Growing Pains

As much as I want to tell you all the tasks we did this week, I'd rather share how God really stretched me this week. We didn't have a camp this week and we haven't had a work group for the past two weeks. There were a lot of tasks for us to get done, but the work load can get done a lot quicker with five of us working on it. So we also had an unusual amount of down time. 

 

I'm just put it out there; this week I really started to miss home. 

There are so many reasons as to why, but some of the bigger triggers were:

1. My little brother -- as soon as God starts to make some great movement in him, Satan shows up and knocks him back down. It's super discouraging for him, and there are just a lot of other factors...I hate Satan, he's a bully.

2. I miss my high school girls. I had time to have great conversations with a few of them, and it was really great but I also feel like I'm missing out on their lives. I also had one who had a crappy week, and I wanted nothing more than to take her to ice cream, but I couldn't. 
3. I miss my best friend. I really just need a hug, and to hear that I'm where God needs me. Growing in my faith isn't easy, but I know that He's got me. 

4. To top it all off, my home town flooded this weekend. I wish I could have been there to help, to help my mom get her house in order, and to help the community.  Instead I just got to pray and get updates from Facebook.  

 

I know that I'm not going to be able to do it all, and I know that the second I leave this place I'm going to wish I was back. As I have read my devos this week, I realized that I am not alone in the struggle of growing pains. As I read through some stories in the Bible I realized that God has brought every one of his servants through some large portions of growing pains. 

These growing pains are different than what I remember as a child.  Obviously they aren't physical growing pains. It wasn't till maybe two years ago that I would have had the relationships to miss or the relationship with my family to feel obligated to be there in a time of need. I wanted to adventure, and to go off to the ends of the earth doing God's works, but now I couldn't imagine doing that without these people in my life. 

 

My faith has been pulled and stretched in many uncomfortable ways, and coming up to South Dakota is one of the biggest steps. I love my people, and I love my family. I love knowing that they'll have my back at any moment and catch me when I fall. Physically I don't have them with me; physically they are hundreds of miles away. That's tough on my soul. 

These moments in life are worth the pain because I get to be a part of a bigger story. The story of Jesus going to the ends of the earth. The story of love. The story of victory. As much emotional pain I had this week, I had a great focus of one day Jesus is coming back. That promise pulled me through this week of growing pains, and maybe even stretched them out. I love sharing scripture and I love encouraging you friends to go and read it for yourself. Revelation 22:6-21 – This is a promise that Jesus is coming back. This is a promise that every physical, emotional, and spiritual growing pain we have is worth it because one day Jesus will return, and one day I will rest with him in heaven! 

 

<3 Holly