Summer Blessings

"for everything created by God is good, and nothing is to be rejected if it is received with thanksgiving for it is made holy by the word of God and by prayer." - 1 Timothy 4:4-5

Believe it or not, summer is over - I'm sitting back in my house in Guelph getting ready to begin my final year of my undergraduate career. It's hard to fathom that i'll be taking graduation photos in a few months and that I won't have to "move in" next Labor Day weekend. But just as we did in service today, I think it's important to look back and reflect on all of God's blessings this past summer. There's much to be thankful for!

Godly Men
If you've known me since my elementary school days, you'll know that i'm not your typical guy - I never liked sports (or any physical activity of that matter), gaming (of any sort), all the usual things and because of that I had a really difficult time making friends with guys because I felt like we had nothing in common and therefore nothing to talk about. As a result, I made a lot of friends that were primarily female which I am very thankful for. Even to this day sometimes I feel that I still don't connect with guys well. But this summer (and probably even before this summer) I've realized that for some reason God has placed not only men but godly men into my life and I've really appreciated that. They've been there to challenge me, spur me on, encourage and support me whenever I needed it. I was so glad to have quality, fruitful, and spiritually challenging conversations with them. Praise God for the men in my life. You know who you are.

Parents
Although i'm sure I don't express my thanks enough to my mom and dad, I am incredibly grateful for them (Mom, I know you're reading this). To think of all that they sacrificed for me, when i'm at school and when i'm at home. For my education, for my essential daily needs, and even for my convenience. Sometimes I think they're absolutely absurd for what they do. This summer, I had work in Etobicoke and I needed the car - they would take whatever measure was needed to ensure I could go to work. They didn't just tell me to commute, they knew it would be easier if I had the car and they would make it happen. Even if that meant mom had to walk an hour to work in the morning or if she had to bother a co-worker to catch a ride. If that meant adding crazy mileage onto the car, if that meant the risk of accident was heightened (and I did get into a car accident this summer too). Not only my parents, but even my brother - when he got a job in Stoufville, which is relatively close-by, he offered to bike there (30 mins) so I could get the car - and if not, my aunts would come over to pick him up and drop him off at work. None of this I forced upon them, it was all out of a willing and generous heart. How incredibly supportive and sacrificial are my family, I didn't deserve it at all.

Summer Job Opportunity
Working at Hands On Exotics this summer was mind-boggling - and although I've talked about it before, but to think I landed what I potentially thought was my dream job was insane. To this day I still don't know how I got this job, I don't know what they saw in me, but I attribute all that happened to God and God alone. By his sovereign grace and provision He allowed me to catch a glimpse of what I dreamed of - the perfect blend of animals, science, children and education. Praise and honour to God!

Unexpected Events
If you read my blog on the regular, you'll know that although I worked my dream job this summer, it wasn't all rainbows and lollipops. And as we talked about a few weeks ago in service, there is "unwanted grace" - things that happen or come up that we may not exactly enjoy or prefer, but is still grace from God - grace from God that is to mould and transform us to become more like His Son. I bumped a car and paid almost 600$ for the damages, I was told that I could not qualify to be approved to be a team lead this summer at work, losing all my hours and shifts, and I had a poor experience with a lizard (that's a whole other story). And even in the midst of all this that seemed to negative, it was grace - in reality, we don't deserve anything at all, so regardless of what we are given, scenario or material, "good" or "bad", it is all grace from God. And we should receive it with thanksgiving.

"Unexpected" is the one word I would use to describe my summer. I praise God that although it was such a ride, that He still revealed himself to me, He taught me and disciplined me and I pray that He would continue to show me more of who He is and that I would continue to love Him in all that I do. All glory to God.