I think way to much but on occasion this comes in handy. Christmas season makes me think about so much, not about gift shopping or any of the festivities themselves honestly, it makes me think about life in general. Aspects of life that we often take for granted, don't appreciate enough or maybe don't even realize. Christmas is all about the birth of Jesus, this being said its also about family and not just those blood related to us but our family through Christ, the friends he's blessed us with that become family. If your a teenager like me then lets face it, about 80% of the time , your family annoys you completely out of your mind. But then there's moments like this that I realize that despite all the annoyance , I'm so lucky to have them. Families and especially parents have an odd way of showing they care... typically through teasing. We tease each other though because we love each other. My parents get on my nerves occasionally being that they are "strict". Then i look back and remember all the opportunities my parents have provided me with and everything I've learned thanks to their guidance, all the bad situations I've avoided thanks to their council. I'm 15 and i have already learned the basics to managing and running a business, even taken over on occasion during my parents absence. I know the value of work and the rewarding feeling of accomplishment. I've seen struggles and I've seen breakthroughs, making it clear to me my goals and wants in life. I've gained and grown in my Cristian values and learned not to cave under pressure. I've learned what love is and what it looks like by the example they have shown me. I've learned what it means to be a role model for younger youth and most importantly an older sister. I've learned to fight for what you believe is right and not to be afraid to stand up for it. I've learned pain but I've also learned how to overcome it and that we are all stronger when we can lean on one another. I've learned the importance of friendship, honesty and upholding your integrity. I've learned things that no class could ever teach and I've learned that being different is not only okay but something we should all embrace and strive for. You see our families, and our ways of upbringing, they shape us into who we are and who we will become. Even those out there that didn't grow up in the best environment, that taught you lessons you needed to learn and prepared you for your future. So on behalf of all of us teenagers out there, thank you Mom, Dad, Sister , Brother, Grandma, Grandpa, Auntie, Uncle, Cousin, and friends that have shaped us into who we are and who we will one day become.
A thought came to me today as I stumbled upon some inspirational posts. Why are we often so eager to escape our troubling circumstances. We get trapped in the fire and get so focused on getting out that perhaps we miss the most important question of all, what refining needs to be completed in the fire? Just as a welder uses the fire to shape and refine metal, so God uses our circumstances, "fires" to shape and refine us. If he simply swooped in and saved the day, we would lack the knowledge he hopes us to gain, we wouldn't grow in character or wisdom. In the fire we think he abandom us, left us to our own devices, but in reality he is more present in the fire even then in the calm. It's when we feel abandoned that he's calling to us the loudest, beckoning us to just open our ears to listen to his voice. Take the fires in stride, don't immediately reach for the extinguisher. Allow the flames to surround you with the confident knowledge that the one whom the...
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