And one to grow on...

"Anyone who stops learning is old, whether at twenty or eighty."  ~Henry Ford

So, today I turn another year....umm....wiser (yeah, we'll go with that, I hate the word 'old'), and I have to say that I am so grateful that I am nowhere near where I had actually planned for my life at this age. God's plans have been so much cooler than I ever could have imagined. I won't say they've been easier by any means, but an amazing journey and learning process none the less. 

If there's one thing i've learned over the years, it's that we should never stop learning (no pun intended). We must constantly keep our eyes and ears open to what God is teaching us - through our friends, our surroundings, and our circumstances.

So today, instead of gifts for me, I come bearing gifts for you! In a fond farewell to my 28th year (Dear 28, you've been a heck of a challenge, but oh so good to me), I give you 28 things I've learned or words of wisdom i've picked up throughout the year:

1. All of my life, in every season, you are still God, I have a reason to sing, I have a reason to worship. 

2. Moving home at 28 can be more of a challenge than living on my own.

3. It IS possible to sleep on a 16 hour flight...all you need is a tray table, a neck pillow & dramamine!

4. We all need people in our lives to point out our "blind spots"

5. It's a small world after all

6. I want to pursue Gods heart with all of my heart.

7. God loves you as you are and not as you should be, because you'll never be as you should be. 

8. It is still socially acceptable to make music videos with your girlfriends in your late 20s. Ok maybe not, but my friends don't judge me for it.

9. God can restore friendships, no matter the distance or how much time has passed. 

10. True self awareness: the good, the bad & the ugly is necessary for authentic growth. It can be a painful, yet beautiful process at the same time.

11. There's no bad mood a motown playlist can't fix.

12. It's never too late to relive your childhood...even if it means shelling out some dough to see NKOTB

13. A red bull a day keeps the drowsiness away.

14. God's movement in my life is proof that I dream way too small for myself. 

15.  It's never too late to improve yourself.

16. Getting braces at 28 was one of the best decisions I ever made.

17. God is most glorified when we are most satisfied in him.

18. Faith is a verb. What are you doing right now that requires faith?

19. Trust God to the point that you believe what he says over how you feel.

20. The condition of my heart is critical to the effectiveness of my ministry. Internal health drives external impact.

21. People who cut me off in traffic, then look at me like its my fault bring out some nasty anger in me. I need to work on this. Jesus loves bad drivers too...

22. On my best day I'm just as needy of God as my worst day.

23. No one can know God who does not first know himself.

24. Love God, love others.

25. Love is to reveal the beauty of another person to themselves.

26. Everyone needs someone in their life who can ask you the hard questions about ourselves... and we need to answer them.

27. I've come a long way baby.

28. I've still got a long way to go...

and one to grow on...

29. It IS possible to write an entire blog post while sitting at red lights on the way to work. (Exhibit A)

“The road of life twists and turns and no two directions are ever the same. Yet our lessons come from the journey, not the destination.” -Don Williams Jr.

Grateful for another year to be alive,

Jamie