FINDING JOY OUT OF THE ASHES

It’s amazing what God can do creating something glorious out of our ashes. I went through hell and back several years ago, losing my mom to brain cancer, then my dad to the same disease, and a month later, my grandpa to a freak accident. But, what I’ve learned out of these losses is that God is real. He is true. And His relationship with us is truly one-on-one. The only formula that dictates our relationship is the one that He designed. I also came to the humble realization that each person lives in his or her own struggles and battles; comparing or judging is no use. We must forgive and understand one another, in spite of ourselves and in spite of our struggles and battles—or we destroy a part of ourselves. I love people more fully now, I also love myself more wholly. My relationship with God is He and I. This year, I became the Dean of Students at my school. It was the hardest job I’ve ever had; however, when I slowly accepted where God had me, I started to find joy in the exhaustion. And now, God opened up a new door for me, my dream job. I’m helping develop and teach for a new program called Da Vinci RISE, which is helping foster kids and homeless kids to graduate high school. It’s hard for me to believe how fulfilled I am by believing and following the Lord, since just a few years ago, I was really hurting.