Wise Wednesdays

It should be extremely clear to all of you by now that I love my alterations.  I like to leave you with something stuck in your head or draw your attention to my posts with the clever titles... even though I've been somewhat lacking lately! But this post has a new sort of purpose when compared with my normal posts about my daily life abroad in London.

My goal is to take one day a week (preferably Wednesday, to keep the alteration alive!) to share with you what studying abroad is doing in my faith. If this subject does not interest you, please feel free to stop back later as I inform you about my school day! For those of you who are interested to see how living in a foreign country affects your faith, keep reading.

For those of you who may not know or have just stumbled upon my little corner of the internet world, I am a Christian. I consider myself Baptist, as that is the church I attend at home but would identify with the larger Christian definition. I grew up in a church attending family, extended family even, and have always truly believed in God. But it wasn't until coming abroad that I realized how much deeper my faith needed to become and nothing has ever challenged my faith as much as this experience.

I've spoken somewhat openly on my blog regarding feeling homesick and missing certain elements of American life. Nothing really challenges your faith than that feeling of being alone in a city of millions. Not that I was ever truly alone over here, but sometimes you just feel that way. When you're truly down on life and saddened by the smallest things, I think that's when we tend to turn to God the most. And that is exactly what I'm learning.

If you ever asked anyone in my family if I would be sad going abroad, maybe only my mom would have said yes. I spent days texting her explaining how much I missed home, how lonely it felt sometimes, how hard it was to adjust... etc. Now I'm sure as my mother, those texts were incredibly hard to receive. To hear your child is sad is hard enough when they're right next to you but to imagine their sadness from across an ocean is, I'm sure, heartbreaking. So yes, I made sure to preface each of these conversations with the fact that I am so grateful to be over here and I am LOVING it.

But all of my conversations with my mom lead me to realize it was my thinking that was causing me sadness. I was dwelling on the sad elements of being abroad instead of thinking positively and trusting God that he put me over here. This is for sure where I am meant to be, I'm positive of it now, as it is growing my faith exponentially.

So mom lead me to read the book, Battlefield of the Mind, by Joyce Meyer. I'm not a huge fan of hers... especially on tv but this book has changed my life in a matter of days. Mom encouraged me to buy it and start reading right away, although she had had never read it herself. I started it while I was struggling and have honestly seen a difference in the way I've been thinking. When you come to grips with the fact that your thinking can change your attitude, it is life altering. Dwelling on the sad, emotional parts of your life is natural but healing only comes when you are filling your mind with faith-filled, happy thoughts. I've definitely seen a difference in the way I've been feeling over the past few days and hope to continue! (The book is available here at : Amazon - Battlefield of the Mind).

The book uses the verse 1 Peter 5:10 frequently. It talks about how after you suffer for a bit, God basically swoops in and picks you right up. The book is filled with verses regarding how although you may be suffering, God is right there. He doesn't leave you. You're not alone. I think this book is starting to truly show me that although I might be feeling alone right then and there, I am truly not.

So I hope you enjoy my little tidbit of how my faith is growing. I'm learning to trust God in every step of not only this study abroad adventure but in every aspect of my life. It's scary, yes, sometimes to give up that control that we crave as humans but once you do, you find a peace that is indescribable. Just ask my mom, my texts have been MUCH more joy filled these past few days.

In summation, I've learned that renewing my thoughts to be focused on God and more positive has really changed my outlook on this whole adventure. Not to say that I don't miss home at all, but I spend less time dwelling on that fact. And it has truly made an impact on how I live my life here and my overall happiness.

I needed this challenge. I was purposely sent to be here to grow my faith : I am positive of it. I'm not really sure just yet what other reasons I was sent over here but so far, I'm content with even just that aspect of growth. I plan on continuing to read this book and discover where I'm meant to be and what I'm meant to do over here.

My sincere thanks for all of your prayers and support for my adventure. I couldn't do this without you all, especially you mom.

Side note, please feel free to comment on any posts you enjoy, email me, etc. I would love to hear from you!