3 Words, 1 Phrase.

The phrase "I love you" is simply a 3 syllable word phrase composed of 3 simple words. How can it be that these 3 words can hold so much meaning? Stumbling upon this on my Instagram feed, I found this picture.

I can't even begin to tell you how many times I say "I love you" throughout my daily life. Even while saying it jokingly or in a serious context, I honestly do mean those 3 little words. Whether I'm texting you "I love you", whether I'm saying it after I made a joke, whether I'm saying it as I'm walking away, or whether I'm saying it as soon as I get off the phone, it's not that I'm saying it out of routine but as reminder that in all areas and moments of life, I do love you.

There may be some days where you don't want to hear me saying that I love you after something has just gone wrong or you refuse to believe that anyone in this world could possibly love you, but you're wrong, because I do love you. I feel like it is hard for people to possibly believe that someone in this world actually loves and cares about them. There are over a million people in this world and I can promise you that out of all those million people, there is at least person that loves you and that's me.

You know what's crazy about all of this? In the English language, there is only one way to say "I love you" and that's "I love you." There's no "I extremely like you" or "I will give my life for you" or "I heart you" or any of that jazz. There's just no other way of saying "I love you." I mean rest assured that all those other phrases I stated before are understood when saying "I love you." Anyways, I believe God created only this 1 phrase for the English language because He wants us to prove it through actions, rather than say it.

If we can't say "I love you" in any other way or wording, then why don't we show it? This is the beauty of love. It's not what you can say, but what you can do. I firmly believe that saying "I love you" only takes a second to say, but it takes a lifetime to prove.

It is by our actions can we fully demonstrate that we love a person. I know I mean it when I say "I love you" to a person but to them, do they see the depths of my love for them? Do they know that I wholeheartedly mean those words? Is my love seen through my words and actions? 

I think that we take for granted everyday this simple phrase. Wait, I know for a fact that we take for granted this simple phrase. People throw it around like it's nothing. "I love you" has lost its meaning. People say it simply just to get on the good side of people or they say it because they have no better response and use it merely as an excuse. When you say "I love you" to a person, this means more than just loving them. It means that you will give your life for them, it means that you think of them every day, it means that you yearn to be with them, it means your heart is theirs, it means that you care about them, it means that you want them to be happy, it means that they are important to you, it means that they have become a part of your life and without them, life would never be the same.

"I love you" sounds a bit greater now, right? This quote, this picture, it describes my life. I don't take it lightly when I say "I love you" because I truly do mean it and I will spend my whole life searching for ways to make you believe that I mean it.

So what now? Today, I challenge you to go out and just love on everyone. Saying "I love you" may be the simplest thing you've ever done but it may also be the most impactful moment on another person.

Cherish every "I love you" and remember that these 3 words, 1 phrase can save a life as well as change one.

Friendships v.s. Relationships

Don’t just have a friendship, but have a relationship with a person. In this past year, I’ve learned that having a friendship with a person is nowhere as meaningful as having a relationship with a person. Right now you may be thinking, isn’t a relationship between 2 people that are in love with each other and are dating and all that? Well if you think that, then I’m possibly dating a bunch of people right now. However, let’s take a moment to pause.

Friendship (n.): the emotions or conduct of friends; the state of being friends

Relationship (n.): the way in which two or more concepts, objects, or people are connected, or the state of being connected

I don’t know about you guys but I honestly do not like having friendships with people. If you take the time to really look into the 2 definitions that I posted, it is very clear and obvious that relationships are better than friendships. Why don’t you want to be connected and intimate with a person? There are a couple of problems though that many people will face and some of them may be:

- I don’t think I’m capable of loving a person that much and actually taking the time, effort, and love to actually develop a relationship with a person.
- It’s weird to have a relationship with the person of the same sex.
- I think I’m just content with having a friendship with a person rather than a relationship.
- Why should I even try growing attached to a person or even investing in them if I know they will only disappoint me in the future or we’ll eventually grow apart?
- Relationships are exclusively for couples, not for friends.
- What is the difference at all?

