Oh Happy Day!

This is, indeed, the day that the Lord has made!! The Lord has continued to pour out His blessings on me despite my tendency to push time with him aside when things get crazy (i.e. an organic test is in 3 days). This entire weekend, though it was spent studying, was one big joy after another because my joy is not in what I am able to do or not do because of schoolwork, but rather in the Lord. Today, has been a sort-of renewed promise to me from the Lord that He is my joy and my strength and that my purpose on this Earth is not to be the perfect student, then PA, then wife and mother. But rather to glorify Him in trying my hardest whether I am at the bottom or top of the class, whether or not I get into grad school, and whether or not I get married and have kids. Oh, how exciting it is to be in the palm of His hand. My cup is indeed overflowing

What a joy it is to be carrying out the Lord's will for my life!!!!

Psalm 23:5 "You prepare a table before me in the presence of my enemies. You anoint my head with oil; my cup overflows."

P.S. According to my Christmas countdown, there are only 38 days until Santa rolls in. Don't you love Christmas? It is such a time for traditions and family and friends and joy and laughter and catching up. But most of all, I love that it is a chance to come together and reflect on an entire year of growth in the Lord and on His many blessings, especially the gift of Jesus.

I have good news and bad news

Bad news: Staph isn't gone yet. I went back to the doctor today and he took me off one antibiotic, put me on a different one, and gave me a prescription for a whole 'nother round of doxicycline. There is a new spot over my eye that hurts like hang right now.

Good news: The roomies and I are decorating for Christmas on Monday night and I CANNOT wait. We are getting a REAL tree, we are putting up lights, wreaths, the WHOLE shebang. While decorating, we'll drink hot chocolate and eat popcorn!!
Also, I got to talk to a special person today and I am SO excited about pursuing and renewing a relationship with them and their family.

TGIF to all. . . and to all a good night (woo hoo Christmas reference!)

Why face, Why?!?!

I think my face may very well hate me. Either I am going through the worst break out of my life and I have a spot of staph on my nose, OR I have staph ALL over my face. I am thinking it is the latter and hoping for my health's sake that it is the first one, but for my humility's sake I want it to be the second one so that when I go into the Doctor tomorrow he doesn't think I am crazy for not being able to tell if I am breaking out like normal. Until then, I look like a pre-pubescent middle school girl who doesn't know how to wash her face.

Staph.

I have a staph infection. On my nose. It's no fun. Saturday I woke up with a painful nose and what I thought might be a really, really bad pimple. But it hurt so bad I went to the urgent care place and (after waiting almost 2 hours) the doctor comes in, tells me I have staph, gives me a prescription for 2 VERY HIGH-POWERED antibiotics and then is like, well, you know what, since you've had a cold recently, let me give you another HIGH-POWERED antibiotic through an IV. Meanwhile, I should already be at the tailgate now. Fortunately, Bryan is with me as I get this and they culture the spot on my nose to send it to the lab and check to make sure it is not MRSA. So, it's finally done and I go straight to tailgating and the game and I have to go back tomorrow to re-check.

OH, Happy Day!!!

So many happy happy things happened today!!!
1. I studied Organic with Bryan and ACTUALLY GOT IT!!
2. I went to church and it was VERY good!
3. I set up my schedule for next semester and that never fails to excite me!
4. I realized that I will be half way through with my master's when I am at the legal drinking age!
5. This one is not so happy but, it shows wisdom: M found my first gray hair while we were in Wal-Mart. I can only be happy about this because earlier in the day M had found her first, too!
6. I realized that there are only 4 Organic labs left in the semester--and that INCLUDES tomorrow's!!
7. I might get to go to MUSC on the 12th and talk to the head of the PA program there!!!!
8. There are only 22 days of classes left. . . that is just 3 weeks total, People!!!!!
9. I only have 20 major assignments left in the semester. . . INCLUDING exams!!

Life is Good.

Ok, ok. . .

I have decided to not completely fast from facebook. I will limit myself to 15 minutes a day. I quickly realized, with the help of my roommates, that too many people do event invites and important messages on fb. So, I checked it, and GUESS WHAT?!?! TWO messages that I am so relived I didn't miss!!

So maybe fb is a little practical in some way.

Fasting.

No, no. Not from food. FROM FACEBOOK!!

