Sunday, January 1, 2012

Hello 2012

Well, it's the first day of 2012 and the first thing I need to tell myself is to blog more...

Last night, instead of having a party or going to a party to play drinking games, I went to church. I'd say that was a pretty good way to end 2011. Instead of having a regular church service like most Saturday nights, Pine Hills Church decided to hold an open house for people to come and go and take communion. Before we did that we were given a program that explained more about the process and some things to think about. One thing to do was to reflect on 2011 and some significant moments. Why 2010 was an amazing year for Justin and I because of our engagement and marriage, 2011 was a continuation of good things. The thing that stands out most to me is that Justin and I were baptized together. Not only did we get to stand in front of our church and friends, but our whole family came to support u in that. And what makes it even more exciting for me is that Justin got to help baptize me. What a special moment for us.

We also became official members of PHC this year. We have attended church there for years, we just got so comfortable that we forgot to take that next step. PHC really feels like home for us so it was a great decision for us.

I think those two things were such a great step for us as Christians. We were brought together with a great group of people through a bible study this year too. Even after attending church for so long Justin and I didn't really know more than a handful of younger people. Thankfully we got to meet a lot of great people throughout that and get to call all those people friends.

From there we broke off into a smaller sort of "life together" group. I know that these people were brought into our life for a reason. It's so amazing what we all have in common together and the amazing things we bring out of each other. We have so much fun and can laugh with each other yet we can turn around, open a bible and truly talk about God and our walk with him. It's great to have that sort of connection with people. I really consider these people to be my best friends. I've know them for such a short time, but feel so connected to them all.

In September PHC did a series where we needed to address our "next steps". It was such an eye opening series for Justin and I. When our pastor presented the challenge to the congregation I think we put little thought into it at first. Thankfully Nirup had asked Justin and I to go on stage with others during the service to confess our "next steps" to the congregation. It really put us on the spot and made us really dig and find what we needed to do next as Christians. I'm happy to say Justin and I are still following through with those steps and are growing as Christians every day.

I'm so glad and proud of Justin and I in where we are in our walk with God and the steps we're taking as individuals and as a couple to build a base to our small family. I know someday there will be more to this family and I really want to be able to set a good example to the children that we hope to have someday.

So, in starting 2011 I made the resolution to get a new job. In July I quit my miserable job at Kroger with absolutely nothing lined up. It was probably one of the scariest things I've done. I haven't been jobless since I was 16. It was taking a toll on my mental and physical health as well as on my relationship with Justin and my walk with God. I will never regret my decision. I miss some of the people, some of the job, and some of what I was doing. But I left for a reason. I'm so grateful for my new job and the wonderful people I work with. I had truly lost faith in people, I think. I forgot that there are nice people out there who will do nice things for you and who aren't just out there for themselves. I came to Fort Wayne in 2006 and transferred from my old store. I liked the people and the environment I worked in. The people in the store in general were a bit weird, yes. But the pharmacist I worked for was and still is one of the most amazingly generous people I have ever met. So for five solid years after being in Fort Wayne I had only come across a handful of people who were anywhere near normal. It just became the norm for me to expect the worst from people. I just realize that something somewhere is wrong in that place and it's got to be squished out for people to turn around, be able to do their jobs well and treat people how they are supposed to be treated.

So, back to where I started. My 2011 resolution came true. I haven't quite narrowed down my resolution for 2012 but I'm excited to see what it holds in store for me and Justin. Happy New Year!