Plans

“For I know the plans I have for you,” declares the Lord, “plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future.” (Jeremiah 29:1)

A year ago, I didn’t believe this.

Although I had decided where I would be attending college, I was not filled with an overwhelming sense of excitement. After months of emotional stress (stemming from numerous things happening in my personal life), I was numb. It felt as though my life was happening to me, rather than me choosing it.

But here I am, a year later, overwhelmed with gratitude. Freshman year has been better than I ever imagined it could be. I can say with complete assurance that God’s plans for my life have far surpassed the plans I had for myself.

Despite my faith faltering a year ago, His faithfulness remained constant. It’s been incredible to experience this clarity and the abundant blessings that He’s poured out.

When I think about it, I always come back to this verse:

“…how wide and long and high and deep is the love of Christ.” (Ephesians 3:18)

For those of you who may be finding yourself where I was a year ago— a place of uncertainty, doubt and even apathy—know that He loves you more than you can even fathom. He has a plan for your life, and it’s better than anything you have planned for yourself.

What the First Semester of College Taught Me

We had lost our minds—my closest friends and I were dancing in the streets of Downtown Greenville just days before packing up our belongings and moving into college. Under the twinkling lights of Main Street, I was filled with fear of the future. I didn't want to leave my city, my friends, my life.

Now four months later, I have to laugh at this distant memory. On the last day of my first semester of college, I was in the same position as before: I didn't want to leave my city, my friends, my life. My new city, my new friends, my new life.

Here's what the first semester of college taught me:

Whispers with the Lord before shouts with the world.
Quiet time in the morning is the best way to start the day. Before college, I had never been consistent with daily quiet time. But setting aside those extra 15 minutes in the morning is so worth it. I've been amazed at how different my perspective and attitude is when I check in with the Lord before checking the notifications on my phone.

You can rise to meet any occasion.
I thought I would be a small fish in a big pond. With 5,000 freshmen and 32,000 undergrad students, I worried that I wouldn't have the opportunity to be a leader. However, I've found the opposite to be true. The more I pursue my passions and get involved on campus, the more I fall in love with my school. I am crazy thankful that I've had the opportunity to jump right into Student Government as a member of Freshman Council and that I was selected to be the Assistant Philanthropy Chair of my chapter of Alpha Delta Pi. I honestly can not imagine my first semester of college without these two organizations.

Football isn't boring. It's awesome!
I was the kid who brought a book to football games. I thought the whole ordeal was terribly boring. But there's something so different about it when it's your school, when you're cheering your team on in the student section. Granted, we tailgated harder than the Gamecocks played, but now there's no place I'd rather be than sand-storming in Willy-B.

The "college experience" is overrated.
By the "college experience," I mean the idea that college is a time to "experiment" and essentially throw all morals out the window in pursuit of a good time. While going out is fun—okay, really fun—there's a lot more to college than that. These are the four years that shape who you will be for the rest of your life. There's so much to learn and experience and explore, and most of that is done outside the bar.

I know that the remaining seven semesters of college are going to challenge me, inspire me, and grow me even more to be the person I'm supposed to be. And I can't wait. Forever to Thee.


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Next week I'll post my advice to high school seniors.
Sneak peek: It's all going to be okay!

It's All Greek to Me

Put simply, rush is an odd mix of an all-girls camp and the Hunger Games. You step into each house- ehem, mansion- and are ushered forward by a sea of beautiful women chanting tunes that will replay in your mind for at least twelve hours. One of these women links arms with you, and once you reach the chapter room, the largest space in the house, you try to be heard over the hundreds of other girls that surround you. You answer questions like, "Where are you from?" and "What's your major?" over and over again. It's nerve-wracking because as you evaluate whether or not you like them, you wonder if they like you.

Beneath the surface of the craziness that is rush, something deeper occurs. As the rounds go on, you break free of the monotony of small talk and form genuine connections. You fall in love with a house and gush about your "Rush Crush." While there's often heartbreak along the way, like when you get dropped by a house that you liked, nothing beats the sheer joy you experience as you sprint to your new sisters on Bid Day.

I came into the sorority recruitment process without an inkling of what house I wanted. That's the best way to do it. Because I had an open mind, I was able to experience each house for it was truly was without having any preconceived notions. From the moment I first stepped into the Alpha Delta Pi house, I loved it. At the time, I wouldn't admit to myself how much I loved it because that seemed to be the house that everyone wanted. I was afraid of getting my hopes up only to then be heartbroken. Throughout the entire process, my prayer was "My life and my plans in Your hands."

As the rounds continued, I was elated every time I saw that ADPi was still on my list of parties that I had been invited back to. During the second round, I spoke to two seniors who got choked up when they realized that this was their last year together. That made me choke up, too. At the end of the party, the whole house sang a version of American Pie, my favorite song. At that moment I knew that ADPi was the one.

Then, during Preference Round, they read each of us potential new members an individual letter saying why they liked us and why they wanted us to be their sister. I don't think there was a dry eye in the room. Not only did I like the girls of ADPi, but I wanted to be like them. They all were so endearing and accomplished and ambitious. They made me want to be a better person.

On Bid Day, over 1,400 girls gathered in the Colonial Life Arena, all anxious to see if we would have a happy ending to the exhausting process. Much to our dismay, Bid Day was delayed. We sat on the cold concrete floor and waited, and waited, and waited. After three excruciating hours of anticipation, Bid Day finally began. We formed small circles, faced outwards, and put our hands palms-up behind our backs. A tank top was placed in my hands. It feels soft. ADPi's shirts look soft, I thought. Sure enough, when they gave us the okay and I unrolled my shirt, I saw the greek letters Alpha Delta Pi glistening in gold writing. A giant smile erupted on my face and I jumped up and down. "Are you happy?' my Pi Chi asked me. "YES!" I squealed, and took off towards my new sisters.

I can't wait to experience the plans God has for me these next four years and the role that Greek life will play in that. I love my ADPi!

Forward

If there’s one thing I am, it’s self-aware (to a neurotic fault). So self-aware, in fact, that I find myself frantically typing my thoughts into the Notes app on my phone. On June 25th, I wrote:

I’ve been quite reflective lately. I think about what my life was like a year ago and two years ago. Then I think about what my life will be like a year from now. With all this looking backwards and looking forwards, I crave to savor this last summer. I want this summer to be its own entity. I don’t want to spend it solely looking ahead. I want to steal more forks with my friends. I want to have new hoodrat adventures. I want to lay on the beach and soak up the sun. I want the rejuvenating recess that past summers have provided. I want time to slow down.

I have always believed that we view time as having passed quickly after the fact because we’re not constantly aware of it passing during. However, this summer proved my theory wrong. I knew the season would come and go as quickly as the morning dew. Yet, even as I was aware of it, time didn’t slow down. 

Although the summer was fleeting, it was significant in its own right. I did what I once considered to be impossible: I embraced the present. Be here now, I reminded myself. I put down my phone, opened my eyes, and took it all in. I also let go of the past. It was a relief to stop reopening old wounds. For a while, I even brushed off the future. What a freeing feeling it was!

But now it is time to look ahead. I have nowhere to go but forward. It’s terrifying because it’s change; it’s terrifying because it’s the unknown. Isn’t that what makes life worth living, though? What fun would it be if God gave you an itinerary of every single thing that would happen in your life? There would be no surprises. There would be no excitement. There would be no adventure.

In your mind, there isn't enough room for worry and faith. You must choose which one will live there. And I choose faith. Instead of being anxious about the season of change ahead of me, I am embracing the adventure. I hope you do the same.