"How did I get here?"

Sundays are so great, busy, but so, so great. I had church responsibilities that took up most of my day, but I wouldn't have it any other way. I love being a part of a ward. I have always been a member of a LDS ward, but participating and just being a member are two different things. I am so grateful that I have had the opportunity to serve and be so involved in the ward I am in now. I don't want to get too deep into the details, but it is true that about 1 1/2 years ago I prayed about where to live at BYU, and God led me here. Here, where I have the best roommates, the biggest callings I've ever had, and made so many great friends. I am so grateful I prayed and asked and ended up here!

The interesting thing was that all my original plans had to get completely messed up in such a way that I pretty much lost everything in order for me to be able to get to where I am now. It was the end of summer, I was homeless, and school started in just a few weeks. I prayed and prayed asking God to show me where I should go so I could be happy, have good roommates, a nice apartment, etc. and for weeks I didn't feel directed or inspired in any way. It wasn't until the Thursday before classes started, and by this point I was feeling pretty desperate, that I was reading my scriptures and was inspired with the thought that I needed to change my prayer. That day when I prayed, I didn't ask God for what would make me happy, instead I prayed and said: "God, lead me to where you want me to be - where I can serve and play an active part in the ward." Then I got online and found an apartment contract on sale for where I am now and from there everything just clicked into place. Nice apartment, great location, the best roommates I have ever had, awesome ward, and a calling that got me involved from day one. My point to this, I guess, is that by seeking out God's will instead of my own, things worked out way better than I ever could have imagined. I ended up with everything I wanted and more.

I didn't intend to blog about this experience today. I guess I just have been thinking about it a lot lately because I know a few people, (let's be honest: I'm one of them), who are currently struggling with understanding and accepting God's will for them at this time in their lives. It happens to all of us at some point. Its only natural because its hard to take that step of faith, leave our comfort zone, and do something that seems so hard when we can't even see where it is exactly we are headed. The unknown future is scary and I for one hate change.

But that is where faith comes in. We have to trust that though we don't understand how, in the end everything will work out so much better for us if we choose to follow God's path instead of our own. Little sacrifices that we have to make in order to pursue God's will is in reality nothing compared to the blessings we will receive later. I mean think about it, God's plan for each and every one of us (His children) is the only one that can help us reach our highest potential. We can't get there any other way, and especially not on our own, so why doubt and why take any other path?
  
Still, I know it's hard in the moment. Its so frustrating not seeing the big picture and having to wait, wait, and sometimes wait even longer. But I can testify through my own experiences that it is all worth it. When you finally get to stop and wonder in awe: "How did I get here? How did things end up working so perfectly that I was able to do, learn, and accomplish all this?" then you will feel one hundred percent in you heart that giving up your will for God's, no matter how hard or scary it seemed in the beginning, was so worth it.