The Turnaround

I think I've finally made the Turnaround.

The past six months or so have created in me such a change that I can hardly call myself the same person that I was in eighth grade.

A year ago, my goal in life was to be famous. Be a famous oboist. Be a famous film score composer. Be famous for something. Be known. After high school, I wanted to go to college at Juilliard or University of Southern California and be a film score composition major. And after college, I was going to be skyrocketed into musical stardom. I wanted to be the next Hans Zimmer, James Newton Howard, or John Williams. And then, maybe, I would get married and have kids. But being a famous film score composer was more important.

Now, my goal is to help. I want to help the hurting in this world. The orphans, the widows, the fatherless. And I want my life to reflect a glimmer of light back to my King. I'm contemplating not even going to college after high school. If I did, I would go for composition/orchestration or classical performance, and how is that going to help me where I want to go? I want to go to Africa, to somewhere where I can love on children, feed the hungry, give water to the thirsty, and give dying people the message of Jesus Christ. And, yes, I absolutely want to get married and have children, but serving my God comes first. And if it is not in His will for me to marry, then I will trust He has my best interest in mind.

I've made a 100% complete turnaround. I don't care about fame anymore. It's not important. God's people are hurting, crying, even dying. And I can't just stand by with my fame and fortune and do nothing. Fame and fortune will all be gone when I face God on judgment day, but what I can have to show Him is that I spent my life helping his children. I want Him to say to me, "Well done, my good and faithful servant."

That is far more important to me than fame, fortune, or even marriage is. My God comes first now. Because I've made the Turnaround.

Faith Like a Child

There is no faith like a child's. I used to be pretty sure of this, but now I'm absolutely positive.

Lydia is 11 years old. She has two younger siblings with Down syndrome - Hope and Charlie. Her family had been considering adopting another child with Down's, but were unsure. Lydia fell in love with a little girl named Darya on the Reece's Rainbow site (www.reecesrainbow.org) and asked her mom if they could adopt her. Her mom replied saying that she would love to, but they didn't have the money. Lydia then asked that if she could raise $20,000 by Thanksgiving (9 days away), could they get her? Her mom said that would be a sign from the Lord, so yes. Well, Lydia has almost reached her goal. We are positive she will have surpassed it by the morning. Fox News is coming out at 6:45 so that Lydia can publicly announce her total.

The cool thing is that Lydia never doubted. She never doubted that the Lord would provide the $20,000. Not even when the world looked at her and said, "This is hopeless. This is stupid. This has no point." Lydia remembered that God would always provide. She had faith. And her faith moved mountains.

Don't let anyone look down on you because you are young, but set an example for the believers in speech, in life, in love, in faith and in purity.

- 1 Timothy 4:12