I love spending quality times with quality friends. This weekend I got to spend the weekend with some great friends in Iowa, and it was so much fun!!!! Only in Iowa will people ask you if you walked through a corn field to get to where you are, and only in Iowa can you actually say yes!!  I loved getting to see my roommate’s home and family. The weekend consisted of eating way too much food, laying on the floor rubbing our stomachs because we ate too much, laughing, dancing, crafting, fishing, playing with puppies and kittens, seeing Iowa, walking through corn mazes, and eating some more!!!! The trip was a blast, but one of my favorite parts was when we first pulled into the development Abby, my roommate, lived in. Her parents co-own it and so she has a ton of memories with starting it and watching it grow. Anyway, she was super excited to be coming home, and as soon as we turned onto the road, she just went off. Everything she saw had a memory attached to it, and she couldn’t talk fast enough to explain each memory to us. It was so cool to see her excitement, and made me think of how many memories I have attached to my home and where I live.

I loved my childhood. I loved growing up in a big family and being able to just play and be crazy. I have so many fond memories, but one of my fondest is the way I looked up to my dad as a kid. I must have actually thought he was a superhero because whenever I was with him I was fearless. I was the kid who if my dad was in the room, would jump off the top of the stairs because I knew he would catch me. I remember when I was about five being on the tire swing, and my dad was pushing me. I was going super high and laughing, and then all of a sudden my dad’s face changed to one of worry, and I saw the rope the tire was attached to fall. I remember being so confused, since I didn’t understand what the big deal was, clearly my dad would just catch the rope and everything would be okay. He did, of course, and everything was okay, except that my tire swing ride was now over. I remember this story so vividly, and yet I feel like it had to have been a dream or something, because one, that seems to be too intense to be true, and two, I don’t know how the rope could have broke, that’s so unlike my dad!! Regardless, looking back that was how I was as a kid; almost ignorantly fearless since I didn’t realize the danger, but that is something I want back. I want my spiritual life to be more like that of my childhood. I want to be so sure of the strength of my Father that everyone else around me looks at my life with worry, and I am just confused as to why. I want to be like young David, looking out at Goliath, and saying to his brothers, “but why is no one standing up to him?” To be oblivious to the danger of the situation, since my courage is not based in my strength, but God’s.  I want to be the child of God that sees Him in the room with me wherever I go, and just jumps into His arms and His plan without fear, because there is no question in my mind, that He will catch me. The rope may fall, and worry might be seen in the eyes of those around me, but not mine, because I know He will catch it before I can hit the ground. That’s what I want. I guess some may call that kind of courage, and fearlessness, foolishness, and by the world’s eyes, that’s probably true, but it’s also fine with me. We are all fools without God’s wisdom, and so I rather be a fool for God, than a fool for this world. So as I strive to fearlessly live and love for God, I want to learn how to have this faith like a child, and jump into His arms, and plans for me, even when no one else will.