December 1. Snow and Joy.

I woke up this morning, this beautiful morning, to overwhelming joy. It is December 1st. My month. Welcome, December, I'm so happy to see you!

As I sit here, Christmas fills my senses! My Christmas tree twinkles, the lights around my warm apartment blink down at me. The first snow of the year blows past my window with enthusiasm, as if it's as eager to welcome this month as I am! Ivory Christmas melodies from The Piano Guys wash over me out through iTunes. My apartment smells like cinnamon. I sip a hot mug of Christmas Blend coffee from Starbucks as I read the Good Book, reading about the Kings of Israel while thinking about the King of Kings. I'm seated in a hand-me-down easy chair, wrapped up in the quilt my mama made and mailed to me in Korea. I'm literally wrapped up in love. Also, I ate lasagna for breakfast. It's the little things, you know? 

This has without a doubt been the best year of my life. It has not been the easiest, but definitely the best. That's not an accident. It's been challenging; I've been pushed and stretched more than I expected. I have been hungry. I've been filled. God has been drawing me into deeper levels of intimacy with him and I can't get enough. I don't want it to stop.

Practically speaking, to get here, I had to open myself up to be corrected. That... was not comfortable. Hungry, I dove into the Bible and committed myself to reading all of it, even the parts that don't make me feel good, even the parts that I don't like, even the parts that are confusing, even the parts that are boring. I started to ask the Holy Spirit for wisdom in Leviticus. Why should I care about Old Testament sacrifice law? I started asking God to explain things that don't click with my post modern mindset. 1 Corinthians 14? What's that about? If this book, this Holy Book, is the everlasting Word of God... I want my life to line up with it. It can't be the other way around. It can't (and won't) change to match my life. God is God; I am not. Lo and behold... When you ask, He answers. He rewards those who diligently seek Him.

Probably the hardest thing I had to do (if I wanted to change, that is) was to allow people (people with godly authority) to speak into my life. I had to let go. Oh how I fought this! My flesh didn't want to give up my hard-fought control... and yet, I felt God calling me there, to that challenging place. Release... Servanthood... Submission... Words that don't sync well with a strong, independent millennial, to be sure.

With all the challenges, I also started reading out His promises. I started agreeing with Him. I asked Him to teach me more about prayer. I read about who God says I am and started speaking those truths over my life.  Life. Changing. 

There have been downs, but there have been SO. MANY. UPS.
So, it might have been hard;
It was worth it.


Oh 2014. The best year of my life, and WE STILL HAVE ONE MONTH YET! One more month, and IT'S MY FAVORITE! December 2014, I expect great things! December, you are full of Birthday and Christmas goodness! The world celebrates Jesus' birthday, and I celebrate with Jesus all month long!

Can I share again the fact that IT'S SNOWING OUTSIDE Y'ALL! The whole time I've been typing out these thoughts, I've been looking up to see fluffy white puffs drift past, landing on the bars of my flower box on my window, swirling and flying! IT IS DECEMBER! IT IS SNOWING! I LOVE EVERYTHING! Thank you, Father!

L'Chaim!