There is no true way to describe how my heart feels when my car turns onto the road towards home and I can see the lights of Gem in the distance, with the stars overhead and my favorite music playing softly in the background. I feel as though the armor I have wrapped around myself can finally come off for a little while because I am safe at home and this is the one place where I can truly be loved. It is the only place I feel loved...and that breaks my heart, just as the loneliness that has been lurking deep in my heart is breaking me. I have been searching for a home away from the caring arms of my family, yet I cannot seem to find it anywhere. At the same time that I have been searching for this home, I have been seeking to be autonomous (a fact that a few friends have laughed at). I have had this dream/lie inside for years that, if I can just stop being so dependent on other people for anything, then I will be free from pain. I have found the opposite to be true. I am not saying this quest for autonomity is right or good, it is just there. I have long felt that needing people is a flaw (in myself only) because I have trouble seeing that anyone could need me. And if I am not needed, then I should not need others. Did that make any sense? And have I mentioned that I fight with my pride every day and my pride often wins?
There are many reasons for me having withdrawn from people: mistrust, inability to trust, insecurities, bitterness, fears, etc. None of them are very good, but I have not allowed myself to actually explore the answers and root out the problems. Instead I have let them compound and, thus, grow in their intesity. Also, I have not considered whether any of them are truly valid reasons and simply disregarded them, and myself by extension, as being foolish. Yet another fault.
This is not to say that everyday is a terrible, horrible, no-good, very bad day. I love my job, I have a few supportive friends around me, the love of my family, and God has proven His faithfulness, just as He told me He would. I tend to discount the large changes occurring in my life and expect myself to have perfect composure and execution in every task presented in life. I believe some people would call that "undue pressure and stress"...or something like that. If I were perfect, I wouldn't need grace...instead, I am learning how desperately I need it.
Another thing I have been learning is that God is unchanging. Period. And that is a good thing. If God was as "changing" as I am, then the world would be dropped on its head daily because He would have just given up and walked away. As I dig deeper into my heart to root out the sin, I find more sin. And as I dig deeper into God, I find more grace. Always.
Anyways...that was supposed to be much more eloquent then it was. I wrote it out in my head on my way home from Edmonton but I tend to forget what I write when large birds fly out of the ditch and hit my vehicle. Also, this is why I try not to write after midnight.
Elisa.
Saturday, September 3, 2011
Friday, April 15, 2011
where do we go from here?
Well, it seems like every April brings about changes in my life. I remember asking my mom at the end of last April why I was so tired and her answer being, "Oh, I don't know. You finished your first year of university, had your heart broken, moved home, and now you have to find a job. You tell me why you're tired." April 2010 will go down in history - my personal history, that is - as the most eventful to date. Yet it also sparked a deeper relationship with God and a reliance on Him that I had never before possessed. In many ways I feel as though I have lost that same desperate pursuit, but I recognized last night while talking with a friend that I am not going to be pursuing God in the same way now as I was last year. My life has gone from one of brokenness to one of great joy, blessing, excitement, and hope! I don't have to pursue God for healing from a broken heart any more...now I need to learn how to dwell in the blessings that He has given me and not just use them for myself.
It is hard to know what to do with the path that God has laid (lain?) before me. The past month has been an adventure of transition for me, physically and spiritually. I will be finishing my practicum next week and then starting my career (that's a daunting word). I am moving tomorrow into my first ever apartment (so excited!) and I will be living alone. I really feel a sense of God leading me to a place of solitude where I can learn who I truly am in Christ. I have been living up to the expectations of others and allowing myself to be molded into the image of what other people want, but I find myself exhausted trying to be someone who I am not. But I don't know who I am anymore because I have been going nonstop for the past month. I feel as though God is bringing me through this season of transition to show me what He wants for my life and to restore or replace the dreams that I have held or continue to hold. As cliche as this sounds, I need to learn how to be okay with being Elisa.
However, I know that my story is only one part of a much larger story and so I don't want to shut myself out from the larger story. I am asking God to renew my vision of the larger picture because I have often lost sight of eternity in the face of a deadline I face at work or the little details of moving apartments.
Two verses have been coming to mind often lately:
"Be still and know that I am God."
- Psalm 46:10
"'Therefore I am now going to allure her;
I will lead her into the desert and speak tenderly to her.
There I will give her back her vineyards,
and will make the Valley of Achor a door of hope.
The she will sing as in the days of her youth,
as in the day she came up out of Egypt.
