Freshman Reflection.

Last night I got to see some of the wonderful people I was friends with in high school, and ah it was just great. Then I went to Starbucks with three of my closest friends just to catch up and talk for a little bit. We started looking back on our freshman year and what all we learned, and I came to a great realization.

Freshman year wasn’t exactly the easiest thing in the world for me. It was a tough transition, and I felt uncomfortable in my surroundings more than I thought I would. I hadn’t realized just how comfortable I had been with my life in high school until I was taken out of it and thrown into a whole new environment. I learned to be a lot more self-sufficient, not just by doing my own laundry and being responsible for my academics, but in terms of my social life and especially with my relationship with God. No longer could I rely on a Sunday church service on and some great small groups throughout the week to keep my fire for God burning strong. I had to do my own devotions and get in the Word on my own to really feel God and see Him working in my life. It was something I wasn’t really used to, and an area of my faith that really required some development.

As I look back over my year, I certainly have a lot to reflect on. I think back to all the times I felt uncomfortable and alone, and the ways God helped me through that. I think to the times that I felt like I was really starting to make friends, and how I was so thankful to the Lord for providing that. I think to when I felt so overwhelmed with my projects that it seemed impossible for me to even stay alive until the weekend, and the way God provided strength and perseverance in those moments. Basically, I can see God in everything.

I learned a lot this year, and some of it was lessons I didn’t really want to learn. I didn’t want to learn what it felt like to be alone, and it wasn’t exactly fun learning how to try and make the strong friendships that I missed so much from high school. I mean I definitely still have those friendships and they are just as strong as before, but I couldn’t just rely on my friends that were hundreds of miles away. I learned that I just had to open up to the people around me and let them in, and make new friends where I was at. This year was a growing experience, and I’m still trying to reflect on it all.

However, as I look back over all the hardships and lessons I learned this year, I’m happy it all happened. Now I know that sounds crazy, and six months ago I'm not sure I would have even slightly believed that I would be saying that one day. I am simply so, so thankful that God used those situations to teach me things. My relationship with God grew more over the past year than I ever could have imagined, and for that I am so thankful. All those times that I was sad and frustrated made me cry out to Him, and through those moments He slowly became all I needed in life. I no longer was reliant on all the comfortable things I had at home, for a time it was just me and God.

I don’t want it to sound like I was an anti-social hermit or anything this past school year, because that wasn’t it. I simply had to adjust and get used to not having my friends from home around me, and I had to learn to make new friends. It’s so funny because I never really thought that would be something I learned in college because I never really struggled with it before. But God works in interesting ways, and He certainly used my situation to teach me. And I’m so thankful He did, because I learned more about Him than I could have possibly imagined.