upon a starry night.

It's always this time of night when I feel the overwhelming need to get my thoughts out.  Today, I have had a lot on my mind.  It seems like there is a lot of change going on in and around me.  It's exciting, scary, and brings me back to my sure foundation in the Lord.  I have been reminded this weekend of how very active God is in the details of our lives.  Of course, we don't always see this until looking back at all that God has done to get us where we are.  But, we need to remember it... we are only seeing one drop of paint on the whole canvas.  This weekend was the Realife Youth Leaders' Conference at my church.  I'm so glad I was able to be a part of it... fun with friends, refreshing time with the Lord, fresh vision and passion for life.  And God has outdone Himself once again. :)

I am leaving for Thailand this week with my family.  I'm not going to lie... feeling a little nervous... maybe it's nervous excitement.  But, I have a good life and wonderful people in it... makes leaving a little more difficult.  It's only two weeks, though, so I need to pull myself together and have the time of my life. :)  

This makes me think back to when I was so close to studying abroad in Spain or Mexico.... remembering the grueling interview... and realizing now that God knew best.  I don't know if I could have handled being away for a year... uh, probably not. :)  I dearly love my family and where the Lord has placed me.  His thoughts and ways are so much higher than mine.  So thankful!

Life group was wonderful tonight.  Lots of food for thought.  We talked about a lot of different things...  Something that stood out to me when talking about God providing manna for the Israelites in the wilderness... is that God's provision may be right in front of us... all that we need... but we are too busy looking back or looking ahead to see what God has given us for this moment.  Another thing that stood out to me was the reality that it's okay to ask God "Why?"... not questioning His authority or sovereignty... but asking the questions that lead us to discover more of who He is.  Josh used the analogy that when beginning a dating relationship, you ask lots of questions to get to know each other... but, then there comes a point when you don't have to ask all of the questions any more... you know and trust the person... and begin to function as one, because you know their likes/dislikes and heart.

Motto for the day:  less worrying, more praying. :)