In having a relationship with a person, there is something more profound to it. This is not your simple say hey to this person in the hallway or at Chickfila, this is not the simple let’s hang out every once in awhile, this is not the simple friendship that only goes as far as “What are you doing today?” or “How are you?” or just basic conversations.

Nope. No. Not at all.

This relationship consists of being able to fully express yourself to this person. This mean beings able to be at ease and comfortable with another person and able to share everything about you whether it be your past, the thoughts on your mind, or whatever may be occurring in your life. This relationship isn’t based on a simple mutual knowledge of each other. This is about diving into each other’s lives and letting all your walls down. This is about investing in a person so that you may always have this person in your life. Why would you want to let go of someone who knows so much about you and has invested in you a lot as well? We hold on and fight for the people that we genuinely love and care about.

These relationships are meant to be worthwhile. For me, I find potential in every friendship to become a relationship. I don’t think people have quite understood why I do all the things I do for people, but it’s because I’m fighting for what we have. In a relationship with a person, you do whatever you can to prove that you love and care about a person. These bonds aren’t worthless. It’s time to make them feel like something more.

I enjoy the pursuit of a person. We should all pursue one another. We should be fighting for each other. We should be fighting for our friendships. I think everyone for the most part enjoys watching a guy pursue a girl and doing all they can to win them over. From the cliché and old school method of buying flowers, to writing letters, to movie dates, to dinner and lunch dates, to cheesy pick-up lines, or to just complete falling head over heels for a girl. But why should this only be for a man and a woman? As a firm believer and admirer of the pursuit of women, I feel like we should be doing this to everyone. Everyone deserves to be pursued.

In our pursuit of each other, we should be doing whatever it takes to fight for and keep the people that we most love and care about. We should be winning each other over. It’s not that we are trying to seek approval or favoritism from others but that we want to show and express our love to our friends and family. I do a lot of this simply by finding ways in which I can prove to people that I love them. If there’s anything more that I truly enjoy in this world, it’s just merely loving on people.

Loving on people though is another post that I will write about.

So my challenge for you today is to look at all the friendships and bonds that you have with the people around you. Do you feel that you want to take your friendships to the next level and begin to invest in people for the long run? Do you really prize the relationships you have with people now? Are there people around you who have the potential for a great relationship?

The most important question though, “Are you ready to pursue and pour your life out for the people you truly love and care about?”

Why Do Dogs Leave Earth First?

I came across this story on my Twitter one day and I would like to share it with you all. 

Why Do Dogs Leave Earth First? 

Being a veterinarian, I had been called to examine a 10 year old Irish Wolfhound named Belker. The dog's owner, Ron, his wife Lisa, and their little boy Shane, were all very attached to Belker, and they were hoping for a miracle. I examined Belker and found that he was dying of cancer. I told the family we couldn't do anything more for Belker, and offered to perform the euthanasia procedure for the old dog in their home. 

As we made arrangements, Ron and Lisa told me they thought it would be good for 6 year old Shane to observe the procedure. They felt as though Shane might learn something from the experience. 

The next day, I felt the familiar catch in my throat as Belker's family surrounded him. The young boy, Shane seemed so calm, petting the old dog for the last time, that I wondered if he understood what was going on. Within a few minutes, Belker slipped peacefully away. The little boy seemed to accept Belker's transition without any difficulty or confusion. We sat together for a long while after Belker's death, wondering aloud about the sad fact that animal lives are shorter than human lives. 

Shane, who had been listening quietly, piped up, "I know why." Startled, we all turned to him. What came out of his mouth next stunned me. I'd never heard a more comforting explanation. It has changed the way I try to live. 

