all these" (Isaiah 45: 5-7)

The questions resonate deep inside because we've all asked at least on of them at some point in our lives. Taking the time to stand and take in the devastation that follows from the wrong starting point really helps you to appreciate the hope presented by the truth.

This exhibit displays some of the ways God brought His Word together

Satan has been attacking God's Word since the beginning, since the garden. He questions God's truthfulness, God's authority; he tries to get us to doubt and many times he succeeds. Just read through a few of the attacks on Scripture throughout history and you will be astounded at how the evil one has made this such a priority. After all, if we doubt God's Word, how can we trust the God who wrote it?

Reject God and our world falls apart. Walking through the hopelessness and destruction caused by a life in rebellion against God was depressing and humbling. We are truly, wandering in purposelessness without Christ.

After this dark room of sad reality, you leave our present world, walking through a dark tunnel filled with blinking stars and start right at the beginning...

Adam naming the animals in Eden

Pure innocent bliss. The garden is beautiful, the music is soothing. Everything is perfect, unique and good. I love this exhibit because it just shows the two amazing created beings, living in pure joy and yet above them the snake is watching, planning, waiting. Satan is never absent. He is ever ready to make a move and destroy.

"For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the powers, against the world forces of this darkness, against the spiritual forces of wickedness in the heavenly places." (Ephesians 6:12)

The contrast from this quiet place of happiness and peace into the dark, bleak rooms following is an amazing portrayal of the devastation caused by sin. You begin to walk in a subtle descent as the perfect world dissolves into one of terror and violence. I shuddered inside as I walked past angry animals, Abel's murder, a room accosting me with images and sounds of fighting,and  bombs,and  floods, sickness, anger, jealousy...black black sin. My heart ached and I felt tears welling up.

And then the ark. The beautiful yet tragic story floods my heart with sadness but also hope. Righteous judgement is placed alongside unwarranted grace. The contrast in this miniature display is clear. I stood studying the tiny desperate people, startled at the detail added to each one. They were real human beings who rejected God and faced His wrath. And I can't help but think how it is really no different today. Are you on the ark, safe from destruction? Or clinging to the rocks, facing impending doom? 

And then...the new start. A new, clean world. The jagged mountains, a testimony of the past destruction, all around them, Noah and his family praise God among the flowers. What a devastating truth must have hit them as they walked out of the ark. The only human beings alive on the whole earth, nothing familiar, starting over by themselves.

Yet, it's sad to think that it wasn't long before mankind again rebelled collectively at Babel. And then imagine the grief of separation; the fear in all the confusion, the anger, the resentment, as man is scattered around the globe.

Will we ever get it?

The walk-thru exhibits end with a short but convicting film of the life of Christ, the Lamb of God, the Last Adam. And I walked out quiet. Contemplating all I had seen and read and felt. It was overwhelming. Not only amazingly well put together and detailed and beautiful, but if you let it, a walk through the museum will touch your heart and teach you truths in a way you've never known them before.

I really can't tell you any thing more. I mean, I could go on and on but really, you must visit this place yourself to understand. Even if you've grown up in a Christian home and think you know all the answers, all stories, all the true history...go. You will be glad you did. You will be encouraged in your faith, strengthened in the truth, and emboldened to share.

And even if you have never touched Bible, never stepped inside a church...go. Just check it out. What can it hurt? I must warn you though, if you go, prepare...to believe.

From the backseat

I spent EIGHT FULL DAYS in the backseat of the Buick and such an experience is definitely not one to be tossed away and forgotten without at least a small blog post commemorating it. Indeed the long hours of repositioning for comfort, teasing the guys in the front, rocking out with Jess in the back, digging around for lost phones or iPods or treats or what have you, cannot be treated as some lousy old bag of potato chips, crumpled up and thrown in the waste basket, considered useless and undeserving of further contemplation. Truly, they were important hours of my life full of laughter, sleep, music, and, yes, learning how to have patience and deal with people in such close quarters for so long.