'In that day', declares the Lord,
'you will call me 'my husband';
you will no longer call me 'my master.'...
I will betroth you to me forever;
I will betroth you in righteousness and justice,
in love and compassion.
I will betroth you in faithfulness,
and you will acknowledge the Lord.'"
- Hosea 2:14-16, 19-20
And one more, actually...
"Sow for yourselves righteousness,
reap the fruit of unfailing love,
and break up your unplowed ground;
for it is time to seek the Lord,
until he comes and showers righteousness on you."
-Hosea 10:12
The metaphors of deserts, land, and the ever-blooming tree mentioned in Revelation have really been on my heart and mind lately. I am not sure if I am in the desert or not because I am still learning but I am not learning as much as I would like. I have been seeking other things and desiring other things, but I want to come back home now. Back home to Christ's arms so I can dwell safely in the arms of my Love, knowing that I am His Beloved.
Well, that's a long enough post for now. Yikes. I am nervous for the future because I cannot see my way forward, yet I am also excited because I know that God has promised to "give me every place I set my foot" (Joshua 1:3). He is faithful and I pray that He is growing faithfulness in me.
-Elisa.
It is hard to know what to do with the path that God has laid (lain?) before me. The past month has been an adventure of transition for me, physically and spiritually. I will be finishing my practicum next week and then starting my career (that's a daunting word). I am moving tomorrow into my first ever apartment (so excited!) and I will be living alone. I really feel a sense of God leading me to a place of solitude where I can learn who I truly am in Christ. I have been living up to the expectations of others and allowing myself to be molded into the image of what other people want, but I find myself exhausted trying to be someone who I am not. But I don't know who I am anymore because I have been going nonstop for the past month. I feel as though God is bringing me through this season of transition to show me what He wants for my life and to restore or replace the dreams that I have held or continue to hold. As cliche as this sounds, I need to learn how to be okay with being Elisa.
However, I know that my story is only one part of a much larger story and so I don't want to shut myself out from the larger story. I am asking God to renew my vision of the larger picture because I have often lost sight of eternity in the face of a deadline I face at work or the little details of moving apartments.
Two verses have been coming to mind often lately:
"Be still and know that I am God."
- Psalm 46:10
"'Therefore I am now going to allure her;
I will lead her into the desert and speak tenderly to her.
There I will give her back her vineyards,
and will make the Valley of Achor a door of hope.
The she will sing as in the days of her youth,
as in the day she came up out of Egypt.
'In that day', declares the Lord,
'you will call me 'my husband';
you will no longer call me 'my master.'...
I will betroth you to me forever;
I will betroth you in righteousness and justice,
in love and compassion.
I will betroth you in faithfulness,
and you will acknowledge the Lord.'"
- Hosea 2:14-16, 19-20
And one more, actually...
"Sow for yourselves righteousness,
reap the fruit of unfailing love,
and break up your unplowed ground;
for it is time to seek the Lord,
until he comes and showers righteousness on you."
-Hosea 10:12
The metaphors of deserts, land, and the ever-blooming tree mentioned in Revelation have really been on my heart and mind lately. I am not sure if I am in the desert or not because I am still learning but I am not learning as much as I would like. I have been seeking other things and desiring other things, but I want to come back home now. Back home to Christ's arms so I can dwell safely in the arms of my Love, knowing that I am His Beloved.
Well, that's a long enough post for now. Yikes. I am nervous for the future because I cannot see my way forward, yet I am also excited because I know that God has promised to "give me every place I set my foot" (Joshua 1:3). He is faithful and I pray that He is growing faithfulness in me.
-Elisa.
Wednesday, March 16, 2011
the adventure of finding home
Well, I need to be out of Residence by April 26 so I have been looking high and low for a place to call "home" for the next year of my life. Because I don't know what my exact income is going to be each month, I have been budgeting on the conservative side because I would rather be surprised to find that I have more income than I believe than side-swiped by making less than I am spending on rent, groceries, car insurance, etc. It has bee interesting to discover what $589/month will get someone and what $900+ will bring. The range is huge!
For example, the place that I "toured" this morning was $589/month with heat, water, and cable included in rent. Parking was an additional $55/month (that's ridiculously steep for the parking lot that they offer) and then electricity was sub-metered. So that sounds like a decent deal, right? I think that I have a fairly open mind about where I could potentially live but I was scared as soon as I walked into this building. As a single, young woman I cannot imagine living in a place like that. I felt like I was in the dodgiest area of Berlin in the middle of a Jason Bourne movie, except it wasn't the cool fight scene part but the part where he wanders through the dark alleys and there are rats scurrying about underfoot.