He said, "People are born so that they can learn how to live a good life -- like loving everybody all the time and being nice, right?" The 6 year old continued, "Well, dogs already know how to do that, so they don't have to stay as long."

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Reflecting on this story, whether it's real or not, still has an impact on my life. Why can't we love like dogs? As silly as that sounds, shouldn't we love on people all the time and be nice to all that we see and come in contact with? Isn't it crazy to think that dogs leave this world early because they have succeeded in their mission in loving unconditionally? But as for us people, it takes us a lifetime to love people. It's a harsh truth but some people don't achieve that goal. It's ridiculous even thinking about it. 

So how can we live the "good life" that Shane is talking about in the story? Love the people of this world with a love that is unimaginable. Show them the deepness and fullness of God's love. 

"We love, because He first loved us." - 1 John 4:19 

"Be imitators of God, therefore, as dearly loved children and live a life of love, just as Christ loved us." - Ephesians 5:1-2 

"And this is his commandment, that we believe in the name of his Son Jesus Christ and love one another, just as he has commanded us." - 1 John 3:23

Advice For A Good Life by Carl Elliott Sr.

1. Have compassion for the poor. 

2. Educate the ignorant. 

3. Feed the hungry. 

4. Guide those who've lost their way. 

5. Don't kick a person who's down. 

6. Heal the wounded. 

7. Love those who are least lovable. They need it most. 

8. Warm the cold. 

9. Wash the dirty. 

10. Water the thirsty.

7 Ways on How I Live My Life

So my life is nothing but good. I have so many reasons to be happy considering that I have God, amazing friends, and so many things going for me. However, the reason I’m the way I am is because I live my life on numerous concepts and perspectives and I would like to share them with you. 

1. God is #1. Friends and others are #2. I am #3. God will always have priority in my life. In everything I say, everything I think, and everything I do, I make sure that it is pleasing to God and that I may glorify Him through the person I am and that others may feel or see His presence through me. Don’t be concerned about your own self and trying to satisfy your needs and wants, instead, focus on the people around you who might need help or even just a nudge to keep their head up. The reward in serving others is that you are serving God as well. Be a selfless person and pour out your love and life for all the people of this world. Everyone is deserving of love and it takes just one act of love to brighten someone’s day. 

2. Make time for the people you love. I’ve always firmly believed that one of the greatest gifts you can give a person is your time. If you genuinely care about and love a person, then you will make time for them. I do not take the excuse that you are “busy” or that you don’t have time for a person because if you don’t have the time, then MAKE the time. It can be a 3 second text message letting someone know that you love them or you’re thinking of them, you can have a quick 5 minute phone call, or you can even arrange for a small food date during the week. Whatever it may be, do what you can and learn how to organize your schedule so you can fit time for the people that love and care about you just as much. 

3. Don’t be afraid to be courageous and take a leap of faith. This pretty much applies to almost every area of life. You can’t be scared of the unknown or the unexpected. That is what we live for. We do not know what tomorrow holds but hope for the best and prepare for the worst. God has carefully constructed our life plans and be content in knowing that everything coming your way will only make you a stronger and better person. Don’t be scared of rejection from a person. Don’t be afraid to talk to someone you’ve never talked to before. Don’t be afraid to live out your faith or to share God with those around you. If you like someone, then tell them. If you miss someone, then tell them. If you love someone, then tell them. Why in the world would you want to hold yourself back from being who you are and expressing your personal thoughts and feelings? Why would you want to miss out on everything around because you’re afraid? Take a leap of faith and trust God. You can’t experience life if you can’t step out of your comfort zone. Stand strong and have courage. I promise you that being courageous for even a moment can entirely change your life or someone else’s life forever. 