Interestingly, the poor fellows up front were forced to be entertained by my iPod of Jess's most of the time as theirs were too new for our radio transmitter ma-bob.They were very well cultured in pop/rock from Jessica and everything else from me. :) As some of you may know, I like pretty much EVERY genre of music and so over two hours, shuffling my 1400 songs gives you quite the mix! Everything from a cappella groups to Skillet to unique French styles to Michael Buble to Switchfoot to country to Lecrae to Jack Johnson and more! We took great joy in driving them a little bonkers with our enthusiasm and obnoxious singing. Also, they were introduced to my random skipping through songs which I'm sure they appreciated.

I was also in charge of the cooler and snacks within as it resided quite happily at my feet all this time (which greatly limited my sitting/sleep positions). We had made almost 200 Oreo truffles (ended up with about 40 left over), a couple dozen Scotcheroos, a bucket of gingersnaps, and a bag of double chocolate cookies. We also had apples, carrots, chips and drinks to consume along the way. Me thinks we made far too much food for ourselves because we were quite sick of it all by the end and didn't even finish it!

We had some very amusing moments in the car. We all traded easy-going jabs at each other and spent many hours laughing hysterically. One hilarious instance was when we played a prank on Josh. We were sitting at a gas station and Jess is like, "we should totally prank him when he comes back!" so we decided to throw crackers on his sit just before he sat down. Derrick was armed with the three Ritz crackers and as Josh went to sit down, he casually chucked them onto the seat. At the CRRRRRRUNCH!!! we all burst into hysterics, Jess and I practically rolling around in the back seat. Another rather amusing ride included making up stories sentence by sentence as each person took a turn adding to it. Here's an example:

One day Prince Derrick went out fishing. He caught a 50 inch trout. It ate him. So he was swimming around in the stomach acid for awhile. Then he used his amazing physics skills to turn the chemicals into a bomb and blow himself out. He sat rather happily in the fish guts on the beach. Suddenly a beautiful princess named Analea came by. It was love at first sight... when Prince Derrick saw the cracker in her hand. Analea left Derrick and the cracker to be alone with each other and walked off down the beach.

The rest were equally ridiculous but occupied us for about 20 minutes. 

As the hours dragged on, I would alternate between trying to sleep and watching my surroundings. From my position in the backseat I would stare out at my surroundings, unimpressed for the most part by these flat states. Seriously, from the desolate wasteland of southern Wyoming to the dried cornfields of Indiana, to the dead, brown fields of Nebraska, this part of the country is really rather dull. Kentucky was rather beautiful as well as southern Missouri. The fall colours in the trees were stunning. Other than that though, the flat flat flatness of everything was just so bizarre to me and odd to my senses. How I missed seeing even a distant mountain range! I really don't know how people do it!

It was altogether a very interesting trip both in the car and out. I definitely had a blast chillin' in my seat but... if I ever see the inside of the Buick again...it'll be TOO soon!

The sweet little things

I've been blessed again with another visit from family! My mom and her parents were able to visit for almost a week and what a week it was! I don't even know how to express how thankful I was to have them out here. We packed our days with fun things to do including a trip to Yellowstone, shopping around Jackson, and a trip to Idaho Falls. I have to say though, my favourite parts were just the simple things, the quiet moments that brought me back home:

coffee time in the morning, long and drawn out, chatting about anything and everything

laughing and teasing each other in the long car rides

walking in the sunshine by the river

snuggling with Mom while watching a movie

hanging at Elevated Grounds for hours, learning how to knit and purl

Mom finally seeing a moose, enjoying a few minutes just watching him

It's those little things that I really appreciated. The hours of just talking, as those who know me, is pretty much my favourite thing to do! This little taste of home was so fantastic, but also has me aching for the rest of my family and home life. Yet at the same time, I am so content to finish up my work here, still praising God for the opportunities I have here. Now, with only a little over 2 months left down here, I don't want to spend my time just waiting to go home. I want to enjoy each day, value each friendship, invest in my JHBC people and embrace the time I have in Wyoming.