With all that being said, I cannot help but be thankful that God has blessed me with enough that I don't have to live there. I have the choice of where I can live and, if it came down to it, I am sure that my parents would let me move back home before they would let me live there. I don't know the stories of the people who live in that apartment building and maybe that truly does feel like home to them. I feel as though I have come across condescendingly and that was not my intent. This morning made me thankful. I have more than enough and not because of my own efforts but because God, for some unknown reason, saw fit to bless me with being raised in a family that never wanted for anything.
So what have I done with those blessings in reaching out to those who do want for the things that I take for granted? Often when I think of blessing, I am reminded of a picture that my friend drew while I was at Prairie. Amy's drawing was of a pitcher that had water flowing into it from above, symbolizing the blessing that God pours into our life. But the pitcher was also overflowing and splashing on the ground all around it, which symbolized how we should receive blessing and then let it flood out to those around us. So how do I bless people with the abundance that I have? Can I bless people if I am not dwelling in the blessing of God?
Funny how a simple apartment tour can bring up so many questions in my heart.
-Elisa.
For example, the place that I "toured" this morning was $589/month with heat, water, and cable included in rent. Parking was an additional $55/month (that's ridiculously steep for the parking lot that they offer) and then electricity was sub-metered. So that sounds like a decent deal, right? I think that I have a fairly open mind about where I could potentially live but I was scared as soon as I walked into this building. As a single, young woman I cannot imagine living in a place like that. I felt like I was in the dodgiest area of Berlin in the middle of a Jason Bourne movie, except it wasn't the cool fight scene part but the part where he wanders through the dark alleys and there are rats scurrying about underfoot.
With all that being said, I cannot help but be thankful that God has blessed me with enough that I don't have to live there. I have the choice of where I can live and, if it came down to it, I am sure that my parents would let me move back home before they would let me live there. I don't know the stories of the people who live in that apartment building and maybe that truly does feel like home to them. I feel as though I have come across condescendingly and that was not my intent. This morning made me thankful. I have more than enough and not because of my own efforts but because God, for some unknown reason, saw fit to bless me with being raised in a family that never wanted for anything.
So what have I done with those blessings in reaching out to those who do want for the things that I take for granted? Often when I think of blessing, I am reminded of a picture that my friend drew while I was at Prairie. Amy's drawing was of a pitcher that had water flowing into it from above, symbolizing the blessing that God pours into our life. But the pitcher was also overflowing and splashing on the ground all around it, which symbolized how we should receive blessing and then let it flood out to those around us. So how do I bless people with the abundance that I have? Can I bless people if I am not dwelling in the blessing of God?
Funny how a simple apartment tour can bring up so many questions in my heart.
-Elisa.
Wednesday, February 16, 2011
Jon Thurlow - Fountains
Cast all your cares on Me
'cause I care for you, I care for you
Cast all your cares on Me
'cause I care for you, I care for you
'Cause all your fountains are in Me
and I have everything you need
so just keep coming back to Me
And those who call upon My Name,
they will not be put to shame
just keep coming back to Me
So come to Me if you're weary
and I'll give you rest, I'll give you rest
My yoke is so easy
and My burden is less, My burden is less
And all your fountains are in Me
and I have everything you need
Just keep coming back to Me
And those who call upon My Name,
they will not be put to shame
so just keep coming back to Me (x4)
Keep coming back to Me,
so just keep coming back to Me
Just keeping coming back to Me
Remember that I am a rewarder of those who seek Me
I am a rewarder of those who seek Me
Keep coming back to Me,
keep coming back to Me,
keep coming back to Me
Sunday, February 13, 2011
Restoration
I wrote this post out in my journal a few nights back and finally am sitting down to put it on here.
"If through a broken heart God can bring His purposes to pass in the world, then thank Him for breaking your heart." - Oswald Chambers, My Utmost for His Highest
I don't claim to know every kind of heartbreak. I have lost friends to cancer and I have lost friends to car accidents. The pain for each was different; the heartbreak was different. I have watched friends have their family members die slow deaths to cancer or be woken in the early hours of the morning to an unexpected knock on the door bringing news of a fatal car accident. In each situation the heartbreak that I felt for my friends was different. I have seen lives and families torn apart by divorce but I don't claim to know that sort of heartbreak. I have watched friends tumble down the abyss towards suicide - that heartbreak I know. I have seen young, feminine hearts crushed by undeserving boys who promised beautiful things and then delivered only tears. That pain, I know.
