My God's Grace is Sufficient for Me!

This has been a long week already! I have a big decision to make by the end of the week regarding my job for the fall. I thought I was going to work for Salem but now Huntington is offering me a full time job. This offer kind of came out of the blue because previously business was so slow it didn't seem like full time was on the horizon. Now business is suddenly booming and they need another full time worker. I really like what I do at Salem better but have to see how different the two jobs are from a financial perspective. I really don't like making decisions; they stress me out! Satan has been using this to get to me. When I get stressed I start acting differently. I started pulling away from my friends, Val included. The last two days were hard for us because we were both dealing with some stuff. Thankfully God is greater than our problems and He has once again proven that to me.

This week was VBS at Cambria. Tonight was our closing night and we were singing some of the songs from the week. We sang a song that talks about how God cares for us. These simple lyrics really spoke to me and helped me realize that my problems are nothing compared to God's greatness! One of our verses from the week was 1 Peter 5:7 which says, "Cast all your anxiety on Him because He cares for you." What an amazing truth! Tonight was a night to put all my fears aside and lean on Him. Praise be to God for He is good!

I am so excited to head to DC this weekend with Val. She is my best friend and the girl I want to spend the rest of my life with. I am a very blessed individual! To add to the awesomeness, we will be hanging out with Tim and also going to see some Mets/Nationals games. Can't wait! Goodnight all.

Oh...I almost forgot....HAPPY NBA FREE AGENCY!!!

What does Hyundai mean anyways?

I have been driving my Mercury Sable around for a while and it has been a good car for me. I was blessed to inherit it from my great uncle without having to pay a dime. When I first received the car in the summer of 2004 it had around 30,000 miles on it. Over the last six years I have driven over 85,000 miles in the Sable (recently coined "Old Faithful" by Val haha). The Sable has been visited 15 states: New York, Massachusetts, Rhode Island, Pennsylvania, Maryland, Delaware, Virginia, North Carolina, South Carolina, West Virginia, Tennessee, Georgia, Florida, New Jersey, and Connecticut.

The Sable was a good car for me and served its purpose. Unfortunately, it only got 20 miles to the gallon and the engine never ran quite right. Recently, I decided it was time to start thinking about a new vehicle. I had heard from multiple people that Enterprise sold used cars for very reasonable prices. My parents actually ended up buying a 2009 Nissan Sentra from an Enterprise in New York the week before. I went by the one in Roanoke and spoke to a car salesman about what I was looking for. Turns out this guy is a Liberty graduate and played for their baseball team! He was a really nice guy and a strong Christian. We had a lot of good conversation and I learned quickly that I could trust him to find me the best deal possible. God sometimes provides blessings in the simplest form! His manager was really nice too, breaking down all the numbers and making sure I had all the information I needed. I did not want to make a decision in haste, so after test-driving a few cars I went home to mull it over and keep searching the online listings. I went back on Thursday and we were fortunate enough to spot a 2009 Hyundai Accent for a good price. It was ironically located at the Enterprise in New Rochelle, NY where my parents had bought their car haha! The car was transferred down here yesterday and I will go to pick it up on Monday. I am excited for a variety of reasons: a working radio, a CD player, a smaller car, and no more engine problems!!! I have pasted a few pictures of my car below. They are from the website.

In other news, or not really news at all, God is amazing! This summer has been a huge blessing thus far. Val is living in Blacksburg and although she has not found a job yet, God is providing her with many opportunities to prepare for a career after college. I am blessed to be working 25 hours a week at Huntington this summer before working for Salem City Schools in the fall. I hope to update soon with more details of the last month. I will say I have the greatest family and friends in the world!!

God has blessed me!

Today was a day you dream of. I woke up this morning to discover that I had the day off due to a student canceled our 9:00 appointment. My first instinct was to sleep more, but then my ambitious side kicked in. Val and I had decided to head to the Cascades around 3 after I was done with work. My newly acquired day off allowed us to leave by noon. It was a beautiful day to go along with a beautiful girl with whom I was privileged to spend the next 14 hours with! It was Val's first time hiking the Cascades and she was in absolute awe the whole way. God's beauty is so evident on that trail! When we got to the falls we contemplated going for a swim but opted against it after feeling its cool temperature against our feet. What followed was an amazing conversation I may never forget. God was present and was guiding us as we spent time in His word and time in discussion together. The time I spend with Val is so precious to me and I am so thankful God has given us the opportunity to have these moments more often.

We headed to Matt and Rebecca's for dinner. I really treasure the time I get to spend with my sisters and my brothers in law. We had such good fellowship and played some train game to top it off. The Celtics also finished off the Magic which made a certain someone rather pleased! What a blessed night spent with family and my best friend in the world. Val truly has become my best friend. The level of comfort I feel when around her is unparalleled, and yet she continues to point me towards Christ instead of allowing me to focus solely on her. I can honestly say that our relationship has been centered in Christ from day one, something I was unable to say in any previous relationship I have been a part of. God has taught me so much over the years and has prepared me to be the leader I need to be for Val. I am so excited to see what God has in store for us. Please continue to pray that our relationship would be given completely to Him. What a mighty God we serve!

Back to updates from last weekend! After the YEC we were kept busy by Rebecca's wedding shower and the college worship service at Cambria on Sunday. We had a great time hanging out with family and friends. I am so blessed to have both of my sisters living so close to me! Sunday's service was neat. Some students from Liberty came and played the worship music for us. Val was a part of the worship band. Val and I sang Lead Me To The Cross for special music. What a blessing it is to serve the Lord with my girlfriend! The rest of Sunday afternoon was spent relaxing and enjoying the beautiful weather. We played some tennis with Josh and Meredith and finished off the night watching 24 and eating steak. Each weekend is a true blessing. I must say I am looking forward to this summer when Val and I will hopefully be able to spend some time together each day!

Sports

I know I said I would continue my previous post but I need to blow off some steam instead. Why in the world do I have to care so much about my sports teams? I am truthfully afraid of the person I become when things don't go well. A Mets loss makes me a scary person to be around. Even tonight, with no one else around, I still feel uncomfortable with how angry I am. Here I sit, screaming at my computer screen at players I will never know personally. Not exactly representing Christ. Sometimes I wish I could be apathetic. I know some of the greatest moments of my life involve triumphs involving my sports teams and therefore know I am a bit out of line wishing for apathy. But I do wish I knew how to control myself better because it just isn't fair to those around me. While I have made progress since high school, I still have a long way to go. Lord, please help me to have better self-control and realize there are so many more important things in life.