Ask the Lord to give you Mountians

Hello fellow readers,
I thought I would blow your mind and give yet another update for this week....whoa! I know

Anyways I just finished a book that I started on the flight down here (about dang time I guess). It's called "The Me I Want to be" by John Ortberg. It is a great book and I highly recommend it. In the last chapter it talks about how challenges are a necessary part of life and an opportunity for growth. The author speaks of Caleb and the other scouts that were sent out to check out the Promise Land in the time of Moses to see if it was worth it or not to go there. All but two of the twelve scouts thought it was too much of a risk to go but Caleb and Joshua trusted the Lord and though it wouldn't be easy thought that taking on the Promise Land was worth it. They were willing to accept the challenge knowing that it would all work out in the end because, this is what God had in store for them. Taking up a challenge is a gift from God because it is an opportunity to grow and become closer to the person He created you to be, therefore we should be asking for God to give us these mountains in order that we may prosper and grow. Here is a quote that was mentioned near the end of the book that I really liked:
"When heaven is about to confer a great responsibility on any man, it will exercise his mind with suffering...place obstacles in the path of his deeds, so as to stimulate his mind, harden his nature, and improve wherever he is competent." -Meng Tzu (a Chinese sage from 3rd Century BC)

I am trying to keep this all in mind as I work on making the transition of being here. I am not going to lie and pretend to be strong because I am not. This has been and continues to be the most challenging thing I have ever done in my life. There are many days that I wake up and just wish that I could have everything back the way it was before I left and that I could be back home with my friends and family enjoying the Michigan summer at the lake, but this is not how it is supposed to be for me. I have been called to a challenge and so shall I accept it. Every time that I have a moment when I wish that I could just throw all this out the window and head back to the states, I will try my best to remember that this is my mountain, this is my challenge and this is a necessary time for me to grow and learn more about the me I am supposed to be,the me God created me to be.