I have never lost a spouse to death or divorce. I have never lost a child, sibling, or parent. Yet, the loss and the heartbreak that I suffered rocked the very foundations of my world and caused me to question my existence and purpose. So how much more would these other heartbreaks shatter one's heart, dreams and possibly, beliefs? I know that a break up between a boyfriend and girlfriend resides on the lower end of the proverbial pain spectrum and that hope is renewed differently than when a death occurs. However, it is still a loss of sorts and it hurts...sometimes agonizingly.
All of this to simply say, someday you will give thanks again. Maybe you'll never give thanks for the loss itself, but instead for the various blessings that may come from such agony. Yes, there are blessings amid agony. Jesus endured such physical and emotional agony on the cross to secure our salvation and banish death forever! If salvation is not a blessing then nothing is!
God works all things for the good of those who love Him. What good is He working in your heart and life? Maybe He's renewed your hope for the future and returned dreams to your heart that you long ago cast away. Maybe He has brought new friends into your life who uplift you and are there when you need someone to lean on. Maybe God has strengthed your remaining family and given you the closeness that you've always desired. And, most of all, maybe God's revealed more of His heart and His character to you through the months of agony. Maybe you have a deeper understanding of His love, grace, compassion, plan, purpose, and rest than ever before. That is the greatest blessing.
It has taken me nearly ten months to reconcile with God and be able to genuinely thank Him for allowing my heart to be broken. I am still broken and raw in areas, but my heart is stronger now through His restoration and I am no longer chained by the label of "broken". I have found that this restoration can only come when I am totally honest with God, even if that means that I am screaming at Him. I have found that He can take even my harshest words graciously and He forgives readily when I calm down and repent. My Jesus loves unconditionally and unreservedly.
So where is your heart? If you're in the dark night of the soul and doubting His existence, He is there. If you see the light growing brighter but the dark regularly swoops in to snatch at your hope, He is there. He is by your side as you lie on the floor sobbing. He is there when you find you have nowhere to turn but to Him, however begrudgingly you may go into His arms. He is there when you seek healing or distraction in momentary pleasures. And He is also there on the good days when you can smile at old memories with fondness instead of anger. He is there to the very end and beyond, when you appear before Him as His pure, righteous bride and He says, "Well done, my good and faithful servant."
Hold onto Him and hold onto hope, beloved. He will heal you.
"Let us hold unswervingly to the hope we profess, for He who promised is faithful." - Hebrews 10:23
-Elisa.
"If through a broken heart God can bring His purposes to pass in the world, then thank Him for breaking your heart." - Oswald Chambers, My Utmost for His Highest
I don't claim to know every kind of heartbreak. I have lost friends to cancer and I have lost friends to car accidents. The pain for each was different; the heartbreak was different. I have watched friends have their family members die slow deaths to cancer or be woken in the early hours of the morning to an unexpected knock on the door bringing news of a fatal car accident. In each situation the heartbreak that I felt for my friends was different. I have seen lives and families torn apart by divorce but I don't claim to know that sort of heartbreak. I have watched friends tumble down the abyss towards suicide - that heartbreak I know. I have seen young, feminine hearts crushed by undeserving boys who promised beautiful things and then delivered only tears. That pain, I know.
I have never lost a spouse to death or divorce. I have never lost a child, sibling, or parent. Yet, the loss and the heartbreak that I suffered rocked the very foundations of my world and caused me to question my existence and purpose. So how much more would these other heartbreaks shatter one's heart, dreams and possibly, beliefs? I know that a break up between a boyfriend and girlfriend resides on the lower end of the proverbial pain spectrum and that hope is renewed differently than when a death occurs. However, it is still a loss of sorts and it hurts...sometimes agonizingly.
All of this to simply say, someday you will give thanks again. Maybe you'll never give thanks for the loss itself, but instead for the various blessings that may come from such agony. Yes, there are blessings amid agony. Jesus endured such physical and emotional agony on the cross to secure our salvation and banish death forever! If salvation is not a blessing then nothing is!
