Delighting in Life

I love JBU. Love it. It is my second home and I have no idea how I am going to handle not returning next fall. I'll be glad to be done with school to be sure, but that place, those people, everything about it I love. The last two years have been rough and I have not been very involved with things going on at school. I have missed out on a lot of wonderful things. So this fall, when I move in for the final time, I am going to embrace everything I can. Here are some things that I am going to push myself to do:

1. Be involved in the house

I am moving into a townhouse with 7 lovely girls in 1 month and 4 days! I will be moving in a little early for CAUSE training, so I don't know how many of them will actually be there yet. I am really, really, really looking forward to living in a townhouse. I want to be as involved as I can (while still visiting Nick). I want to get to know all of the girls and become good friends with them. I look forward to making meals, watching movies, chatting, stressing, and everything else right there with them.

2. Join a passion/bible study group

I met some wonderful people in my passion group my first year. Unfortunately we were not able to continue it and I have not been able to find a group since. Going to passion group was really important to me my freshman year, and I miss having that time to just chat and think. I think that if I had been more actively involved with such a group during the last 2 year, I would have been much better off.

3. Have regular friend dates

I am not super close to a lot of people, but there are a few girls that I really want to continue to have close relationships with. They are so wonderful and I want to take as much time as I can to be with them, even if we are just studying. I want to visit their houses/dorms, have them come to mine, have coffee/tea with them, have deep conversations, and laugh a lot.

4. Build new friendships

I am quickly learning that college friendships really can last a lifetime and will be some of the most important people in your life. I want to meet new people and get to know them well. I want to value the people I meet fully, and not be so shy and reclusive.

5. Seek first His kingdom

My beautiful, wonderful heavenly father is so forgiving, and so loving. Even though I have been putting other things before Him over the last 2-3 years, I want that to stop. I want to be back where I was, no, even closer than I was when I first came to JBU. I want seek Him first over all. Before my friends, before school work, before my hobbies, before my family, and even before Nick. I want Him to be first and foremost in my life. I found an old blog that I wrote in the summer before I went to college you can read it here.

This is a poem that I wrote 3 years ago. I'll let you guess who it is about.

In Love

I love to run with you in the field,
the one with soft, green grass and wild flowers.

I love to hear you laughing,
as we splash each other in the crystal clear creek.

I love to lean up against you,
and feel the sun's warm kisses on my face.

I love to see the cascade behind you,
an allegory of your roaring elegance.

I love to see you smile at me,
oh how I love to know you love me.