Erika Glover
Hello my dearest and most lovely friends of the interweb, (SENIOR) Erika here!
I apologize for my inexcusable absence, life’s been chucking some lemons lately, but hey! Summer am I right?! Don’t think for a second during my break I had stopped thinking about you though, I've been brainstorming my comeback post for some time now, and I think I’ve got one that’s pretty relatable.
As you probably noticed while reading my intro, there’s a scary word in front of my name (senior, in case you missed it). And no, your eyes aren’t fooling you. I, Erika Glover, am a senior in high school now. My little sister is going to be a freshman at school with me, and I have to be applied for colleges in less than 6 months, BUT HEY SUMMER. Recently, and part of the reason I haven’t written a post in a while, is because I have been super stressed with a lot of things that, for a while, I wasn’t sure why God was throwing my way. I lost some good friends that I never thought I’d see go, pushed through some personal battles, and found that maybe Erika Glover wasn’t meant to lolly-gag through life. But now I’m seeing new horizons. I’m rediscovering Jesus.
This past weekend, my family and I went to Dale Hollow Lake, TN. I’ve camped there for as long as I can remember, some of my most fond memories were made there. Its absolutely breathtaking there. Its so quiet, and you can see so much of the sky, the sunsets are incredible, reflecting off the water. And while my dad drove the boat, and we glide across the water, I realized that it was my last summer home. Not gonna lie, it’s starting to hit me in all the wrong ways. I’m very scared of all the “last firsts” that are right around the corner this year. I’m beginning to realize I still have no idea what I want to do with this beautiful life that I was blessed with.
This is where the point of the post comes out. There is so much more. Life has so much more. As I look into what I want to do with the rest of my life (*sobs*) I realize that that’s the point. I don’t have to decide what I think I want to do with my life. I’m realizing that there is only one thing that is going to make me happy, that there is only one thing that I truly can spend my whole life devoted to, and that’s Jesus. And who better of an example than our blessed mother?
I thought my decision was a toughie. Can you imagine if an angel came to you and asked you to be ridiculed by your community, shamed by your husband, and to bear the son of God at a lofty age of 14? She took what God willed her to do to heart, and completely trusted in his ways instead of her own. Dang do I wish I could do that.
I find myself wishing that there was a class that taught me “how to life.” Unfortunately & fortunately for me, God thought of that. He just likes to call it the gospels. The gospel is focused on the conversions of the heart. Many say that reading the gospel is like a tour through the mind of God, and that each encounter Jesus has with a person highlights what our God cares about and what he doesn’t. Not sure if something else has ever been more comforting. The life and teachings that were given to us in the Gospels help us to understand God’s priorities, to help us get our own priorities right. Luke 2:19 says “Mary treasured all these things and pondered them in her heart.” By definition, ponder means to consider something deeply or thoroughly; to meditate upon. And meditate means to engage in a spiritual exercise for the purpose of reaching a new heightened level of spiritual awareness. Which makes me think, what was Mary pondering? I have to believe it was the happenings of Jesus’ life. She was the first to ponder the gospels. She witnessed the happenings with her very eyes.
Matthew 7:24 says, “Everyone who listens to these words of mine and acts upon them will be like the wise man who built his home upon the rocks.” And God is the ultimate rock. Anything that I do with God written on my heart will be the right thing, because I am surrounded by my Lord’s love. And there is no greater joy than that. Living in the presence of God causes us to dance for joy. It is easy to lose sight of his path, its easy to wander from his ways. Fortunately God isn’t leaving us in this life alone. But trusting in His plan for our lives and surrendering our own plans, causes everything we do to be good. It is said in Philippians 1:6 “I am confident of this, that one who began a good work in His name, He will bring it to completion.” Imagine the Joy of being close to the Lord. Imagine Mary’s joy watching Jesus play as a child, the joy of walking down a road with him, listening to him talk of all the good, listening to his parables. I firmly believe that living in the example of the life that God led us with his son Jesus leads us to the most joy we could ever imagine. He invites us to live our lives though the gospels, so what stops us from dancing with joy? Are we thriving? Are we living with total abandonment of our ways and putting it in God’s hands?
Now I ask you to think about your life, maybe it isn’t college and you're struggling to find a brighter future in your job, or you broke off a relationship, whatever it may be, offer it up to God and ask that he bring his light into that space. Ask him to lead you on a path that glorifies His name. Ask Him to give you the courage to continue. Ask Mary to give you the same joy she possessed & the faith to surrender her life to the Lord. Do not be afraid of what God is inviting you to do right now. And remember, “A joyful heart is the best medicine.” –Proverbs 17:22
some v jammable songs:
set a fire- jesus culture
alive in you- urban rescue
a future not my own- matt maher
I apologize for my inexcusable absence, life’s been chucking some lemons lately, but hey! Summer am I right?! Don’t think for a second during my break I had stopped thinking about you though, I've been brainstorming my comeback post for some time now, and I think I’ve got one that’s pretty relatable.
