MY Plans Have Been Cancelled

I’m a woman, and like most, I have my whole future planned out in my head and on a Pinterest board… or so I think.

Living in this sweet little town of Abilene, if even five people I know are getting married, it feels like the whole city is, and I panic thinking I must be behind! I’m guilty of becoming frustrated with myself when my own personal time line begins to fall apart, but I was reminded with a slap in the face this week that the timeline I might have had my freshman year of high school isn’t even partially in existence anymore… mostly because it never was. This “timeline” I stuck in my head was never mine to begin with, but God’s. He has been in control from the day I came in to existence and will be in control until I meet him again.

Feeling out of control is one of the worst feelings I can think of, especially when it FEELS like everyone else is totally IN control. (But as my best friend has said, we are all just really good at faking it.) I encourage you, just as I’ve had to encourage myself, to remember that every person’s “timeline” is different. We may not always understand why He has cancelled our plans, but as 2 Peter 3:8 says, “With the Lord a day is like a thousand years, and a thousand years are like a day.” We can’t always comprehend the way God has laid out our life… and that is a-ok.

Every cancelation, advancement, and delay I have ever faced has simply forced upon me an opportunity for something different… something in HIS plan… and that is something to praise God for.

Society's Smite

Smite:

1)      Strike with a firm blow

I often feel beaten down by everything I’m supposed to be doing, according to an idea I have in my mind. Just last week, I was having lunch with my boyfriend and I was about to order chicken. He was going to order first—a salad-- and I immediately was nervous, rethinking my order. Why did I do that? Is there REALLY a societal standard in the back of my mind that says I am required to order less than the man that chooses me every day regardless of what I order at a restaurant? Am I seriously that worried about chicken verses lettuce?

There were quite a few fine arts opportunities this evening in Abilene. I attended Dance Discovery’s “7” portraying 7 deadly sins and 7 virtues, as well as attending a block party concert. Both were benefitting different organizations. The DD show chose to benefit human trafficking. I learned that 400 girls are bought and sold on the streets of Dallas every night. Totally unacceptable, yet we let it happen. We as a society… talk about a societal “firm blow.”

I believe we live in a beautiful world. Which makes dealing with societal issues, even on opposite ends of the spectrum like my personal food intake or what is acceptable to do with young women, incredibly frustrating. The only standard we are required to face and observe is that of God’s and ourselves. I have too many friends that feel like the world is out to get them. That could be because of 1.) unrealistic societal expectations or 2.) a lack of self-respect and knowledge of the Father’s true love. Both issues are valid. If I want a societal standard based on the way God created us (which is “VERY good”) then it is every human’s personal crisis to know that they themselves were created “very good.” If society’s smite is becoming your dictator, do not EVER forget that you have been made in His image, and He will forever be smite free.

(I ordered chicken by the way. And it was excellent.)

Adoring Me and Abilene: "Abilene, Abilene, prettiest town that I've ever s...

Adoring Me and Abilene: "Abilene, Abilene, prettiest town that I've ever s...: "Abilene, Abilene, prettiest town that I've ever seen." Abilene, Texas may not be the prettiest on the outside but the people ...

"Abilene, Abilene, prettiest town that I've ever seen." Abilene, Texas may not be the prettiest on the outside but the people rooted in this town and the love it brings me far outweigh it's exterior beauty.

On a similar note, as a female college student growing up in a society struggling with self-love and an unhealthy desire for reassurance, I find myself comfortable with my morale standards, confident in my abilities, but apprehensive in my relationship with the Creator who made me perfect and the relationship that is me and myself.

My name is Kayla Copher and I'm creating a blog to encourage the things around me that consistently fall short of their potential: Adoration for your roots, and in this case MY roots-Abilene, Texas; and adoration for myself. God created me beautifully, inside and out. I have an incredibly loving boyfriend, family, and support system who are wonderful at reminding me of my self worth, but embedding self-love is ultimately no one's job but the SELF. It's time we start taking ourselves on dates, talking to the Lord about how beautifully he created us, thanking our encouragers, and growing where we have been rooted. I unfortunately have more faith in the beauty of Abilene, Texas than myself, a statement that may be contrary to what everyone else might tell me. It's time I start seeing myself the way my friends do, and helping my friends see Abilene the way I do. It's time we start "Adoring Me and Abilene."