Falcon Footnotes

It’s that time of year. The time of year when there’s a major assignment in every class within three days. The time of year when sleep eludes me and I wake up before the sun rises or go to bed afterwards. The time of year when the rejuvenation of fall break has long since worn off, and Christmas, even Thanksgiving, seems years away. The time of year when I think…”Why (and HOW) am I doing this to myself?”
I tend to be quite a procrastinator (understatement of the year), and this becomes especially evident around now, when I have lots to keep track of. Tests, papers, projects, presentations: everything piles up and I’m just barely hanging in there. It’s times like this when I realize how important it is to take some time to rest. And by rest, I don’t mean sleeping in or taking an afternoon nap. I mean rest in the sense of slowing down, reflecting, worshiping, praying, and simply spending some much-needed time with God.
The tricky thing is: the crazier things get, the more I need to spend that time with God, but the less time I have to do it. I have to be more intentional about my rest and worship time and take advantage of the little opportunities that I have. For example, if I have a 15 minute block of time, I may REALLY want to take a nap, but how much good is that 15 minutes of sleep really going to do me? An extra 15 minutes in scripture would provide not the sleep, but the rest that I really need. Or, if I’m pulling another ridiculously late night and about to go to bed at 6…why not stay up just a few more minutes to watch the sunrise and marvel at God’s creation with some meditation and worship? I may think I need that extra few minutes before an exam to stuff all the information I can into my head, but spending those few minutes in prayer proves to be far more beneficial, time after time.
The Sabbath is especially important: dedicating an entire day each week to rest is one of God’s greatest ideas for sure. It’s crucial to step out of my busy schedule and just…slow down. Even if I do decide to attend the classic Bedside Baptist after a particularly sleepless week, I make sure to spend time in prayer, worship, and Scripture every Sunday. And I have a very strict no-homework policy for one day every weekend: sometimes Saturday, sometimes Sunday, but every weekend I make sure to just take one day off, no matter how much I have looming over me. And no matter how busy I feel or how much I need to do…the rest is ALWAYS worth it.
“So then, there remains a Sabbath rest for the people of God, for whoever has entered God’s rest has also rested from his works as God did from his. Let us therefore strive to enter that rest, so that no one may fall by the same sort of disobedience.”

As my sophomore year draws to a close, it’s mind-boggling to think that I’m halfway done college. Where did all the time go? I feel like I just got here!

Right now is a great time just to think about all the great times I’ve had here and everything I have to look forward too. I’ve grown so much spiritually and I’ve gotten so much closer to God during my time here at Messiah, and it’s so exciting to think about the things God has in store for me for the next two years here.  I’ve learned so much in my studies, and I can’t wait for all the things that I’ll get to learn soon, especially once I start my student teaching! And I smile when I think about all the amazing friends I have made over the last two years, and I smile even more thinking about how much closer I’ll get with them in the next half of my time at Messiah, and all the new friends I’ll get to make.

Last night (and this morning!) was Relay for Life here at Messiah College.  It was a fantastic event put on by the American Cancer Society and Messiah College.  Relay for Life is an all-nighter walkathon fundraiser, and all donations go to the ACS. Lots of people came out to participate and help raise money for the American Cancer Society.  It was lots of fun, with dancing, games, and hanging out with great friends.  But more importantly, we were able to come together for an important cause: raising money to find a cure for cancer.  We ended up raising over $20,000, which was absolutely fantastic!  It’s awesome how Messiah College is so involved in causes like this: it really is encouraging to go to a school where I know people aren’t just living in a bubble but actually care about the real-world issues that affect so many people.  My feet may be sore and my eyes a little blurry,  but I had a great time and got to participate in an important cause.

Spring is a wonderful time of year no matter where you are, but especially at Messiah!   The air gets warmer, the birds begin chirping, flowers are blooming and the trees are tinged with green buds.  Everyone shakes off their winter blues and the campus is overrun with students playing frisbee or wiffle ball, studying outside, or just lounging around and basking in the sun.  But to me, spring is more than just this.  As nature reawakens, God’s glory is shown throughout all of creation.  It’s nothing less than breathtaking to see the care and design God put into creating the amazing world we live in.   There are few opportunities better than now to slow down and take a break from a busy week to spend some time with God.  The beauty of nature shows both God’s amazing power but also his love and care.  It’s easy enough to enjoy creation during springtime, but what we really need to do is turn our gaze to the Creator.

Every year, Messiah College hosts Little Sibs Weekend. And it is the BEST. rn It was just this past weekend and everyone had a great time with their younger brothers and sisters! It’s so much fun to get to meet all your friends’ siblings. It’s a bizarre experience to see miniature versions of the people you know walking around Messiah! My two younger brothers and younger sister came this weekend and we had a blast. There were tons of awesome activities over the weekend…the musical You’re A Good Man, Charlie Brown, the Oakes museum was open, sledding on Cemetery Hill, Fantastic Mr. Fox showing at Parmer Cinema, special events going on at the Union, and even Owl City came for a concert! The little sibs love seeing what college is really like, and it’s fun to show them around and let them see what you’ve been up to while you are away from home.

Let me just start by saying this:

I. LOVE. CHRISTMAS.

They’re not kidding when they say it’s the most wonderful time of the year! I do lots to celebrate…I count down the days until December 1st when I begin the season, and then I go all out. I put lights and decorations up, I have a tree in my room, and I open up my Advent calendar every day (with chocolate inside!). I listen to Christmas music nonstop until the 25th…and of course watch all the Christmas movies! But…celebrating by yourself is no fun. It’s so much better to enjoy Christmastime with others, especially when your whole school does it together!

And I can’t think of a better place to celebrate Christmas than at Messiah. Last night, we started the Christmas season with a tree lighting: we have beautiful tree down by the main campus center that they decorate every year for Christmas. It was a great event: we sang some Christmas carols, read some passages from the Bible, and enjoyed the lighting of the Christmas tree. (The free pumpkin cookies and hot cider were a bonus too!) The entire campus is decorated too: lights everywhere, wreaths on all the buildings, Christmas trees in the dining hall, and of course, everyone’s floor… (more…)