As you probably noticed while reading my intro, there’s a scary word in front of my name (senior, in case you missed it). And no, your eyes aren’t fooling you. I, Erika Glover, am a senior in high school now. My little sister is going to be a freshman at school with me, and I have to be applied for colleges in less than 6 months, BUT HEY SUMMER. Recently, and part of the reason I haven’t written a post in a while, is because I have been super stressed with a lot of things that, for a while, I wasn’t sure why God was throwing my way. I lost some good friends that I never thought I’d see go, pushed through some personal battles, and found that maybe Erika Glover wasn’t meant to lolly-gag through life. But now I’m seeing new horizons. I’m rediscovering Jesus.
This past weekend, my family and I went to Dale Hollow Lake, TN. I’ve camped there for as long as I can remember, some of my most fond memories were made there. Its absolutely breathtaking there. Its so quiet, and you can see so much of the sky, the sunsets are incredible, reflecting off the water. And while my dad drove the boat, and we glide across the water, I realized that it was my last summer home. Not gonna lie, it’s starting to hit me in all the wrong ways. I’m very scared of all the “last firsts” that are right around the corner this year. I’m beginning to realize I still have no idea what I want to do with this beautiful life that I was blessed with.
This is where the point of the post comes out. There is so much more. Life has so much more. As I look into what I want to do with the rest of my life (*sobs*) I realize that that’s the point. I don’t have to decide what I think I want to do with my life. I’m realizing that there is only one thing that is going to make me happy, that there is only one thing that I truly can spend my whole life devoted to, and that’s Jesus. And who better of an example than our blessed mother?
I thought my decision was a toughie. Can you imagine if an angel came to you and asked you to be ridiculed by your community, shamed by your husband, and to bear the son of God at a lofty age of 14? She took what God willed her to do to heart, and completely trusted in his ways instead of her own. Dang do I wish I could do that.
I find myself wishing that there was a class that taught me “how to life.” Unfortunately & fortunately for me, God thought of that. He just likes to call it the gospels. The gospel is focused on the conversions of the heart. Many say that reading the gospel is like a tour through the mind of God, and that each encounter Jesus has with a person highlights what our God cares about and what he doesn’t. Not sure if something else has ever been more comforting. The life and teachings that were given to us in the Gospels help us to understand God’s priorities, to help us get our own priorities right. Luke 2:19 says “Mary treasured all these things and pondered them in her heart.” By definition, ponder means to consider something deeply or thoroughly; to meditate upon. And meditate means to engage in a spiritual exercise for the purpose of reaching a new heightened level of spiritual awareness. Which makes me think, what was Mary pondering? I have to believe it was the happenings of Jesus’ life. She was the first to ponder the gospels. She witnessed the happenings with her very eyes.
Matthew 7:24 says, “Everyone who listens to these words of mine and acts upon them will be like the wise man who built his home upon the rocks.” And God is the ultimate rock. Anything that I do with God written on my heart will be the right thing, because I am surrounded by my Lord’s love. And there is no greater joy than that. Living in the presence of God causes us to dance for joy. It is easy to lose sight of his path, its easy to wander from his ways. Fortunately God isn’t leaving us in this life alone. But trusting in His plan for our lives and surrendering our own plans, causes everything we do to be good. It is said in Philippians 1:6 “I am confident of this, that one who began a good work in His name, He will bring it to completion.” Imagine the Joy of being close to the Lord. Imagine Mary’s joy watching Jesus play as a child, the joy of walking down a road with him, listening to him talk of all the good, listening to his parables. I firmly believe that living in the example of the life that God led us with his son Jesus leads us to the most joy we could ever imagine. He invites us to live our lives though the gospels, so what stops us from dancing with joy? Are we thriving? Are we living with total abandonment of our ways and putting it in God’s hands?
Now I ask you to think about your life, maybe it isn’t college and you're struggling to find a brighter future in your job, or you broke off a relationship, whatever it may be, offer it up to God and ask that he bring his light into that space. Ask him to lead you on a path that glorifies His name. Ask Him to give you the courage to continue. Ask Mary to give you the same joy she possessed & the faith to surrender her life to the Lord. Do not be afraid of what God is inviting you to do right now. And remember, “A joyful heart is the best medicine.” –Proverbs 17:22
some v jammable songs:
set a fire- jesus culture
alive in you- urban rescue
a future not my own- matt maher