sometimes you have to get rid of something good to make way for something better.

that’s the lesson for today. it’s a rough lesson to have/be taught/learn, but it’s a reality of some situations and when i’ve been placed in those situations it’s always difficult. think about it- does it really make sense to get out of a perfectly good situation (especially in those times where you can’t see that it’s to make way for something better)? not all the time. and i think for me, that’s where faith comes in- faith that what God has for me and what God desires of me and for me is greater than anything that i could possibly imagine for myself.

i’m attempting to view my move to georgia in that way. things for me were perfectly fine in north carolina. my family was there, my friends were there, i had great opportunities lined up for graduate school and for a career. however, i had to trust that what God was preparing for me in georgia was better. as i’ve mentioned before, this semester hasn’t been easy. there have been SEVERAL times where i’ve wanted out, where i wanted to go back to what i’ve always known and slide back into my comfort zone. at the same time, at every point where i felt that it was unbearable, that i wasn’t going to make it, that i was going to sink instead of swim; God came through for me- raising people up to encourage me and uplift me. i’ve grown so much in this last semester, and it’s an experience of which i’m truly grateful for.

sometimes, we have to trust that what GOD has for us is better than anything we could create for ourselves…

and another thought…ironically enough, my sister twilla and i have been thinking about the same song for the last week- will smith’s “just the two of us.” however, what’s even more is that we were thinking about the exact same part of the song: “throughout life people will make you mad/disrespect you and treat you bad/let GOD deal with the things they do/cause hate in your heart will consume you too.”

i don’t know why that part of the song was on my heart SO much over the last week, but i guess when i look at different situations of my life, i realize that it is SO important that we learn forgiveness for ourselves and for others, and that we learn to really give things to God. last night, i was hanging out with my pastor and his wife, and one of the things he said (about forgiveness) was that every day he has something that he needs to forgive himself for, and something that he needs to forgive his wife for; and everyday she has something that she needs to forgive herself for, and something that she needs to forgive him for. at any rate, just hearing that really confirmed with me the importance of forgiveness in our own lives and how that affects our relationships with others, and that’s something that i’m striving to do better with.

“Love is patient, love is kind. It does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud. It is not rude, it is not self-seeking, it is not easily angered, it keeps no record of wrongs. Love does not delight in evil but rejoices with the truth. It always protects, always trusts, always hopes, always perseveres. Love never fails.” ~ 1 Corinthians 13:4-8

be encouraged all…