Dreams

Everybody always says, "Follow your dreams" and "Follow your heart". Aside from the emphasized importance of seeking God's guidance on such matters, people have told me that these statements are useful and necessary for life's pursuits. Other common slogans are, "Dare to dream" and, "Believe in the beauty of your dreams".

So I think it has been well-established that dreams are something that we ought to strive for. That they are motivating and worth pursuing. That they are often what drive us to seek better things, including a sense of accomplishment. Our desires are what help to shape us as individuals because they are what we spend our lives seeking after.

However, the reality of having dreams is the hard work that is involved in getting there...Wherever 'there' is. Perhaps that is what someone meant today when they told me that I might as well basically forget about my dream/desire to want to spend some time in Europe, as I will be entering the workforce soon (God-willing). I did not take this comment well, as I am an idealist and driven to want to make such a dream a reality. I did not like the attitude that I might as well abandon such a dream because I will soon have other bigger considersations (such a permanent, full-time job) to keep me from pursuing it.

I'm not saying that I don't want to face reality and not work for a living. Quite the opposite of that is the case. I would LOVE to have a job right now and know where I am going to be and have some sense of stability in my life. However, that certainly doesn't mean that I want to throw everything out the window. I want to DO stuff with my life.. I want to LIVE my life, not just muddle through it and let it pass me by. As someone once said, "Life is for living, as you are a long time dead."

Perhaps then, I will take this supposed 'reality check' forced on me by a certain individual as a catalyst to want to pursue my dreams even further.. To contribute more to my future travel fund than perhaps I would have otherwise. Not just out of spite, not just out of wanting to prove a point, but because this is MY dream and MY life.

Besides, where would we be if we didn't have dreams?

Life is a Process

More of Shauna's life philosophies coming through... Life is a process. More often lately than not I am realizing that I can't know it all... I can't learn it all...I can't change it all...all at once. Patience has been one of my greatest struggles as of late. The desire to know it all, learn it all, and change it all can be attributed to nothing less than my sheer humanity. I have just started a devotional on the book of Job and on his great patience and trust in God. What an example from which I can learn.

Other than this great emotional rollcoaster that I am on (which some people tell me is my life), I do not have a great deal to tell. I am moving back home in a week or so. (Move #5 in less than 6 months). I am waiting to hear about an interview from a company that I would like to work for. I pray that it pans out. I know that God promises me good things and I am holding Him to that. :) I know he doesn't go back on His word!

And thus, I continue to figure out my life. I must say, though, my life and aspirations now have changed significantly since I first started this blog about 7 months ago. Some fundamental things have remained the same, but as with all things, change is inevitable. It's all part of the process.

God bless,

Shauna

Unsettled

So....I think the title of this blog entry says a lot. Life has felt like nothing but a huge mess lately. However, I know that God is faithful and is working out the details. I am looking into a bunch of different career-defining jobs. It's between two options right now, one of which is looking more favourable than the other. It just feels like my whole life is up in the air right now. I really pity the people around me who have heard me say this so frequently in recent weeks.

I think the sum total of change that has occurred in my life since this past April has just been a shock to the system. Things have a way of catching up with you and with accumulating faster than you realize. Even though I feel that I have dealt with some of the major life issues that have presented themselves, I know that there will be lifelong effects that linger.

Part of me is trying SOOO hard to be patient and to trust God. The other half of me is just screaming to have some stability in my life and expressing the need/want to know NOW. It's kind of like being caught between a rock and a hard place. I know that these times are what one of my friends likes to call "character-building". I definitely think that there is a lot of truth in that.

"God, grant me the serenity to accept the things I cannot change,

to change the things I can,

and the wisdom to know the difference."

- Serenity Prayer

I am also praying for provision of needs and have greatly experienced the blessing that it can be to be a blessing to others. Perhaps that is exactly where my focus needs to be to keep me from thinking about all of the above things that are so concerning to me. I have also had a lot more resolution in my life this summer as far as the brokenness of previous romantic relationships goes. So, life is certainly not all glum and drab. There are many positive things happening in my life and I guess this is my little self pep-talk to make me think in such a way.

"Now all glory to God, who is able, through his mighty power at work within us, to accomplish infinitely more than we might ask or think." - Ephesians 3:20