I was thinking lately on how God is so sovereign and truly His plans are beyond me. You know, of all my siblings, I was always the "homebody". I was always the one who just loved chillin' at home, planning family outings, morning "talk time"; I was never planning on leaving for long and wanted to live the rest of my life in Abbotsford. Yet out of all of them, I'm the one God sent away for a year and a half! (Granted my younger sis has yet to graduate and may be off to Africa for all I know!) It astounds me again and again how much He has taught me and how I have grown in Him. Where before, I was all but terrified to leave home, my family and my comfort zone, now I have learned that my security is in Him, the one person that will NEVER leave me. So many things have changed in my life, so many more things will change in the coming months. Yet I know that wherever He sends me, I will always have Him and truly, He is enough - more than enough.

Lavender Sky

sunlight kisses the mountains as the shadows grow long

walking under a clear sky that's still holdin' on

to summer, though green is slipping away

overtaken by yellows, browns, reds – more everyday

though even the warm breeze denies the truth

as I crunch those first leaves I see the proof

that those days are long gone, just memories now

but I've still got the smiles that they endow

and I can look up with joy at the brightly clothed trees

knowing change is beautiful, just like the leaves

in a sudden rush of wind they come cascading down

tickling my cheek and painting the ground

where they scamper about, first here then there

and I know I could be like them, carefree if I dare

to follow His leading, to embrace the changes He brings

to know, for believers, that He works all things

together for good and just like the colours of fall

He can paint a new picture when I follow His call

the waving trees seem to applaud as I reach this conclusion

the grasses nod in agreement; this joy isn't delusion

I take a deep breath of that colourful air and I sigh

and praise God for life, tonight, under the lavender sky

Just Look Around...

We were half way up the trail to Paintbrush Divide when Kenton made a statement that really hit me. He had just stopped for a brief rest and looked around saying, "Wow, sometimes you just gotta stop and look where you are!" This was in reference to the amazing view, the awesome surroundings in which we had found ourselves, hiking in the Teton backcountry.

As I too stopped and took in the amazing view, the Grand standing soberly in the distance, Lake Solitude resting in stillness and silence at the end of the canyon, the blue sky spotted with fluffy white clouds, I was struck by how often I go through life without looking up and around at where I am. How often do I just trudge along following the path in front of me. I follow after the boots in front of me, doing what others have done before. I maneuver around the obstacles in my path, trusting God for a way. I pace myself up the steep inclines, relying on God for strength and knowing He'll get me to the top. I pick my way carefully among the teetering rocks, looking to God for guidance with every step.

But though I am working my way through life, trusting God the whole way, I often forget to stop, and look around, to realize WHERE He has brought me and to praise Him for how He was led me here! Sometimes I focus so much on the little things and yes, God has proven unbelievably faithful in those things, leading me step by step along His path, that when I look up and look back at where I have come, I realize with new appreciation how MUCH His guidance has affected my life.

For instance, each day I spend here, working on this book, I am again and again coming to Him for guidance and wisdom because I feel so inadequate and incapable of doing this thing but I am also so thankful for the opportunity and how much I am learning. And then, on this backpack trip it hit me that not only has God been teaching me to trust Him while writing this book, but He is teaching me to trust Him with every aspect of my future because I have NO IDEA where He will lead me next. I look back on myself, a year from now and I see a timid girl, excited to start a new adventure at Bible school but insecure and thinking I had to plan out my whole life. Now, I find myself back in this amazing place, totally at home, able to encourage others, giving my life over completely to God's will and not trying to force my own plans. I find myself overwhelmed with God's blessings. Not only has He led me back here, given me a project which I am passionate about to work on for His glory, but He has blessed me with innumerable opportunities like this, my third backpack trip into the Tetons!

So when Kenton said, "you just gotta stop and look where you are", I did stop and it hit me: here I am, in the middle Grand Teton National Park, hiking with an amazing group of people, in Wyoming! This time last year, I thought I'd be sitting in a classroom listening to lectures about unimportant people, places, and times. God works in mysterious and mighty ways which we can never anticipate. So I encourage you, to not only focus on each and every day, but to take some time to look around at where God has you; to praise Him for what He has done in your life and for where He has led you; to realize that each day that you have been trusting Him has been leading you higher and further towards His ultimate goal and plan for your life.

"and the Lord will continually guide you , and satisfy your desire in scorched places, and give strength to your bones; and you will be like a watered garden, and like a spring of water whose waters do not fail" - Isaiah 58:11