Journey

The reason this blog is entitled "simplicity" is because this is a blog about walking through life with Jesus Christ. It is a simple story about myself and what Christ has done for me. It is in no way fancy, exaggerated, or unbelievable. I commit this blog to being real, raw, and honest. It will be simple, which is the only way I believe it is possible to live with Christ.

I have been a Christian for almost my whole life. Throughout the years, I was not immune to sin and heartache. During all of those times, God remained faithful to me and blessed me with His presence. I tell my testimony to encourage people to remain in Christ, because God provided for me in ways I could never ask or even imagine. Our God is bigger than any circumstance earth could provide and He is well worth the surrender. I love to be able to see God lead people into deeper relationships with Him because of the evidence of His faithfulness in my life. But my story is not unique. Almost all Jesus followers will have stories that glorify God. I am just choosing to share my journey publicly. Perhaps the readers of this blog will even learn something about our great God and be encouraged through my honest writing about the Christian walk. I would love for fellow believers to join me on this endeavor and experience the Holy Spirit in the same way.

The faithful Holy Spirit led me early on in high school to attend a small bible college. This is currently my third year here. This blog is actually the result of an assignment for the Spiritual Formation class I am taking. We were asked to start a blog and write a few posts about different spiritual practices we are going to talk about and experience. The wonderful thing about this assignment is the timing. This year, I have committed to living in a Living and Learning community. If you have not heard of these, they are all the rage on college campuses. Students will choose to live together because they have a similar passion, skill or interest. Through sharing these passions, skills and interests, students will also learn what it means to share life with other people. This is a perfect picture for a Christian campus. The Church is designed to be communal, as we see depicted in the Trinity. This college has decided to start a Living and Learning community that is circled around spiritual development and discipleship. This group that I am a part of is comprised of three girls and four guys that live next door. As a community we pray, worship, dine together, share recreation activities together, edify one another, and encourage one another. We are a community that is committed towards seeking truly biblical community and helping these brothers and sisters grow stronger in their faith. Meanwhile, we also lead the campus in discipleship activities, mentor students one-on-one, and lead weekly bible studies. Our goal as a group is to serve as a microcosm for what the entire campus should look like. We are on a journey to discover what God has designed for his people. This living experience is in and of itself a spiritual practice that will provide a lot to be discussed in this blog.

My entire life goal is to live simply. I believe that Jesus has called us engage the world but not indulge in it. A big portion of my experiences with these spiritual practices will hopefully help me simplify my life. I want to empty myself and be filled with what is Christ-like. So I am going to walk with the Spirit. As a part of an assignment, as a part of my job as a Living and Learning community member, and as a lover of Jesus Christ. I am going to learn what it means to walk the Spirit. I do not have all the answers; this will be a brand new part of my life. And I am going to share my journey with the readers of this blog.

"Where the Spirit of the Lord is, there is freedom." 

 2 Corinthians 3:17