Hi everyone! I have been in Gainesville Georgia this past week training, and while it has been quite challenging, I am truly honored to be surrounded by so many young passionate believers. Something huge I am learning is the concept of dying to yourself; That it is not a one time occasion, rather than a daily choice to surrender each part of your life, no matter the size, to the Lord.
With that being said, I wanted to talk about my twin sister Berkeley! She is a freshman at Florida State University and I could not be more proud of who she is and the way her faith is growing. A few months ago, someone asked us what our plans were for the fall, and she made a comment that her going to college was “nothing special” compared to me. I did not say much about it at the time, but it really frustrated me that she thought that way. So for this blog I wanted to write to my sister Berkeley, and all of my friends reading this blog who are being called to a college environment, a little letter about how what I think you are doing as a Christ follower might be even more difficult than what I am doing.
Dear Berkeley,
First, I miss you. I cherish our phone calls more than ever before, and I think it is so fun how different our lives look right now. I am so proud of you. I want you to know that the path I am on is in no way better than the path you have chosen. In fact, what you are doing is probably even more difficult than what I am doing. Yes, you have a cute cozy apartment, access to whatever food you please and other tangible luxuries I currently am not experiencing. However, you do not have 47 peers/leaders constantly surrounding you pushing you to the Lord. You do not have devotional time scheduled into your day by a leader. The access you have to all the ‘earthly’ things you possess make it a harder fight for dependency on Him. The majority of the people you are around are those who are not pursuing the Lord. It would be easy for you to fall into their ways, to choose the life that they are choosing. But you know this is not the way to be fulfilled; You know Truth and love and joy. You, my sister, have the most special opportunity, because while yes, you are taking the ‘typical’ route for an 18 year old, you are not living the typical life. You are exactly where the Lord wants you to be, because you are strong enough to seek out your own community, and invite the most lost souls into it. Young people in America NEED Jesus. And Jesus wants to use YOU to reach them! Stay strong like I know you are, continue to get excited about church and your spiritual check-ins. Do not stop inviting friends to join you. Spend time with the Holy Spirit and fill yourself up, allow Him to overflow in you so all you have to give is His love. What you are doing is not easy, not in the slightest. What God is going to be calling you to on campus this year takes just as much if not more courage than the journey I am currently on. I am just so proud of you and the way you are growing. Don’t think you aren’t doing big things for His Kingdom. Don’t stop, you are changing lives. I love you.
Love,
Ella <3
Ask the Lord how you can surrender yourself to Him today. Do not compare your journey to others. He has you right where He needs you to do incredible works.
This topic has really been on my heart and I felt called to share with everyone, because as long as we are available, we all have the ability to do great things in the name of Jesus.
Esther 4:14