4. Reach out to everyone you can. It doesn’t matter what the person looks like. It doesn’t matter if they are male or female, what race they are, what religion they are, what sexuality they are, what their past is, how they dress, what they like or dislike, or even anything. You reach out to others simply because. I’ve learned in my past 2 mission trips that you don’t need to go to another country or another state to reach out to people. Where you live right now is your mission field. You are no better than the person next to you. Get off your high horse and step down. We are all equal and we are called to be there for one another. There are people around you that are hurting or suffering in silence. There are people out there who have problems that are beyond our own even speculation. There are people who need someone to just even listen to what’s going on. Be the Jesus that someone sees or needs. Extend a helping hand to everyone because you never know who just might need you today. 

5. Pray pray pray. Pray and thank God for all the good in your life. Pray and thank God for all the bad in your life. Communication with God is important because we need to honestly sit down and talk to Him about our life. So many people get mad at God for when things go wrong in their life and simply push God to the side. However, when good things are happening, people all of a sudden love God and just want to praise Him for everything. From my perspective, that’s a pretty bad relationship with God. We owe it to God to pray to Him and to thank him for everything because in every single thing that happens in our life, something good ALWAYS comes out of it. I can promise and guarantee you that. Not only that, there is so much power in prayer. We may not necessarily get what we prayed for, but God gives us in return what we need. He answers our prayers in ways unimaginable. Praying strengthens your relationship with God and it definitely gives you peace of mind knowing that God is at work in your life 24/7. 

6. Don’t be consumed with hate but instead be filled with love. For me, there is not a single bone in my body where I could possibly hate someone or hold a grudge against them. Even though I’ve been hurt by a lot of people and I’ve been mistreated by friends and even strangers, I appreciate them because they have made me a stronger person. I’ve always lived life with the concept that you should be thankful for the people that hurt you because they taught you a lesson to remember and they reminded you that are you stronger than you think because if you weren’t, then you wouldn’t be here today. We become stronger and better people through our trials and pain. Instead of hating all those people in my past, I’ve shown nothing but love. Why show hatred to the people that God so wonderfully created? I know there are bad people in this world and there are people who have strayed far from God’s path but just love them. Some people don’t even know that love is. I just find it to be true that being consumed with hatred and bitterness will only cause you to be tired and will wear down on your heart. Instead, let go of the past and look forward to the future. Fill yourself with love and love on others so that they may forget the hatred and pain in their own hearts. 

7. Always be yourself. Don’t let the influence of other people affect who you are when you’re around your friends or family. Be yourself at all times, not just sometimes. Don’t be a different person at school. Don’t be a different person at church. Don’t be a different person at home. Just be you. You have no one to impress and no one to please except God. Surround yourself with the people and friends that love you and accept you for who you are. You shouldn’t have to change your behaviors or conform to the standards of a group in order to fit in. We are called to stand up and stand out for God. He created you in a way that is nothing short of perfection. Why would you want to change that? Be yourself because no one else can do that.

Lessons On A Spiritual Journey

Throughout my spiritual journey with God, there have been many times where I’ve been overwhelmed with unspeakable joy and there have been times where I’ve just completely lost sight of God and fell into holes of depression. 

During my Senior Year, I don’t think I ever talked to God as much as I did then. I was constantly asking Him for guidance for which college to go to, confidence about upcoming interviews with jobs, a healing hand over the broken hearted, peace of mind to get through the stress, unconditional love to be shown to all my friends, and just everything you could think of. I asked Him for about everything and I thanked him every second I could. What gets me though, is that for everything I asked, I pretty much received it in some form or another. If I am given everything by a Heavenly Father that loves me, should I have any reason to be sad? 

The last 6 years of my life have been nothing but being hurt by a lot of people including friends and family. It’s an ongoing struggle but it has taken me forever to realize that God places people in our life as a mean of teaching a lesson or as blessings. Whatever their purpose may be, they all play a role in the person we are today. It’s crazy to think that we let one person or even one bad thing happen in our day to ruin the happiness we have. Our happiness does not depend upon the people we hang out with, the possessions we have, all the food we eat, or all the parties we go to. This is all a sense of false pleasure. Can you compare the happiness you get from eating a warm Krispy Kreme donut to the joy and love that God gives you when you open your heart to Him? It’s a pretty close call for many but what God is pouring out for us is truly rewarding and far greater than anything of this world. 

