Life is Beautiful :)

Along the side of my blog, there is a listing of my most recent posts entitled "lately..." And the latest post is from February. Hmm...maybe it should be entitled, "Once upon when Sophie kept up on her blog she posted about..." :)

As I read my "latest" post, from the day I opened my birthday gifts, I am astonished at the grace of God in me writing that when I did. That VERY NIGHT, my life changed forever as my dad went into the hospital in the middle of the night and our family entered the darkest valley and trial we've ever experienced. And yet that night, I typed the words: I can grow through trials. I can sing in the rain, because I am not alone! I have a family and a God who love me and want the best for me!

God so graciously and faithfully brought us through that trial. He was still good in the darkest, hardest moments, and HE IS THAT SAME GOD today! I need Him just as much today as I did then, even though I don't have recognize that! He lovingly guides and directs my steps every day and His Word is my delight!

Since there are some of you who may not have heard from me since February (or before!), here are some highlights of what has gone on in my life since I dropped off the face of blogging world:)

I had the amazing opportunity to travel all summer with a singing group from my school, Faith Baptist Bible College! 

 I learned so much from my teammates as we traveled together for 11 weeks singing in churches, helping with conferences, encouraging the people of God, having fun together, and Lord willing, bringing glory to our God!

I am now a sophomore at FBBC and loving it! I am taking 17 academic credits, including Bible Doctrine, Music Theory, Office Procedures, and Women's Ministry Foundations. In addition, I am also involved in the choir and handbell ensemble.

Another thing that has been going on recently is...God brought a special young man into my life! The way the Lord has led in our lives is amazing and wonderful and I would love to write an entire post about sometime! But in a nutshell...Garth and I have many close mutual friends, and so have known each other casually for a few years. In January, the Lord brought the thought into his mind to pray about pursuing a relationship with me. So he talked with his parents and prayed for 4 months and then talked to my daddy in April about getting to know him better. While I traveled around the country singing and having no idea, my dear father and Garth talked on the phone, got together and PRAYED A LOT!
When I returned home in August, we went on a family vacation to Northern Minnesota. On the trip, Dad took me aside and told me about Garth's interest. I was amazed and agreed to pray about it. Since Garth had prayed about it so long and had peace about it, and my Daddy had vetted him out and approved of him, it didn't take me too long to agree as well. About a week later, Garth and his parents came over and ate supper with us. Two days later, we officially began courting on August 19th:)

It has been quite the lovely adventure! I am so blessed to be in an intentional, God-focused, parent-guided relationship with such a godly young man. He loves God with his whole heart and is an amazing example to me of what a consistent relationship with the Lord looks like.

I could say so much more...but that's a start:) God is good. All the time! I don't deserve the rich and manifold blessings He has given me, but I am so thankful. Life is beautiful. And I'm loving it!

reminders of truth

I don't often take the time anymore to think, to ponder, to reflect, to remember. And I really need to.

I was home all day today. What a delightful day! I had time to pray and read the word and sing to the Lord and do laundry and study and play the piano and have some friends over and drink tea and eat warm cookies and laugh a lot and...and...I evaluate my day based on what I DO.
If I am busy and productive, it's a good day, right? Then I look into my heart. Oh, Lord, what do I find there? So often I find mixed motives, selfish desires, and people-pleasing attitudes, which shames and frustrates me because I want to want to want to want to please my God in everything!

So today I looked at my heart through the lens of God's Word and reminded myself of the TRUTH regarding myself.

• My heart is totally depraved, incapable of pleasing God
• My heart is totally redeemed, destined for eternity with God
• My heart is being sanctified, and every day is a day in which I have the opportunity to become more like Christ
• My heart is prone to wander and leave the God I love, even though He gave me my definition of love
• My heart is treasure to be guarded and kept pure
• My heart is designed to worship. I am always either worshipping God or something else
• My heart can be deceived and blinded, therefore, I must be in the Word, which illuminates and reveals everything about me

I was home all day today. What a delightful day! I had time to DO many things that I love and I also had to time to THINK and to recommit my heart to God, because without Him, I am nothing. 

A Time of Transition

Hello friends!
I will refrain from apologizing about the length of time which has past since I last posted. This summer I was a cook at Iowa Regular Baptist Camp, as you may know if you've seen the "latest" post on my blog:) I spent eleven wonderful weeks learning and growing as I served the Lord.
There are so many things that I could share about my summer! But first I want to answer a popular question:

Q. If you were at camp all those weeks, when did you study for Bible Bee???
A. After much prayer, my parents and I decided that I would do Timothy Track this year. To be transparent with you all, this has been a matter of struggle for me. The Lord impressed on me that He wanted me to work full time at the camp that I've been working part time at for many years. I knew that this would mean some sort of sacrifice on my part, but I thought that perhaps I could still do National Track in the afternoons, or get up super early, or something! But the Lord made it clear that such a plan was not possible, while still giving my everything to the ministry at camp. Also, I start bible college on Monday, which would have made preparing for Nationals difficult if I had qualified. This was a hard decision to make. However, I trust that this is His will and am excited to have learned to 150 verses in Timothy Track! Even that was a challenge on a cook's schedule:)

So, that question answered, here's what my life is looking like right now. I am studying for Local Bible Bee (next Saturday!), unpacking from camp, and preparing for college, which begins in three days! 

I am thrilled to have the opportunity to live at home with my wonderful family and go to Faith Baptist Bible College in Ankeny, IA, where my dad works as a professor of music. I have lived around FBBC all my life, and it has always been my dream to be a student there. And now here I am.

I always thought I would feel older when I reached college age, but I don't:) As I buy a backpack, laptop, binders, and textbooks, I wonder where my life has gone!!!! What will my life be like in five years? Ten? The past few years of high school have flown by, and I know that life continues to pick up pace from here on out! 

One of the things that God taught me this summer is that my life is not about me. It's really not, folks. The way I use my time and invest my energy shows where my focus is. If my life is all about me, then I am serving the God of myself, and ultimately, sin and Satan. But if my life is all about bringing glory to God, then it should look differently!  My time should be spent in giving of myself to others, serving without selfish motivies. My witness should be bold and effective, since Christ is living in me and He is the desire of my heart!  My spirit should be joyful and sincere, because nothing I do is of my own strength, but because of His spirit who dwells in me!  My focus should be on eternity, because I have only approximately 80 years here, in which my flesh decays and I struggle with sin, but then! Oh the bliss! Freedom from death, from sorrow, from crying! Free from pain...the former things have passed away! 
Why would I want to live my life in such a way that I regret it for all eternity?

So my life is not my own. It belongs to my ONE MASTER, the Lord Jesus Christ. I am His slave. And it is a life full of abundant joy to be His slave!  The buck stops with Him, the power comes from Him, and the glory belongs to Him. I am just His messenger, His tool...and yet, I am His child, His friend. The thought takes my breath away.

That's what has been going on my life! Lord willing, from now on, I will be more consistent in posting, but if not...well, it's not about this blog either. As long as I'm bringing glory to Him with what I'm doing, I won't worry about it:)