WOW so it's been a while hu???? I know, I know all of my
fans have been waiting anxiously haha jk. Um I did my sermon today. Thank you
to all of the people who prayed for me and gave input in the planning.
Everything went very well. I was a nervous wreck but God used that to his
advantage haha. Anyways that’s the update...... But now to unload a bit.... I
have been thinking A LOT lately about relationships and how much God has
blessed me to have the relationships I have. I dunno maybe I am going through
my mid life crisis lol but I have been remembering so many old memories with
people that I have sometimes taken for granted. I have been thinking of so so
so many memories I have had over my 19 years haha. Oh some are so great and yet
some are sad and disheartening. But through all this thinking I am growing to
an even higher appreciation of the people that are around me right now. You see
I felt blessed for the time I had at MTCS and I knew that my time there with
those people was limited and God put a passion in my heart to live that time up
and make as much of an lasting impact as I could. Now out of MTCS I found it
hard to have that same drive but I can really tell God is rekindling that sort
of thought in my head again. Except this time it is not only the people I am
around here at lipscomb, it is also with the relationships I have had outside
of MTCS all this time that I some times neglected or took for granted while at
MTCS. God has really been opening my eyes up to how much life can change in an
instant. As the brokerage firm commercial says "nothing is constant except
change itself" I realize looking around that my life is radically changing
right now. My brother has moved. We are moving. My lil sis is a senior. My
grandfather isn't doing well, ect....... On top of that God is changing me more
and more each day due to the circumstances around me. All this just makes me
sit back and realize that I shouldn't so easily take relationships around me
for granted. It is sad to see that group of seniors last year that I was so so
so accustomed to, move on to college and I haven’t seen more than probably 10%
of them since then. Yet while they were still in the youth group I loved each
of them I also took a lot of the time I had with them for granted. Thinking of
that gives me a passion to stop and realize how truly lucky I am to have the
relationships I have with the seniors in the youth group now. I can't imagine
my sister being gone. I always tried my hardest to try to get the seniors ahead
of her to realize how much of an influence they had at their school by just
being a senior but I never thought that I would be thinking that way of my baby
sister. Anyways all that said haha, things are changing around me and the fact
they are scares me back into the reality of what life is all about - - that is
relationships. Life comes down to relationships. Relationship with God being
our first and then relationships with other people to have an influence on them
or help them experience God more. DON’T MISS THIS I know that I miss it so
often and for that I am sorry - - life is NOT what we are brought up being
taught. When we die nothing at all matters except our relationship with God and
the legacy we left in other people's lives. OHHHH I miss that so so so so so
many times! It is so easy to get caught up in life. A life that is so busy we
forget the reason we are here in the first place. God loves us and wants a
relationship with him. He wants us to help others see that truth. Without
having relationships we have no influence on other people. we can't. Grrrr I
wish I had the words to express this in a elegant way but, haha, I don't. Well
I think yall see what I am saying so I am gonna stop typing but I will leave
you with this. When life gets you down remember that life isn't about living,
it is about loving god and loving others. In doing that we will find what
living really is. (hey that was kinda elegant lol)  - - - I hope everyone has a great day. I will
see some of yall at church wed. Thanks for giving me the opportunity to have a
relationship with you.


In Him,

Jonathan

 Matt 22:36-40

"Teacher, which is the greatest commandment in the
Law?" Jesus replied: "'Love the Lord your God with all your heart and
with all your soul and with all your mind.' This is the first and greatest
commandment. And the second is like it: 'Love your neighbor as yourself.' All
the Law and the Prophets hang on these two commandments."