So this still doesn’t explain why I’m sad a lot of days even though God is with me and wants me to be nothing but happy.

I guess the reason for me is that I let myself run on empty. I keep giving and giving and going and going and then I’m just left there bare handed with empty pockets, a desolate heart, and a pain that only God knows of. But God knows the intentions of my heart and knows a way to ease my pain. 

I get tired of people who don’t make an effort to make a friendship work. I do everything I can for a person but they can’t even send me a text, give me any attention, or even just a slight amount of time. But God never grows tired of me even when I fail Him daily. 

I don’t tell people how I truly feel. I give people the truth but not all of the truth. I don’t tell people when I need help and I don’t tell people what I’m really feeling at some times. But God gives me the help I need and He knows that I need to be more courageous. 

But do you want to know the real reason as to why I’m not completely happy with life and with God? 

The reason is that I haven’t completely surrendered to God. Throughout the last couple of years in my life, I have been trying to put my faith in action. Every single thing I’ve done is all meant to glorify God and to bring others closer to God. This sounds like a pretty great course of action especially when I put all my heart and soul into it. However, I feel like I haven’t given God everything just yet. There are still parts me of that aren’t fully devoted to God. My prayer life isn’t exactly perfect and I definitely don’t spend much time trying to take God’s word in and apply it to my life. I get so caught up in working my jobs, being there for people, and trying to hang with everyone as much as possible. But the one true person I should be hanging out with more than anything is God. 

I owe much to God and every day I try to find ways in which I can glorify Him and see Him in all areas of my life. Not only that, I’m learning how to let my walls come down so that I can just give Him everything I am. God doesn’t need me, but I need Him. He is the one person that will never fail me or you. He is the one person that loves me and you even when it feels like no one else does. He is a listener, He is a fighter, He is a giver, He is a father, He is a supporter, He is everything that we need and everything we aspire to be. 

So what was my lesson learned? 

God has a way of breaking me down and then building me up and in return molding me into something more. He has a way of making me hit a low point in my life so that I may instead reach an even higher point in my life and in return turn me into something more beautiful. I owe Him my life and I need to surrender everything in me and everything I am in order to live the life He has called me to so that I may find joy in all areas of my life and that I may experience this spiritual journey through loving on others and showing this world that God is everything we need and more.

A Reason to Love

"Meeting new people is like finding a new way to love a person."

I made this quote myself because lately God has been placing so many new people in my life. While meeting all these people, I've had the time to really reflect on His plan for me and how it's all supposed to play out. In this time period, I sat down one night and talked with some friends about this. My love for people is endless and getting people to see my love for them is probably one of the most frustrating tasks I've ever had. How do you show a person your love for them when you can't put it into words and you can barely find the actions? Honestly, my love for my friends and people is truly indescribable and nothing can amount to the intensity I have for those who hold my heart. It's weird because I think my friends will never understand how much I love and care about them, but in a way, I'm quite content and frustrated with it at the same time. It makes me happy to know that I will spend a lifetime loving these people and finding all the ways possible to show them how much I really do love them. This part of life is beautiful and I can't wait to live it out.

Meeting new people is so interesting because you find different ways to love their differences and their similarities. In this sense, I feel like I'm discovering a new side of love because you have to find ways in which you can love all the imperfections and just everything about a person. Peeling back all the layers and discovering everything about a person is just so beautiful because you see their capability to love and live. I hope you're ready to live and love because life won't be anything until you learn to do both.

