Three Feet at a Time

I apologize for the lack of posts this past month. Between my schoolwork and the fact that I was experiencing what I like to call a ‘one-fifth life crisis,’ I just did not have the energy to write. But I’m back now! And today I am going to discuss my one-fifth life crisis. It’s like a mid-life crisis, except that I’m only twenty, and if I live to be one-hundred then I have lived one-fifth of my life so far, as opposed to one-half.

As I have said in previous posts, in many ways, I was not the typical kid. Most middle-schoolers have no ideas what they want to be when they grow up, or they do but then proceed to change their minds a dozen times by the end of high school. From there, many still may be undecided about what they want to do by the time they graduate high school or even during their first year or two in college. I however, decided on my future career in 7^th grade. After being a prosecutor in a mock trial during history class, I wanted to become a lawyer. And this idea stuck with me, all through middle school, all through high school, and all through my first two years or college.

One day I would become a federal prosecutor. I would get to ‘put the bad guys in jail,’ I would say proudly when I was thirteen. Family, friends, and many people from my high school always told me I would make a great lawyer someday. And this plan seemed perfect. Or at least it did until about a month ago. I began to question my desire for becoming a lawyer. Did I want to do it because I still had the desire? Or did I want to do it because it’s been my plan for several years. Well, I have come to a conclusion; I have no idea.

I am a fierce planner. I like to know what’s going on at all times and constantly be prepared for the future. It’s not uncommon for me to plan out all of my outfits for the week and even create some backup options because of the unpredictability that is Colorado weather. Now, I realize I take planning to the extreme, but I also realize that I am not the only one who creates big plains for their future, then finds that God is calling them to change it up, and then fears relinquishing the control they believe they have of their future.

I’ve noticed that God doesn’t typically reveal His entire plan for somebody all at once. One of my friends says it’s like walking in the woods at night and your flashlight can only light three feet of your path at a time. We all want more than those three feet, heck we’d take three miles if God would give it to us. But we only need to see three feet so that is what God shows us.

Sometimes it’s better for us to focus on what’s right in front of us as opposed to everything at once. Because keeping our minds fixed solely on the future can make it far more difficult for us to pay attention to what God has provided for us right now. I am still struggling to give up control and let God lead me, but I know He will do a much better job at guiding me, than I would.

God has recently put teaching on my heart. Although I have known I want to be a teacher, I always considered it something I would do after being a lawyer and raising a family. But it’s possible that God wants this in my future sooner than I thought. And so, I am adding a history education major and it’s going to take me an extra year to graduate. Maybe I’ll still go to law school and one day ‘put the bad guys in jail,’ or maybe I’ll teach a bunch of middle-schoolers all about my favorite subject right after I graduate college. At this point, the only one that knows the answer to what I will be doing after I graduate is God. For now, I am just going to stay focused on the three feet in front of me and be excited for whatever it is that God has planned for me.

“‘For I know the plans I have for you,’ declares the Lord, ‘plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future.’” -Jeremiah 29:11

If you’re intrigued by this post and looking forward to what I’ll write about in the future, you can expect a new post every Saturday. Also, if you feel inclined, feel free to leave a comment below about what you think. Thanks for all your support and I hope you’ll come back next week. Stay Amazing!