The past few weeks have been nuts. I haven’t blogged in a few weeks and really just needed time to process life and all the changes that have been going on. I recently made the decision to move on from my role as a student pastor at the church I worked with. I took a position at a charter school back in my hometown of Rochester, NY and am super excited for this next stage of my life. I hope to use the talents, wisdom and passion that God has given me to impact my hometown and the lives of the students that I encounter. I plan to continue to blog on best ways to impact the lives of students, the community at large and how to lead the charge as a champion of students. Throughout this transition my fiancé and I have really been able to press into our faith in God, learning a few things along the way. The relationships we have made with people matter. We must trust the Planner, more than the plans we think we need. The best is yet to come.

The relationships you have matter. During the past month it has been these relationships that have helped me to navigate the major life changes I have been experiencing. People who have the ability to speak truth into my life helping me to weight the pros and cons of decisions and help cast a vision for my life. Making time to get coffee with a friend, people to help me move my furniture, and seeing people that I love help fill relational gaps that I’ve left behind. I got to sit with kids that I’ve grown to love and tell them the news. I’ve seen kids handle it with amazing maturity and seeing it as an opportunity to grow the Kingdom of God. There were tears of joy mixed with tears of sadness. Through all of this I saw the value of relationships. Relationships that help you make big choices, relationships that help us speak life into one another, relationships that encourage us to be the best that God has designed us to be.

In this process, more often than not things didn’t seem to work out the way I thought they would. There were hang ups, slow downs, chaos and bumps in the road. I realized I had these expectations of the situation, that I wanted things on my terms and my way. I think God laughs at that. I really began to learn this lesson yet again. To trust God, not the plans we think we need. We have expectations of the way things should go. Yet, God doesn’t need us to know His plans. He doesn’t have to show us how our lives will play out. We just need to trust Him, completely.

This mantra has come up a few times and I believe it. The best is yet to come. It helps me to stay positive in the moments of frustration. God isn’t upset or mad but simply wants me to be faithful to Him wherever I am. When we can look at our lives and see that the best is yet to come we can fully engage in our surroundings now. The best years of our lives of not some bygone age but we are currently in them. If the best is yet to come, then God isn’t done with us yet. Whatever season of life you’re in you can fully participate in the story of God because He still has plans and a purpose for you.

There are ways that God has shown up for me during this transition that have helped me to see His blessing in it. From the support of family and friends and even things coming up that show that this is where God is calling me to now. The people we do life with matter, respect and honor them, even in the midst of life changes. Look for ways to be part of Gods grand story wherever you are in life, knowing that the best is yet to come. Trust God, not the plans you think you need, just God.