In true reality, it's all our imperfections that make us perfect.

iTune Into Him

So this past weekend I had the opportunity to spend my last high school retreat ever with my Youth Group with the theme being Music. As the weekend progressed, it slowly came to my attention that "This is it. This is seriously my Senior Year. This is my last retreat for awhile." Coming into the retreat, I promised myself that I would make an impact on the Youth Group so that the next generation of students in the church would become leaders themselves and take care of the Youth Group in our place.

It's just crazy to think that I went on almost all the retreats from my Freshman Year until now and how much has changed and how many people are gone now. However, throughout the retreat experience, I did grow in my faith and grew closer to some new and old friends. Especially at night, I had really deep conversations with friends.

Many told me that I've done an awesome job so far at changing the world and that I've treated everyone with equal respect. Despite not even knowing some of these people personally, it was truly touching to know that I was making an impact on people even without directly talking to them. Not only that, a new friend I made told me, "I can't believe this is your last retreat. I just met you and you're seriously an awesome guy. You have to come down when you're on break at college." It seriously just hit home because all these people were expressing to me how much I was making a difference in their lives through my faith and through my anti-bullying movement. For me, I kinda just shook off the complements because honestly I felt like I haven't done enough. I know I can do better and I know can contribute more to this world. But in the end, I do appreciate all the support and kind words from everyone. It's good to know that I'm doing something right and that I'm making an impact on all these people's lives.

When I'm in college looking back at all my time spent at church, it's going to be great to know that I had such a supportive community that was always there for me when I wasn't always there for them. I'm never going to forget all the laughs, friends, and memories made.

My faith has made me who I am and I will live my faith out loud as I prepare to enter a new chapter of my life with God.

Time is Ticking

As time is quickly flying by, my time here in Coweta County is slowly diminishing. I know deep down inside of me that it's time for a new life in Birmingham, but I'm not sure I'm ready. Everyone around tells me that they're ready to graduate and I agree, but the people who aren't graduating don't understand how big of a life transition this is.

Honestly, I don't know where I belong in this world and I don't know what God wants of me. So many times I confuse my own selfish desires and pursuits that come into conflict with God's plan. It doesn't make me doubt but it shows me that God has something better else for me. For me, Coweta County is such a great area but I know it's not for me. My heart isn't here. I don't know where my heart is. I don't know where I exactly belong yet.

This is why me moving to Birmingham is going to be an interesting experience. Maybe God has called me to do medical research, change the lives of people through the Global & Community Leadership Honors Program, and maybe start a religious revival in Birmingham.

I don't know what I'm going to do when I leave all my friends behind me.

I just have to trust God that He will keep them in my life and allow for new people to come into my life as well.

Honestly, it's because of my friends that I get through the day. I don't know what I'd do without them. From Facebook posts, to text messages, to Twitter, to in person conversations, these people give me hope and remind me that I'm doing something right and that God is continuously at work through me. I'm truly blessed.

We ALL Worship One Beautiful God

Moments

"It's moments like these that I wish I could hold onto forever."

Sometimes I wish I could live in the moments where the world is at peace and I'm at an equilibrium between my mental, physical, and spiritual being with the world and with those around me. It feels like I'm truly happy and that there's not a worry in the world. It's a moment that comes and goes but holds the most meaning to me.

I know deep down that I can't live in these moments forever because life must forward. Not only that, if makes me appreciate life because one good day or moment makes all the sad and frustrating times in the past seem like a blur. We must suffer in order to know happiness. If we never knew pain or sadness, then we could never even begin to understand how much happy times are truly blessings.

Moments may only last a couple of seconds or minutes, but they last forever in the heart and soul of my own.

You Are More To Me Than You Could Ever Imagine

Throughout my life I have met so many amazing people who have gone, who have stayed, and who have slowly drifted away. Nevertheless, I've never been so thankful for all the people that have become a part of my life in some way. Lately I've been meeting a lot of new people and today as I was driving with the windows down, music loud, and stopped at a red light, I really reflected on how God is putting all these people in my life for a reason. I have never loved life so much until now.