God works all things for the good of those who love Him. What good is He working in your heart and life? Maybe He's renewed your hope for the future and returned dreams to your heart that you long ago cast away. Maybe He has brought new friends into your life who uplift you and are there when you need someone to lean on. Maybe God has strengthed your remaining family and given you the closeness that you've always desired. And, most of all, maybe God's revealed more of His heart and His character to you through the months of agony. Maybe you have a deeper understanding of His love, grace, compassion, plan, purpose, and rest than ever before. That is the greatest blessing.
It has taken me nearly ten months to reconcile with God and be able to genuinely thank Him for allowing my heart to be broken. I am still broken and raw in areas, but my heart is stronger now through His restoration and I am no longer chained by the label of "broken". I have found that this restoration can only come when I am totally honest with God, even if that means that I am screaming at Him. I have found that He can take even my harshest words graciously and He forgives readily when I calm down and repent. My Jesus loves unconditionally and unreservedly.
So where is your heart? If you're in the dark night of the soul and doubting His existence, He is there. If you see the light growing brighter but the dark regularly swoops in to snatch at your hope, He is there. He is by your side as you lie on the floor sobbing. He is there when you find you have nowhere to turn but to Him, however begrudgingly you may go into His arms. He is there when you seek healing or distraction in momentary pleasures. And He is also there on the good days when you can smile at old memories with fondness instead of anger. He is there to the very end and beyond, when you appear before Him as His pure, righteous bride and He says, "Well done, my good and faithful servant."
Hold onto Him and hold onto hope, beloved. He will heal you.
"Let us hold unswervingly to the hope we profess, for He who promised is faithful." - Hebrews 10:23
-Elisa.
Friday, February 11, 2011
Wednesday, January 26, 2011
Sunday, January 2, 2011
the sounds of high school
I am weeding out my iPod because it is almost full (it's one of the old 8GB Nanos that I've had for years!) and there are so many songs that I skip over without actually listening to because I can't stand them anymore. Some of the music hasn't been listened to in four years, but every once in a while I come across a song that I still like that takes me back to a specific time in my life.
Right now I'm listening to "Broken" by Seether featuring Amy Lee which was one of my favorite songs back in the day. I was in the depths of depression and self-injury when I first heard this song and it managed to bring some hope into my life. I remember a friend making me listen to it and, after that first hearing, I listened to it repeatedly for weeks. For some reason the words reminded me that I wasn't alone in my pain, even though the song does not speak of God. When I listened to this song, I realized that it was okay to be broken and that I was not a freak for feeling as I did for so long. I felt as though life would never get better, even though I hoped every day that something would change to make me feel accepted, loved, and precious.
So what did change?
Honestly, I don't know how I escaped self-injury and recovered from depression. It seems terribly cliche and "Sunday-schoolish" to say simply that it was God, but that is the only answer that resonates inside me. All I really know was that I was told one day that I had to tell my parents about my self-injury or I couldn't return to camp, which was devastating and motivating because camp was the only place where I felt accepted. So I told my parents and, to date, that is the most difficult and terrifying thing that I have ever done. But after that day, July 30, 2006, I stopped hurting myself because I became accountable to the people who brought me into the world.
The day after I told them, my pastor's wife asked me to think about my identity and what, or who, exactly defines it. I remember searching for fulfillment among the boys in my high school (much to my chagrin, now that I reflect upon those years...) and among my peers but always feeling empty, which drove me further into depression and self-hatred. But on July 31, 2006 at approximately 10:38 a.m. (I used to record the time of my journal entries and what music I was listening to while writing), I wrote the following words:
Who am I, as a daughter of Christ? My head understands that I am a precious jewel in Christ's hand, but my heart doesn't seem to catch on. I'm loveable, treasured, and cherished by God. I hurt Him when I mess up but He's always willing to welcome me back into His arms. I am striving for perfection, knowing that I won't attain it in this life, but trying to achieve it anyways. With Christ, I acknowledge my mistakes, repent, and move on. I am searching for what He wants; for where I am to go in this life. I am wanting to run with God but not knowing how. I want to take myself off the throne of my life but don't know how. This is who I am.
The past eight months of my life have been the most difficult yet and I was tempted to contemplate suicide and self-injury more often than I would like to admit. I was more depressed than I was while in high school, yet I would not trade those months of pain for anything. Through the past eight months, God has shown Himself to be so incredibly faithful as He refines me, changing my heart to reflect His desires for my life. There were days this summer when I would be mowing my aunt's lawn and I would literally scream at God because my heart hurt so much that I could barely think or breathe. But, through the days and weeks of screaming and wrestling with all the thoughts that constantly bombarded me, God kept whispering, "Trust me. Trust me. Trust me." Oftentimes, I would cry so hard that I would retch but Jesus always reminded me of His presence and that He was before His Father's throne, presenting my heart and desires to God for me because I couldn't form coherent prayers by myself.
