What College Has Taught Me

College is a big step in life. You're out there somewhat on your own, but you start to make your own decisions and start figuring out the person you want to be, without your parents or anyone from home having a say on who you become. It's a fresh start. It's been a time of constantly trying to figure out the question, "Who Am I?" Well, thankfully, as i've taken this semester to really dig into this question, I have found some answers. So here's to you my readers. Hopefully, regardless of your age or wherever you are in life, you will benefit from what i'm about to share and that it might mean something to you.

I AM A CHILD OF A KING Often times when we think of royalty, we picture someone that's lifted up. A family that is looked upon with favor and one that stands as an example to all.. We are all apart of that family! As we serve Jesus Christ and as we run towards Him, he lifts us up! He places us where we can be an example to others, where we have the amazing opportunity to love and grow with one another. As we venture into God's overwhelming presence and as we draw near to Him, He openly welcomes us to His kingdom. And the absolute best part of it all is that being royalty doesn't exempt you from the trials and tribulations of life.. but as we take our place in this family, we no longer have to provide for ourselves. Even when the waves of life come crashing down, you have a God, a King, a Battle Hero that fills you with peace and love and hope while He takes on all the things that Satan throws at us. No longer do we have to suffer on our own because we have a God right there next to us, taking it on with us. Squeezing your hand and telling you that you're safe at every crash of a wave.  A mighty warrior, that even as your under attack.. you're able to stop and look at His beautiful face and realize that, "Wow.. everything is going to be ok. My love is fighting for me.. He's taking care of me."

I AM LOVED I am broken. I am a sinner. I doubt God. I runaway from God. I put my trust in things other then God. And do you know what the crazy thing is.. He still loves me. And i'm not talking just about an ordinary love. I'm talking about an extraordinary love! A love that gives, a love that is gentle and complete. A love that is pure, that doesn't have any other agenda other then saying, "You are beautiful, you are mine, let me love you! Let me show you what you're worth to me!" ..A love that guards my heart. One that makes it a priority to provide and care for my heart at all times. A love that is so selfless, that when pain enters my heart, He weeps. A love that is ready to pounce the minute I call out to it for safety. A love that constantly completes, one that constantly makes me whole.. a love that is unlike any love you can find on earth. That's how I am loved. And that's how you're loved too, that's how you're adored too. That is the way God sees and loves YOU. 

I AM RESTORED  Let's face it.. we've all got a past! We all have things we regret, things we wish we could change, things we're embarrassed about. At least I do! And the hard part is that we live in this world that doesn't ever forget. Often times a saying that I see on social media is "forgive but don't forget." And that's exactly how society works... But that's not how God works. I know as you're reading it may be easy say "I know, I know, Jesus died on the cross to forgive our sins, I already knew that." But do you really KNOW what that means? It means that not only do we get to live a life knowing that we're forgiven, but it means that God see's our ugliness, and loves us so incredibly much that He wipes the slate clean. COMPLETELY clean. As I look down the old road of my past, i'll be real honest with you, I really don't like what I see. Many times, I remember the past and feel completely unworthy. Sometimes I just feel like I flat out just failed.. and I  become afraid for people to know my past because i'm afraid that they won't like what they see. But one thing i've learned is that God isn't concerned with the past. He's seen it! You don't have to go and tell Him about it, He knows! And even with that knowledge.. He loves you! He loves you with or without your sin. The minute we open our mouths and repent and ask for forgiveness, our slate is wiped clean! God is not concerned about what happened before, He's concerned about where you're going! God doesn't want me or anyone of you to hold on to what happened in the past because He's restored you! He's made you brand new. You don't have to dwell on the past anymore because God adores you! Right where you're at. 

I AM ENOUGH  I know personally that it's hard for me not to feel like I need to earn love. Often times I catch myself judging God's opinion of me or my own worth or my own value, when that's crazy! I'm not God. And many times it's Satan trying to make me feel insecure or trying to get me to doubt God's love.. but the Bible constantly reminds us that God's approval isn't earned by works, but by faith! It's so easy to find myself thinking of all the things I need to do to please God or to be the right Christian when that's not what God asks of us at all. God just wants us! We don't have to do a single thing to earn His love because it's free! I am enough and you are enough! Just like that. It doesn't matter what you think you deserve or how you think God's opinion should be of yourself because God doesn't care. You could come to Him with a list of all the reasons why you shouldn't deserve His love and he would just smile and say, "I don't care. I love you!" As you're going about your days and as you're seeking to follow God, all He asks for is us. When you start looking to Him and believing that what He says is true, He will start showing up in your life like never before. Don't worry about cleaning yourself up before you go to Him, just go to Him. He just wants you. Everything else will fall into place later.

I AM IN LOVE WITH THE ONE THAT TREASURES MY HEART I truly believe that God has a place in His heart for each and every one of us to fill. A place that only you personally can fill, a place that only you can complete. As I have realized this and have sought after filling that place in Gods heart, I have found one thing.. and that is that I am absolutely, 100% in overwhelming love with Jesus Christ! Jeremiah 29:13 says,  "You will seek me and find me when you seek me with all your heart."  And I tried this! As I started to become concerned with God's heart and concerned with keeping up my end of this relationship I realized that, guys... God is so beautiful! Everything about Him is so wonderful! To know that I have someone that is in love with me, someone that adores me, someone that created me with His bare hands and breathed life into me! The way God loves and the way that He treasures and captures my heart is so beautiful.. And the best part about all of this is that God feels the same way about you too. YOU. Exactly how you are. You are loved, you are adored.. God thinks that you are extraordinary! You are His masterpiece! You are His perfect work of art, and He loves every bit of you. He's just waiting for you to realize this. He's waiting for all of us to realize that His love for us is unlike anything we've ever imagined. He's waiting for us to see how incredible we are to Him and how treasured we are in His heart. These aren't things that i've just learned once and now i'm done. These are things that i'm learning more and more about every day. They are things that God shows me in new ways every day. And every day is a new excitement of where my love is going to take me and what He's going to show me... And the same love is waiting for you! He's ready for you.. and be prepared. It's the greatest love you could ever imagine.