Whether I tell people or not, you, my friends, are the reason that I have so much to be thankful for in life. Some people I tell over and over, "You're beautiful. You're perfect. I love you so much. You are my everything. I'm so thankful for you." And the list goes on, but you get my drift. I firmly believe that God is slowly putting together all my broken pieces of who I used to be together into something more beautiful. I've gone through so much in my past life and through my different struggles with depression, family, and my own personal faith journey, but it has only led me closer to God.

Something that has really stuck with me ever since my interview with Chickfila was what the operator told me, "You know, when you meet a person, something clicks and you just know that they're the one." That's how I've been feeling a lot lately. From Cole to Chad to Carly to Brittany to all the other amazing people I've met, I just know that they are the ones to have a large influence on my own life. I will LIVE for these people no matter what. They are the reason why life is so beautiful and that it has so much to offer. I will LIVE for ALL of my friends.

My friends are my life. They are my passion. Nothing will ever stop me from living for these people and defending them.

Please know that whoever is reading this, that You are WORTHY. You are PERFECT. You are BEAUTIFUL. God made you and He made absolutely NO mistakes.

I cannot even begin to express how much you mean to me. You have become a part of my life, my heart, and my soul. Nothing will ever change that. I promise. Nothing. I love you like a love that is indescribable and uncontainable.

I make a promise to you that I will always be here for you no matter what. I make a promise to you that I will never let go of you. I make a promise to you that nothing will ever tear us apart.

I promise to you that I will love you forever and always.

I LOVE COLE CROTEAU. That is all.

Heartache

Tonight while I was praying and worshipping to God at XLT Atlanta, my chest hurt. I didn't know how to describe this feeling until I realized that my heart was aching. Why? It was then that I realized my heart ached for God. I yearned for something more that could satisfy my thirst and need for God. I know I'm not perfect in my faith and there's so much I don't understand but that is why my heart ached. I want to know God even better and I want to grow in my faith. What I have now is not enough and I want more of God. All the time while I was praying, I was thinking in my head when "How He Loves" was going to play. It's an amazing song and I kept wondering why the band wouldn't play a song like that especially during prayer. However, within a couple of minutes, the band started playing the intro and my heart literally just let loose. All at once I felt a complete release from everything and I knew in that moment that God saw that I was ready for Him and that I was truly ready for the next step in my faith journey. I can't even begin to describe how amazing it was for everyone to start singing the song altogether but the feeling of knowing that God answered my prayer right then and there.

Open your heart to God and be ready to experience His everlasting love and grace.

Perfection of Life

It's days and nights like this where I'm completely content with life. Never before in my life have I just been happy to be a teenager. Not a worry in the world and I'm having the time of my life with the friends I so deeply love and care about. How can life get any better?

What does put a damper on this is the fact that I'll be leaving in 6 months to graduate. I'm so determined to make an impact on the student body as well as the faculty of East Coweta. I want to have something to be remembered by. I want everyone to have a piece of me that they can carry on with them as they live out their lives. It is these 6 months that I want to make the most out of every moment.

Thinking how long I've known some of my friends completely blows my mind because it's crazy to know that we've seen each other grow and fall and rise. The same goes with the friends I've recently met. We're all growing in our relationship and creating one that will last forever. Speaking of new friends, I've met so many new and amazing people in the time span of 2 weeks. I know without a doubt that all my old, current, and new friends will always have a place in my heart.

I want to live in the moment. I want to breathe in the air of youth. I want to pour out my love to the world. I want to let my faith shine. I want to be truly alive. I want love and live like there's no tomorrow.

"Intense love does not measure, it just gives." -Mother Teresa

We Don't Always Get What We Want

So I had the interview today, and though I believe it went fairly well, I didn't get the job. Reason being is that I'm going to graduate and go off to college soon and the job calls for someone who's gonna be there a little bit longer than that. So in all, it was totally understandable as to why I didn't get it.