Now, as I sit here in the room at my parents' house that has been mine since I was five, I feel light. This room has always been my safe haven where I could break down without having anyone watch and judge me for being so broken. I find myself thinking about 2010 and everything that happened, and I realize that I have never laughed more than I did in 2010, nor have I felt more sure of where God wants me to go with my life. I had more prayers answered in 2010 than ever before and maybe that comes from the fact that I prayed more in 2010 than ever before. I struggle daily with pursuing Christ to the utmost, but when I look back at my sixteen-year-old self's journals, I realize that I have come so far in the past four years that I am almost unrecognizable. And I am okay with that.
Happy New Year.
Elisa.
Right now I'm listening to "Broken" by Seether featuring Amy Lee which was one of my favorite songs back in the day. I was in the depths of depression and self-injury when I first heard this song and it managed to bring some hope into my life. I remember a friend making me listen to it and, after that first hearing, I listened to it repeatedly for weeks. For some reason the words reminded me that I wasn't alone in my pain, even though the song does not speak of God. When I listened to this song, I realized that it was okay to be broken and that I was not a freak for feeling as I did for so long. I felt as though life would never get better, even though I hoped every day that something would change to make me feel accepted, loved, and precious.
So what did change?
Honestly, I don't know how I escaped self-injury and recovered from depression. It seems terribly cliche and "Sunday-schoolish" to say simply that it was God, but that is the only answer that resonates inside me. All I really know was that I was told one day that I had to tell my parents about my self-injury or I couldn't return to camp, which was devastating and motivating because camp was the only place where I felt accepted. So I told my parents and, to date, that is the most difficult and terrifying thing that I have ever done. But after that day, July 30, 2006, I stopped hurting myself because I became accountable to the people who brought me into the world.
The day after I told them, my pastor's wife asked me to think about my identity and what, or who, exactly defines it. I remember searching for fulfillment among the boys in my high school (much to my chagrin, now that I reflect upon those years...) and among my peers but always feeling empty, which drove me further into depression and self-hatred. But on July 31, 2006 at approximately 10:38 a.m. (I used to record the time of my journal entries and what music I was listening to while writing), I wrote the following words:
Who am I, as a daughter of Christ? My head understands that I am a precious jewel in Christ's hand, but my heart doesn't seem to catch on. I'm loveable, treasured, and cherished by God. I hurt Him when I mess up but He's always willing to welcome me back into His arms. I am striving for perfection, knowing that I won't attain it in this life, but trying to achieve it anyways. With Christ, I acknowledge my mistakes, repent, and move on. I am searching for what He wants; for where I am to go in this life. I am wanting to run with God but not knowing how. I want to take myself off the throne of my life but don't know how. This is who I am.
The past eight months of my life have been the most difficult yet and I was tempted to contemplate suicide and self-injury more often than I would like to admit. I was more depressed than I was while in high school, yet I would not trade those months of pain for anything. Through the past eight months, God has shown Himself to be so incredibly faithful as He refines me, changing my heart to reflect His desires for my life. There were days this summer when I would be mowing my aunt's lawn and I would literally scream at God because my heart hurt so much that I could barely think or breathe. But, through the days and weeks of screaming and wrestling with all the thoughts that constantly bombarded me, God kept whispering, "Trust me. Trust me. Trust me." Oftentimes, I would cry so hard that I would retch but Jesus always reminded me of His presence and that He was before His Father's throne, presenting my heart and desires to God for me because I couldn't form coherent prayers by myself.
Now, as I sit here in the room at my parents' house that has been mine since I was five, I feel light. This room has always been my safe haven where I could break down without having anyone watch and judge me for being so broken. I find myself thinking about 2010 and everything that happened, and I realize that I have never laughed more than I did in 2010, nor have I felt more sure of where God wants me to go with my life. I had more prayers answered in 2010 than ever before and maybe that comes from the fact that I prayed more in 2010 than ever before. I struggle daily with pursuing Christ to the utmost, but when I look back at my sixteen-year-old self's journals, I realize that I have come so far in the past four years that I am almost unrecognizable. And I am okay with that.
Happy New Year.
Elisa.
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