Ok, so I just wanna start by saying God is awesome. I can't even fully wrap my mind around what just happened. I'd say I would start at the beginning but that would mean going all the way back to my birth. Which I mean, I'll tell anybody the entire story of my life if you just ask, but that's much too long for a blog post. If you read the post before this you know how impacted my heart was last night. So, I'll start my story earlier today to catch you up on what's going on in my life.
Earlier today my friend Jenni wrote on my facebook wall about my blog saying that it had touched her. Well I wrote back of course thanking her and encouraging her, and then that was that. Later that day I found her blog and began to read it, only to discover that her older sister Kaitlyn, whom she had blogged about, was on my swim team early this year. I sent her a quick chat message asking if the girl on my team and her sister were the same girl and she informed me that they were and I proceeded to talk about how the world is just so amazingly small. Little did I know the extent of that expression just then. We talked some more about her sister and how her life is different due to her down syndrome and how I never payed enough attention to things like this when I should have. Then that was that.
Later, Jenni sends me a chat (Which most likely would not have been sent if I hadn't felt so strongly about Kaitlyn and felt that deep need to chat her) telling me she has a new blog post up and I hurry to read it. (You can find her blog here) It's basically a run down of her night last night and how it effected her deeply and she now wants to be baptized. Well now people, I know I haven't shared with anyone what I've been pondering for the last month or so, but I've been seriously thinking about baptism myself. Although I was baptized about a year or so ago, it wasn't really personal. It was something that we did as a family and was mainly encouraged by my Dad's desire.
Well the past month or so I've been wondering if that even counted for me at all. Ha, counted for me, like it's some fare to get into heaven, no that's not it at all. I think people have a misconception about baptism and think that as long as they've been baptized they're safe from Hell. But that's not how it works, you have to confess Jesus as your Lord and Savior for admittance through those pearly gates, and I'm ready to stand in front of the congregation and publicly devote myself to him. I've always been open about the fact that I've made mistakes and have a rough past. I thank God for my 180 everyday. I was in the complete wrong crowd doing the complete wrong things. But now, I've been saved and rescued from that past. Like the lost sheep, and coin, and son. I've been found. And I want nothing more than to be cleansed and start fresh with Jesus Christ.
Whoever believes and is baptized will be saved, but whoever does not believe will be condemned. - Mark 16:16
Sweet Jenni had no idea any of this was going on in my life. None. As I was reading her blog I knew I had to tell her, and I am SO glad I did. After discussing it we both realized we need each other as support systems, and we're gonna go through this together. I'm so excited and amazed by the Lord. His plan overcomes all others anyone could ever have. I've decided enormity is a good word. I can not get over this yall. Just thinking that if my dad hadn't gone back to Chiropractic school and taken us to Spartanburg, which then led to Aiken. Where i was then put in swim team, some what involuntarily but I'm so glad it happened. (Where I met Kaitlyn, who just connected me to Jenni.) However, after swim team my life took a turn in a bad way and I went down hill, turning to just about every bad thing I could do and holding on trying to find joy in it. Skip a month or so in advance to Kasey and Cassidy being in my Spanish class, inviting me to Millbrook. It took.. I don't even know how many invites before I accepted and went to Sunday school and church which was later followed by The Rock, and that first day I fell in love. I've been going every Sunday since, unless I'm out of town which doesn't count :P ANYWAY back to the point of this, without God putting Kasey and Cassidy into that class with me I might not have ever gone to Millbrook (Or met Jenni).
Skip forward some more to the lockout where John and I first somewhat met. We didn't really talk but he messaged me the next day on facebook and we talked all day every day after that until I had a full blown crush on this boy. John has impacted my life and changed me in a way that no other person I've ever known has done. If it weren't for him helping me in that last little push, I know I wouldn't be where I am with God today. I'm so thankful for him.
Skip to today, where I read Jenni's blog, Jenni and I need eachother, God knew that, God knew that before either of us were even born. God knew the exact layout of my life and exactly what I would do wrong and what he would need to lay the groundwork for in advance. How huge is that? I can't even understand all of it at all. I know I'm leaving countless details out that God knows that I just can't even fathom or begin to imagine or connect. It's like everytime I think about this more I find more and more things that He has done to get me where I am today.
I can't wait to be baptized with Jenni and go through this adventure with her. I'm so thankful to God for lining up both of our paths so that we can go through this together and support each other, because He knew, before the beginning of time, that we would need each other. I just can't stress that enough at all.. Every painful move that I've been through, every mistake I've made, it was all to get me close to Him in a way I've never felt before. I feel Him in my heart in a way I've never felt before. I CAN NOT wait to be baptized and complete that final step in getting to Him. :)
I know I've already used this verse, at least I'm pretty sure I have, but I love it so here it is again.
In his heart a man plans his course, but the Lord determines his steps.
- Proverbs 16:9
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