another year.

there are many things i could say in this post, but my hope is that this will hopefully not be as dull as a typical New Year's rambling and that in one way or another i will be able to pass along the things that have inspired me over the past couple of weeks.

"And since then, O Kings and Ladies, I have been wandering to find him and my happiness is so great that it even weakens me like a wound. And this is the marvel of marvels, that he called me Beloved, me who am but as a dog--"

i, like the speaker of these words, have spent my life falling short of all that the Lord has for me. but, i, too, have seen Him and have wandered after him for quite some time. and a wandering is truly all that it can be called. sometimes i think about how we are all here, not quite knowing what comes next, but somehow it comes anyway. as i wander around this earth, all i can hope is for my wandering heart to be bound to the Lord by His goodness. i have spent too great an amount of my time here on this earth in fear and in silence and in stillness. Charles deFoucauld said, "The one thing we owe absolutely to God is never to be afraid of anything." even if i am wandering, as long as i am connected and bound to the Lord's heart, what do i have to fear? Jesus told me to take heart, because he has already overcome any hardship of this world.

although i cannot yet tell where this year will take me, i do know one thing. my eyes will see places i have hardly even dreamed of. my heart will know love so much deeper than anything it does now. i will meet people who will change my life forever. i will see the Lord's plan continue take shape in my life. and i will not be afraid to go where i am sent for my heart longs for these places and these people whom i have not yet seen or met. adventures are out there just waiting to be had and i am here just waiting to be sent.

2013, i welcome you with open arms, a full heart, and a willing spirit.