Reevaluating 31

Thoughts written down while spending my birthday in the hospital...

I am blessed, really blessed. It would be easy to look at the past year and only see the bizarre events of the last couple of months, but that would be shortsighted. There has been much more to my 31st year of life than a spider bite. It has been a year of reevaluating.

• It has been a year in which I had to say goodbye to my close friend and colleague, Stanley Wingard, as he moved away to seminary. That has challenged me to reevaluate the depth of my friendships with other men. 
• It has been a year in which I met Arnold and Martha, an elderly man and woman who are physically and relationally impoverished but rich in love. They challenged me to reevaluate my ideas of wealth and need.
• It has been a year in which I had the privilege to work alongside Keith Decker, a man who has devoted his life to serving the poor and hurting in his community. That experience has challenged me to reevaluate my concepts of passion and compassion.
• It has been a year in which my church family has become a true family to me. It has challenged me to reevaluate the roles of the church and how I am to be involved in the lives of others.
• It has been a year in which I've seen several friends and family members battle cancer. That has challenged me to reevaluate my definitions of trials and crisis. (Quite frankly, cancer makes my spider bite seem like "just a flesh wound.")

That is one of the exciting aspects of following Jesus. He is always challenging the way I view the world around me and conforming me to see life from His perspective. There is much more that could be said about those and other happenings, too much for this post. Also, I'd like to spend some time looking forward...

This will certainly be a life altering year up ahead. College ministry is always both challenging and rewarding (which is one of the many reasons I love it). I am looking forward to another great semester at Western full of challenges, victories, and seeing God moving in the lives of students. Also, I am on track to graduate from seminary in May (Lord willing). I have already begun looking for a job post graduation, and I could be just about anywhere this time next year, which is both exciting and scary. I'm not sure where the Lord will lead me next, but I do know that I can move forward with confidence because I know God is good, He has a plan for me, and He determines my steps.

In 31 years, He has never led me astray. Why should year 32 be any different?
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Side notes:

• Though this post will probably appear before it, I will be continuing to update my "Road to Recovery" post. I'm hoping I'm on the home stretch and won't have to update it much longer.
• I do hope to finish the 30 for 30 series. I had written nearly all of the entries, and then I lost the thumb drive containing them. However, I still want to honor those who have had such a big impact on my life.