Sam: “This is it”
Frodo: “This is what?”
Sam: “If I take one more step, it’ll be the farthest from home I’ve ever been.”-J.R.R. Tolkien The Lord of the Rings
Life is a series of “this is it” moments. Some you see, choices that loom on the horizon, and others slip past you, and you look in the mirror to find that your eyes have aged, that you have grown.
This quote says to me that each furthest step is a chance to stop, look around, and see how far you’ve climbed (or fallen).
Are you the furthest from God?
Are you the furthest from the person you used to be?
Are you the furthest from a physical place or person you’ve ever been?
Then maybe this is for you as well as me.
I’m writing this as an exploration of how far I’ve come, and you’re welcome to follow along. I want to understand my relationship with God, my feelings about life, and how my faith can be something I stand on rather than my accessory or hashtag. Life takes us places we wouldn’t expect, and I hope to find God in this more than anything.
Here’s a little about me:
I grew up as the daughter of a pastor with two siblings. Both my parents love each other and the Lord, and inspire me every day to do the same, even when I fail. I spent the first eleven years of my life in Asian churches where my dad was the pastor to the English-speaking/second and third generation congregants. He stopped being a pastor from then until my senior year of high school, and I attended a different church with very little diversity. I was home-schooled until 10th grade, when I attended and graduated community college, took a year off and struggled with being hurt by the church and the people within, then left my hometown for good. I served as a camp counselor at a Christian camp, then came to Western. I’m in my second and second to last year right now, getting a degree in English Literature with my eye on graduate studies in Library Science.
As far as my faith goes, it’s a journey. I came to Bellingham with little trust in the church or people, but knowing God was and is my savior. Each day feels like a battle lately, but I’m learning to trust again, and fighting to hold on to my Lord. He is my one true friend, the love of my life, and I want to serve Him with all my heart.
Continue walking on,
Michaela
One More Step 