I'm Baaackkk! :)

Okay...! 
I'm back...! 
It's been over a year, but I'm finally back...!

No, this is not going to be a post where I go over what I have been doing this past year, or even what I have been doing recently. Rather, this is a post to let you know that I am going to try and blog once again...

A few of you may have seen the blog that I just started:  

A Pint of Pinterest

I hope to continue with that endeavor as well this one, and plan to share links from there on here if/when they occur... Just trying to keep myself busy, you know? :)

As I'm sure most of you know, I am still in California. However, I am NOT still at Providence. If you would like to have my current address, just shoot me an email and, if I know you, I will definitely share it with you. 

A HUGE, GINORMOUS thank you shout-out to my friend Brittany and her mom (Affectionately known as "Mum"), who, last minute, took me into their home with open arms and have been a huge blessing and source of love and support for me since I came here in May! Also, a special shout-out goes to my "Big Little Brother" Timmy (From school, not back home!), for being a wonderful "sibling" and friend... And for giving me awesome cheer-up hugs when I need them!

Currently, I am in the process of applying for and waiting to hear back about job opportunities out here... It's been a bit frustrating at times, but I know that I will get a job at the right time... I just need to learn patience and trust.

Patience and Trust

Oh goodness, I am learning about both of those A LOT in pretty much every area of my life right now. Relying on the Lord when your life gets turned upside-down and seemingly ripped to shreds is a HUGE struggle to experience day-to-day! Praise the Lord that I have strong Christian family members and friends who have been praying for me and supporting me through all of this. I get so blinded and depressed by everything that is happening in my life so often, I feel as though my only purpose in life is to show people that they could have it worse... They could be me...(!)

Lately, I decided to read through the Psalms. Me being me, I decided to do something a little bit different. Instead of just reading through the Psalms in chronological order, I decided that I would read that day's Psalm and all the other Psalms which were multiples of that day... Yep, I told you, me being me ;)

Here's an example for you: Today I plan to read Psalm 19, 38, 57, 76, 95, 114, and 133 because they are all multiples of "19". It may seem like a lot - Trust me, when 119 is one of the multiples, it really does!-, but I enjoy it. I may not always know exactly how to respond to or even understand exactly what I am reading, but pushing myself to be in the Word has pushed me towards the Lord in more ways than I imagined.

Yesterday, one of my favorite verses happened to be Psalm 18:6 (Cool huh? It was the 18th of June... 18/6... Well, I thought it was cool..). Here it is:

"In my distress I called upon the Lord;

to my God I cried for help.

From his temple he heard my voice,

and my cry to him reached his ears."
~Psalm 18:6

Yes, the Lord hears my cry, my tears, my voice, and my desires. He extends His love, His patience, and, most importantly, His Spirit towards me as I struggle. Even now, I can see little bits and pieces of growth in my life from Him that were not there before.

Time and time again, I find myself being brought to one of my all-time favorite verses in the Bible: Philippians 4:4-9, especially verses 4-7 (Verses in bold):

"Rejoice in the Lord always; again I will say, rejoice. Let your reasonableness be known to everyone. The Lord is at hand; do not be anxious about anything, but in everything by prayer and petition with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God. And the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus. Finally, brothers, whatever is true, whatever is honorable, whatever is just, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is commendable, if there is any excellence, if there is anything worthy of praise, think about these things. What you have learned and received and heard and seen in me—practice these things, and the God of peace will be with you."
~Philippians 4:4-9

Whew! I think that says it all doesn't it? I don't even need to say anything else! I may not know what the Lord is doing in my life, but I do know that what He IS doing is bringing or will bring Him the most glory because His plan is perfect.

If nothing else, I can rejoice knowing that there is a plan and purpose. Not just any plan and purpose. Not multiple plans and purposes for my life (Just in case one or more of them fail). No, there is only ONE plan and ONE purpose for my life because it was PERFECTLY planned by The One, The ONLY One, Who Is Perfect!

Wow...! Well, I have a lot to work on, but I'm excited to see what the Lord has in store for me :)

Feel free to give me a call, send me a message, write me a letter, or use any other form of communication to talk with me. I would LOVE to hear from you! 
:)

With lots of love and lots to learn,
-Courtney