I have decided, as of around 3 this afternoon, that I am not getting on the good ole fb until the grand ole end of the semester! woo hoo!! I decided that it was a big time-sucker and that it was becoming an area of sin for me because I lost all self control with the amount of time I was spending on it. I would fall into bed at night and fall asleep before my head even hit the pillow and then sleep through 2 or 3 snoozes to the point of missing my time for God. After convincing myself that I worked so hard all day every day, I quickly realized that at least 30 minutes to an hour of every day was spent on that darn thing. Therefore, I need to make a punishment for myself if I do get on fb between now and December 10th . . . what should it be?

Good news for y'all (if there is anyone out there reading this!!): I will probably be updating the good ole blog more often. woo hoo!!

Honestly, I feel a big relief at not having to fb it for the next few months. But we shall see if I make it!

Personality.

I just stopped studying Organic for a while and took a personality test.

The results I got said that I need to be "safe and secure to be happy."

That. Is. SO. Right. Crazy.

I am the type that when I hurt, I yell. When I am scared, I throw a fit. When I feel insecure in my surroundings, I snap shut like a clam.

I have found that I am most certainly an introvert but I vocalize all my thoughts and opinions to someone as a sounding board. I just need to talk through issues and daily life. And yet I am an introvert. Weird, right? There is no way on Earth I could live without talking to people ever again, but there is no way on this Earth that I could survive a lifetime without at least 3 hours of on-my-own time/day. And I'm not talking sleeping. It's like I have to organize my crazy thoughts so that they can be verbalized, then verbalize them so that they can be organized in a totally different way and then think about the new organization and come to a conclusion.

To bed to sleep on that.

Impatience. . .It's definitely not a virtue!

Alright, so on Friday I find out if I got accepted into the Health Science major. . .and I am SO ready. Just to let y'all know, I applied for this in APRIL! So about 6 months this has been in the works now. If I get in it means: I get to graduate in May of 2011, I don't have to take Calculus (or any more math for that matter!), If I continue on to med school I will be a year younger when I finish all my schooling, and I will be taking classes that I enjoy a WHOLE lot more. If I get accepted I will further my feelings that the Lord is calling me into medicine, too. However, the Lord may have another plan in mind for me that is so much better, even though I can't see it now. So, I am trying to keep my hopes and expectations down for now, though that is so hard, and I am praying for His will to be done and not my own!! So keep praying if you are reading this!

Bouquets of Sharpened Pencils.

"Don't you love New York in the fall? It makes me wanna buy school supplies. I would send you a bouquet of newly sharpened pencils if I knew your name and address. On the other hand, this not knowing has its charms."

Favorite quote from favorite scene of favorite movie. Hands down.

I love fall. We're going apple-picking on Sunday and I CANNOT wait. Then, fall break next weekend.

Life is extremely good and God's creation is even better.

Weary.

Today was a great day. . . and yet tonight my soul feels weary. Perhaps it's because I have not talked to anyone in my family or because I am physically exhausted or because I know that tomorrow I have to go to the library and study organic or because I realized tonight that it is highly likely that I will go through college dateless or because I just want to sit and soak in Jesus without my stupid sin getting in the way or because I really just want bed now but I need to take a shower first. Whatever it may be, I am down. I will be up again tomorrow I am sure. I am praying that I have a new task at the Free Medical Clinic (perhaps a little more patient interaction?). I am praying that I have good conversation with certain people. I am praying that I sleep hard and fast. I am praying that the Lord would prepare my brain to focus and understand the organic material that I need to study, and also that I could retain it well, too. I am praying that the hours in the library will fly by. I am praying that mom and dad have landed safely in San Fran. I am praying that my heart will be light tomorrow. I am so thankful that I can bear my burdens to the Lord and he is open-armed, ready to accept me no matter how I feel. I am thankful too that this morning I read that my standing in God's sight is not measured by how I feel throughout the day but rather how He sees me in light of the atonement His perfect son made on the cross for my sin.

Good Night to all!

Psalm 121:3-4 "He will not let your foot slip--he who watches over you will not slumber; indeed, he who watches over Israel will neither slumber nor sleep."

Call Me.