Even though I was a bit upset to not get the job, I was completely humbled by the experience and all my interviews. In our life we will want so many things but it turns out that we don't get all of it. As to why we don't get it is because God knows what's best for us. There's a reason I didn't get the job today because there's something in my future that He's preparing me for. Deep down I feel like he really wants me to focus on relationships with people around me and most importantly my friends.

Time is ticking and graduation is almost here. I really want to make an impact before I go and I want to develop lasting friendships and relationships with people at my school as well as those in the community.

Maybe this is what God wants me to do. Maybe this is what I need to do.

My God Is Here

So today I had the opportunity to go to my college, the University of Alabama at Birmingham, to eat lunch with the college President and go on a special campus tour. Being there at the college made me even more excited for when I move in in August. Not only that, I'm just excited for a new life in the city.

Anyways, the most important part of my day was the fact that I really got to talk to my mom today. And by talk, I mean we had deep conversations about life, our faith, and just people in our lives. I drove to Birmingham and back and all the while my mom and I talked about things we normally don't talk about. We talked about problems in our own household, my faith journey, and just passions of my own. It was really good because my mom and I never had this connection before.

On my way home, I got a phone call saying I have a job interview and that probably made my day even better. I've been praying about this job and I'm glad that God has been blessing me with all these countless opportunities.

Tonight, my mom and I went to an informational meeting about my church's upcoming mission trip over the summer. It was really awesome and I'm glad that I'll be spreading God's love and serving Him in San Antonio, Texas. Along with that, I pitched ideas on ways to fundraise money for our trip and one of them was a big concert at our church. Things are in planning mode but I'm feeling really good about it!

What really surprised me tonight was that my mom wanted to pray with me as soon as we got to church tonight before the meeting. She said, "Let's thank God for the safe trip we had today and everything else." I was really taken aback but I was glad I was able to share this moment with my mom.

God is definitely here with me and He's answering my prayers. With God in my life, there's no telling in what He's gonna do for me. He's helping me so I can help others.

Hate in the Social Media

Everyday when I check my Twitter or Facebook, I always see people posting hateful things about people or life. To me, it just bothers me because I know at times life can get troubling, stressful, and even chaotic but it takes time to realize that the obstacles in life you face will only make you a better and stronger person. Instead of hating the world and those that live on it, let's take the time to actually step back and appreciate what you do have now. Along with that, take into account that hating a person or degrading them in hurtful ways will do nothing. It makes you no better person than him/her. It's hard to accept things how they are but that's a part of life and a step in maturing.

So instead of being fueled with hatred today, think how life might be different for you if you didn't focus all your energy on the negative. Bad things happen in our life but so do good things. Love a life with no hatred. Let's Erase the Hate.

The Ongoing Fight

I just don't understand. I don't understand how I will ever come to terms with my step dad. I'm trying to be so nice and I'm trying to keep up with my chores but he just always finds a way to revert back to his old ways and get mad at me. Like I don't even know what to say. He tells me that I'm saying "okay" but I never back it up with action. In reality though, I'm trying so hard to do everything. I'm tired of getting yelled at.

Just a few minutes ago he came into my room yelling at me and going off saying how he's losing faith in me and threatening with negative punishments so that I'll keep up with everything. He straight out told me "I don't give a fuck about your bullying movement." That for me made me lose all respect in him. Like I thought parents were supposed to be supportive. I just don't know.

He even pointed out that we do fight every week. Well, I don't retaliate or anything but he was pretty much saying that he gets mad at me for something every week. Basically he told me I'm selfish and whatever.

I just want this all to be over. I just want to graduate and move far away. I'm just tired of feeling on the verge of crying from this frustration. I just want to be free of it all.

Time to Come Back

As I have taken a really long break from my blog, I feel as though that it is time I start blogging again and start talking about what's going on in my life lately. It's time for the world to slowly start seeing who I really am and what I'm going through.