5 Years later

Five years. Just how much can change in five years? Compared to a span of 20 years, five doesn't seem like that long of a time. But look at it this way: you're in kindergarden, and five years later you're entering 5th grade. You've gone from learning the basics of writing letters and numbers and how to read words, to actually reading textbooks to learn and doing advanced math problems and working with fractions and decimals. In five years, you go from the upper grades of elementary school to the first year of high school. In five years, you're done with high school and you're either starting college or starting longer working hours (or both, in some cases).

In the past five years since high school, a lot has changed in my life. I went from a teenager who dreaded church and thought it was boring to a 23-year old who looks forward to reading the Bible every day and who desires to hear God's direction for her life. I tried doing things my own way and learned that God's way is best. I've been through two job layoffs and I am back at the company I started with (although I'm still waiting for a "permanent" position in the company). I've seen my dad's health get worse, with bad days outnumbering the good - and I still struggle to be the encouragement my mom needs. My best friend since middle school and I have drifted apart and we don't really talk anymore - and I never saw that coming. However, I have developed a closer friendship with a friend from my senior year in high school. After struggling with being with the wrong person for years, once I surrendered everything to God He brought me to the right person, and we have been happily married for 3 months. It hasn't been trouble-free: life has thrown some challenges at us already, and we have had to take a few risks. But we stand together and face life as a united front.

Here is a list of things I've learned in the first five years after high school:

1. Faith is not about following religious rules, being a good person, and going to church every week. Faith is having your own relationship with God and trusting Him even when things are hard and don't make sense. You're not just going to church: you are the church.
2. God's grace and salvation through Christ beats anything this world could ever offer. With these gifts (because they're free...you don't have to do anything except accept them) comes peace and strength, plus freedom from guilt and shame regarding mistakes we've made.
3. Take the lessons of experience from those around you into consideration when making big decisions.
4. If you don't sincerely believe something you're saying, people can tell.
5. Be careful with getting into debt for a car. Either save up and pay for it outright, or buy something affordable that's also reasonably new with low mileage. The longer your payment terms, the more repairs and maintenance you are going to have on top of your payment. This drains money FAST.
6. Your parents want the best for you, and they want you to be happy. However, they are human and sometimes make mistakes in the way they communicate their concerns.
7. High school drama seems silly once you've been out in the real world for a while.
8. Debit cards are great, but it's best to pull out a limited amount of spending money and stop spending once it's gone. Watching the money coming out of your wallet is more effective than swiping plastic through a machine.
9. Be careful with credit card debt. It is very easy to rack up your balance above what you can pay off in one payment. You are more likely to think twice about charging large amounts,  but it's the multiple smaller amounts that get you.
10. Refuse to be the only responsible one in a dating relationship. There should never been one person paying for everything. If they don't want to lift a finger financially, RUN. If they don't want to get a job, RUN FASTER.
11. The former me that thought church and the Bible was boring would have seen what this list was and just skip over it...but I challenege you to read them anyway, and at least consider what a few of them mean to you. Here are some verses that I live by:
• Proverbs 3:5 - Trust in the Lord with all your heart; do not depend on your own understanding.
• Proverbs 4:23 - Guard your heart above all else, for it determines the course of your life.
• Proverbs 15:1 - A gentle answer deflects anger, but harsh words make tempers flare.
• Psalm 16:8 - I know the Lord is always with me. I will not be shaken, for he is right beside me.
• Romans 2:4 - Don't you see how wonderfully kind, tolerant, and patient God is with you?
• Romans 12:12 - Rejoice in our confident hope. Be patient in trouble, and keep on praying.
• 2 Corinthians 4:18 - So we don't look at the troubles we can see now; rather, we fix our gaze on things that cannot be seen. For the things we see now will soon be gone, but the things we cannot see will last forever.
• Ephesians 3:20 - 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 4:2 - Be patient with each other, making allowance for each other's faults because of your love.
• Philippians 4:13 - For I can do everything through Christ, who gives me strength.
• 1 Timothy 4:12 - Don't let anything think less of you because you are young. Be an example to all believers in what you say, in the way you live, in your love, your faith, and your purity.
• 2 Timothy 1:7 - For God has not given us a spirit of fear and timidity, but of power, love, and self-discipline.