For what seems like years now I have been asking the Lord for a call to something. Anything!! I want to do His will so badly and I don't care what. But it is the planner in me that just wanted to know. I do projects this way. I don't care how well they're done, just so long as they are checked off of MY list. Well, the Lord has other ideas in mind. He is taking away my Type A tendencies and teaching me that I cannot always plan. So, in the recent weeks I feel that I have been praying about this all the time, when I know that I sinfully, have prayed way too little and followed my own heart way too much. However, I am feeling that He has slowly been opening the doors, inch by inch to medicine. I know that at any moment He can change my path and slam some doors in my face which is keeping me on my knees ALL THE TIME!! I pray that my whole life and career will serve to glorify the Lord and further His kingdom. I know that if the Lord is calling me to medicine He will give me strength to get through med school and the opportunity to see Him perform many a miracle!

Jeremiah 29:11 "For I know the plans I have for you," declares the Lord, "Plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you a hope and a future."

I guess we're at that age. . . But HOW?!?!?!

OH MY STARS!!! I just found out that one of the girls I grew up with is ENGAGED!!!!! She's my age! I think it is absolutely thrilling and I am SO excited for them. But it got me thinking. . . I am old enough to get married now! That's just flat out weird to me! I feel like a 5 year old sometimes walking around pretending to be something I'm not when I am just going to classes! Part of me is jumping out of my skin excited and anxious at the thought and part of me just wants to sob! I'm not a kid anymore, I pay bills and credit card balances, those things will never go away. . . I will never get the carefreeness (I know, it's not a word) of life as a child back.
I feel like time is slipping by so fast and I don't want to go study and I don't want to pay bills. I just want to focus on my relationships with people and bask in the glow of the Lord's creation. But. . . He has called me to be a student and He has me where I am for a reason that will one day be revealed. I do pray for peace and patience every day these days. It's so hard for me to not be able to plan, and the Lord knows that, and I suppose that is why He is making me put all my faith in Him and all my eggs in His basket. I know that He will never drop them though, what a comfort.

Horizons. . .

So today was RUF Tuesday!! Which I love! I sat down. A boy sat next to me. He was cute. I introduced myself. Worship began. His girlfriend comes and sits next to him. Welcome to my life.

After the above played out, it hit me. The Lord doesn't want me to focus on finding a soulmate right now, no matter how much I say the relationship would be focused on the Lord, it would not be. It would be a selfish relationship because that is what I want. Now. Then Stephen began his lesson and he talked about the person you marry being your best friend and you having the felos love which is two people standing side by side looking and working toward the same horizon, which should be Jesus. And I realized the Lord is calling me to walk toward Him alone right now. He wants me to focus on him, even though I feel that the Lord will one day call me to be a best friend to a guy and to continue walking forward with him, he hasn't yet and I do not need to push that. It is better to be alone than without God.

So as I sit here, the horizon over Tiger Town is dark, but my horizon is very very brilliantly bright!

If I only had a . . .

Oh what fun I am having creating inside jokes with my roomies and adding to the quote wall ALL the time!! The other day a certain girl said something supremely air-heady and Julia tried to text "If I only had a brain" to me and Laura and T9 isn't the authority on texting after all, so we received messages that said, "If I only had a asian" . . . we died laughing needless to say. And it was a serious movie at a serious part and our movie-watching friends were not thrilled with us.

It's About Pride!

Oh what a rush to step onto the library bridge and see a sea of orange!!! Even my old man organic professor had on black converses, these jean looking trousers, and a white short sleeve button down with an orange tee over it. I think that it made my day!!! Other than that though it was a rather dreary day in Tiger Town. I came home home, fell asleep on the couch, and Laura and I are vegging now. We shall see what tonight will bring!

Stride. . .

I feel like I have hit my stride on this whole college thing. I am learning to balance my spiritual life, with my academic life, with my social life, with my love. . . OK, let's not get too carried away. I am so happy where I am and I am learning that the place of duty is most definitely the place of blessing.
Today I signed up for volunteering at the Anderson Free Medical Clinic, went to my first epidemiology class (and liked it a lot), studied organic (yes, I'm a dork, but I like it a lot too!), celebrated Julia's belated birthday with the rest of the girls of 731, watched a movie, started a blog (woot woot), outwitted the Clemson parking services by parking in a timed spot for an hour and a half instead of the hour I paid for, and realized that a week from tomorrow is the First Friday parade and the start of a football weekend!!!!!!
Life is good and this semester is SO much better than last!! Thank Heavens, that I have finally hit my stride!!!