Tuesday, December 24, 2013

Changes.

Home just isn’t what it used to be. My siblings are grown up and either their spouses or young children seem to consume all their time. Gone are the late nights playing games and watching movies together. Disclosing of intimate secrets among my sisters while we lay in bed at night has ceased. No more family outings all together, someone’s schedule always conflicts. We no longer share funny stories about our day around the dinner table. Not much seems to be happening in our lives, despite being so overscheduled and busy every day. “Just the same old,” we reply to any friendly inquiry. My grandparents’ health is failing; my grandpa is suffering from early stages of dementia and it stresses my grandma something fierce. My oldest sister is filing for divorce and my mom helps watch her son while my sister is at work. Dad is unemployed, and after months of job searching we are all discouraged. This is not what I expected our lives to be like. ‘Why did things have to change?’ I think to myself. ‘We had it so good.’

Maybe you can relate?

Changes…they can be hard. Changes are uncomfortable. They are daunting, unnerving, scary, intimidating, and often we’d rather hold onto what is familiar than run the risk of losing the good things we have right now….but what if something greater lays just ahead? For a caterpillar to become a beautiful butterfly he must give up being a fuzzy worm.

As stated by a man in this video,  “[Faith in the future is] coming to believe that what God has for me is bigger and better than what I have going on for me right now.

God is aware of us, each one of us. He knows what our futures can hold.

Speaking to a crowd of college students, Elder F. Enzio Busche, a general authority in the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints, shared the following:

“Embrace this day with an enthusiastic welcome, no matter how it looks…

 In your life there have to be challenges. They will either bring you closer to God and therefore make you stronger, or they can destroy you. But you make the decision of which road you take…

And finally, when you are compelled to give up something or when things that are dear to you are withdrawn from you, know that this is your lesson to be learned right now. But know also that, as you are learning this lesson, God wants to give you something better.”

So what if my life is changing; I have adorable nephews who melt my insides with their cuteness. My brother-in-laws are the older brothers I never had but always wanted. I am away at school, but I’ve discovered treasured friends who mean the world to me. My grandfather’s aging has inspired me to go into geriatric with my recreational therapy major. Skyping my sisters is a highlight of any week. New experiences are exciting and full of learning. I am beginning to see that God is in fact giving me something better.

No, my home isn’t what it used to be…but it is still oh so good! And it is time to embrace these changes.

Hello New Year :)!


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